IT'S SUNDAY 5 P.M. NOW









Every day is a ‘Thanksgiving Day'!


I have never waited for a Sunday mass to thank God. A Sunday or a Monday… it makes no difference, if I do not have the Lord in my heart… And, the only prayer that invites the Lord home – my heart – is my profound gratitude!


The beautiful story of Shabari, from the Ramayana, is one of the finest examples. If our hearts are pure and filled with gratitude, if we keep showing our trust and devotion to the Lord, then, no matter what the world thinks about our status in the society – how it judges us and treats us – the Lord will surely surprise us by coming to our homes… eat with us… stay with us!


Shabari was an outcast woman in the eyes of the self-proclaimed ‘pure souls’. But, she kept collecting the sweet berries from the jungle and offered to Lord Ram in cups made of leaves, with the unflagging hope, that He would come to her humble hut and accept them…


And, Lord Ram did. Not only did He surprise this frail poor devotee, He ‘shook’ hard the hardcore … the self-righteous fanatics!


There is a similar story in the New Testament. Zacchaeus lived in Jericho, who was chief of the Publicans. In those times, the Publicans were looked down upon by the self-righteous Pharisees, who assumed, that worship and God’s blessings were their exclusive privileges…


So, one day, when Zacchaeus heard, that Jesus was passing by their town, he wanted to have a glimpse of the Master. But, being a short man, he wouldn’t be able to get his eyes on Jesus in the vast crowd. Thus, he climbed on top of a roadside sycamore tree and waited for the Master to come. When Jesus reached near the tree, He saw a short man on the tree and shouted, “Zacchaeus, come down at once; for, today, I must stop at your house”!


All that Zacchaeus had hoped to receive from the Lord was just a ‘glimpse’… And, look, what he ended up receiving!”


To me, that’s what prayer and devotion mean… That’s who the Lord is… That’s what the ‘Thanksgiving Day’ means…


And, yes, that’s also why I should do fasting and repentance: to delay my gratification, but, not my gratitude!


Therefore, let me not wait till Sunday 5 p.m. to say “Thank you” …


Let me do it now, right now!







GERALD D’CUNHA

Pic.: internewscast.com

Video: On Demand News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

MUTHU KODI KAWARI HADA

Image
Pic.; Ashwin Mohta M y Hindi was always bad. It still is. One reason for this was, that they introduced Hindi for us only in 6 th standard. Or, was it in 8 th ? I don’t remember… I only remember struggling to write and read… leave alone speak! But, I loved Hindi movies, and, strangely, I could understand the dialogues and the lyrics of the songs… I used to sing those songs (of course when no one was around me!) as if I was the lyricist… One of the songs was a very funny one. ‘Muthu Kodi Kawari Hada’. It was from Mehmood’s super-hit comedy – ‘Do Phool’. I was a 15-year-old high-school boy when I had heard that song (not watched the movie). I could grasp the meaning of two words – ‘Muthu Kodi’… which meant ‘Give kiss’… But, what ‘Kawari Hada’ meant, I have no clue till date! It was just like ‘Why this kolaveri di’... Yes, why ask? Simply enjoy the beats… And, the beats are great… The rest... Who cares? Really! So, whatever bit of Hi
Read more

"HAPPILY EVER AFTER IS NOT A FAIRY-TALE... IT IS A CHOICE"

Image
“Love doesn’t just sit there, like a stone… It has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new.” – Ursula K. Le Guin,  The Lathe of Heaven T welve years ago, when Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie got married, the world began to hail the couple as ‘Brangelina’. It became a fashion for couples around us to call themselves so… Norbert and Teresa renamed them as ‘Noresa’…  Amol and Vishaka baptized their relationship as ‘Amoshka’… and, Salman and Nargis became ‘Salgis’! I and my wife, too, got tempted to re-christian our matrimonial relationship as ‘Germa’... That is, Gerald and Anima, to be precise! B efore I proceed any further, let me make it very clear, here… that, I have no business to judge on the break-up of Brad Pitt and Angelina’ Jolie’s marriage. I have no inclination to go into why, how, what when etc behind it… The couple ‘chose’ to split. And, it’s their choice… Only they know how good or bad… how joyful or painful that
Read more

SELLING MIRRORS IN THE CITY OF THE BLIND

Image
“I laugh when I hear that the fish in the water is thirsty. I laugh when I hear that people go on pilgrimage to find God.” - Kabir T here is a universal human weakness – and it dates back to the days of fallen civilizations – and it is: to place people on pedestal and trying to be smothered by them, feel loved and protected in their company… worship them as mentors, heroes,  gurus, Mahagurus and Satgurus… Make these mortals larger-than-life cut-outs, worship them as flawless, pure and give one’s all… And, then, ‘take’ everything from them blindly as divine… Give everything to them blindly… Eventually, what happens is:  one more dangerous bondage… What was supposed to free you now becomes a new prison… It’s sad to see this happen! T his room, where I am writing this Post, has no image of any deity. I have no image of any Guru or Master around me… My question is: “Am I not able to feel close to Almighty God?  How does it matter
Read more
THE WILD, WAYSIDE FLOWERS
There is, always, something extra-ordinary in the wild, wayside flowers...