Reflecting on one of the articles of Rev. Fr. Rufino C. Sescon, Jr. in his book “Glimpses of Grace” I consider his admonition as a kind of Formula for Happiness.
His admonition is: “Charge your heart with the love of Jesus; Celebrate what is right in the world; Catch a glimpse of God’s presence in your life”.
Since the admonition uses three verbs that all begin with the letter “C” I would consider it as the “3 Cs for a Happy Life”.
The first: “Charge your heart with the love of Jesus” means emptying oneself of all kinds of selfishness and filling one’s heart with a genuine unconditional love of Jesus. It means a total surrender of oneself to our Lord Jesus Christ, so He could truly live and reign in one’s life with a sincere desire to serve Him by always doing His Holy Will.
The second: “Celebrate what is right in the world” means looking at what is good and wonderful in what is happening right now in one’s life and thanking God for them. Oftentimes we just take things for granted, not realizing that every moment of our life is actually a gift of God. Indeed, the world is full of God’s creation which should fill our hearts and minds with awe and wonder. Every bit of God’s creation is a reason for celebration to manifest our deep gratitude to God for His infinite power and goodness.
The third: “Catch a glimpse of God’s presence in your life” means striving to be aware that God is truly alive and is in control of everything in this world, for there is nothing in this world that can exist even for one moment without God’s creative power. Since God is a pure Spirit, His presence is something that cannot be perceived by our senses. A spirit, I believe, can be perceived only by another spirit. Hence, it is when our human spirit could be truly attuned to God that somehow we could have a glimpse of God’s presence in our life. To be attuned to God is, of course, a Gift of God that He dispenses as He pleases. No one can earn it. One can only pray to be given the privilege of receiving this Great Gift of God’s Presence. We are told that in the next life this is one of the gifts we shall receive- “to see God face to face”. But in our life here on earth, it seems we can have only a “glimpse” of such presence.
Applying this admonition in our life could bring true peace and happiness. When one’s heart is filled with the Love of Jesus; when he is moved with deep gratitude for the manifestations of God’s goodness in this world; when he is given the privilege of having at least a “glimpse” of God’s presence; I believe these will bring peace and joy. and thus will serve as a “Formula for Happiness”.
By: Salvador B. Cagurangan
Aug. 30, 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment