saying no....

It is our life to help the needy.
There is something very beautiful in helping. But the Lord tells us, we must be ready to distinguish between the needy and the foolish.

When the foolish asks for help, they should not be helped. Why?

Because in cooperating with their foolishness, we are conniving with their actions of foolishness and we are tolerating them to continue doing the acts of foolishness. In the end, we never help them take the challenge to change and become better Christians.

There is a Chinese saying that goes,"If you give fish to a poor man, you give him food for one day, but if you give him a fishing rod, you give him food for a lifetime." The poor man may not apprecaite it right away but the fishing rod will offer him the challenge to fish himself, to realize his dignity as a child of God.

Today, the Lord reminds us to help the needy, clothe the naked, feed the hungry. But the Lord is also telling us to be smart and wise.

When you see something foolish going on, learn to say NO.

To be a Christian means to say YES to God but to be a Christian also means saying NO to foolishness. In saying no to the foolish, we help them realize their self-worth. In refusing help, the five wise virgins actuallly made the foolish virgins realize what they can do.

Letr us pray for a soft heart for the needy but let us also pray never to compromise with foolishness.

Let us pray for the grace to be compassionate, to be gentle to those who truly need our help.

But let us also recognize foolishness and challenge the foolish to ro rise up according to the capacity that God gave them.

As we continue to observe the Disciplines of Lent, let us ask God to give us the strength to learn how to say NO to foolishness.

Bless you all...