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Gospel Reading for October 01, 2025 – Luke 9: 57-62
RESOLUTE or DETERMINED
As Jesus and his disciples were proceeding on their journey, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” And to another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.” And another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home.” Jesus answered him, “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”
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If we follow Jesus and do not meet challenges along the way, most likely, we JUST THINK we are following him. Following Jesus is not easy because the ways of the world brought about by Satan is exactly the opposite of Jesus’ teachings. This is why it is very important to be RESOLUTE or DETERMINED once we decide to follow Jesus. Otherwise, we will be just one of those nominal Christians or Christians only by virtue of Baptism.
Initially, it will be difficult to follow him, but as it is in all cases of learning, as long as we are RESOLUTE or DETERMINED to learn, we will achieve success later. Sometimes, we think that it is difficult to do good, but once we get used to following Jesus, it will not be easy to go back to where we came from. This is because when we are “Anchored in Jesus,” or when we place all our hope, trust, and faith in him, we become stable, secure and steadfast in the midst of life’s challenges and uncertainties and we become truly good!
For St. Therese of the Child Jesus (of Lisieux) whose Memorial we celebrate today, it was not easy to be good. She experienced harsh criticisms and was treated poorly by some nuns in the convent which she entered at the age of 15. But through her consistent efforts to follow Jesus, and her belief that God grants the graces we need to be good, she successfully confronted these challenges with LOVE. Hence, LOVE became her vocation in life, making God the center of her life.
Let this song written by Simon Marak be our marching song –
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back; no turning back.
If no one joins me, still I will follow;
If no one joins me, still I will follow;
If no one joins me, still I will follow;
No turning back; no turning back.
The cross before me, the world behind me;
The cross before me, the world behind me;
The cross before me, the world behind me;
No turning back, no turning back.
