(1 Kgs 17:7-16, Mt 5:13-16)
In the Sermon on the Mount, where the Lord proclaimed the Beatitudes, He embraced the realities each of us encounters in our daily lives and turned them into grounds for spiritual blessing, to be transformed within God’s love and wisdom. Even if those realities seem negative, the Lord surpasses our human judgment and expectations, fundamentally bringing all things into harmony, and transforming them once again into graces that will find fulfillment in the Kingdom of God.
Therefore, even if our present circumstances appear humble and poor, the daily sweat and tears we offer with all our heart and devotion will never remain a vanishing illusion. This is also a precious gift of memory that I, lacking though I am, have personally experienced along my own life's journey.
The widow of Zarephath generously gave away her last handful of flour and the little oil left in her jug, following the word of God spoken through Elijah. And as 1 Kings 17:16 tells us, “The jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry,” bringing her a wonderful blessing.
Mother Teresa once said that we do not share from our wealth, but rather, even in our poverty, we give of our very existence. To give a portion of what we own is merely to give that specific thing. However, to give our existence—even when we are poorly destitute—is to offer a love so complete that no room is left for oneself. While material possessions, which are only a part of what we own, diminish, shrink, and eventually exhaust over time, a heart that has given its all will continue to pass its spark from heart to heart, keeping the precious ember alive and brightening the darkened soul.
In the Gospel of Matthew (5:13, 14, 15, 16), the Lord says:
“You are the salt of the earth. ... You are the light of the world. ... Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand. ... Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”
Only when salt loses its shape and dissolves can it truly bring out flavor; only when a candle melts and consumes itself can it dispel the darkness. It is when we pass through the poverty of self-emptying that we can truly understand the hollow pain and loneliness of others. Only when we rise above the agonizing struggles that burn our hearts can we heal the souls of the wounded and become instruments of the Lord’s Gospel, adding light to the world. For at the foundation of healing the reality of poverty through our own poverty lies the power of compassion and spiritual grace that embraces all things.
Therefore, no matter what trials or hardships we face, when we cultivate the strength to embrace everything as part of our journey and offer ourselves in pure love without calculating what is left, these hardships will return to us as blessings capable of bearing the fruits of goodness and love upon this earth.
Let us petition for the grace of wide wisdom and courage to endure until the very end, with the insight to turn every circumstance permitted in our lives into a stepping stone that supports our journey toward God’s love and blessing. And let us move forward in faith, so that in the end, we may beautifully shine with the light of the Lord. Amen.