THE GOOD LIFE

A Living Sacrifice

by Megs S. Lunn

Megs S. Lunn

It takes a courageous man to defend the real essence of ‘love’ and make it his way of life to defend others in love, too. Rev. Fr. Aleksander Gaut, SVD from the University of San Carlos, Cebu City was our speaker during the Open Lenten Recollection at the Pink Sister in Polo, New Washington, Aklan last March 8, 2015. He loaded us with lots of real stories from his journey with the poor.  

His presence inspired us all who were present in the Lenten Recollection. It’s true, if a person wishes to see Jesus and his miracles in life, that person must be like Jesus and see Jesus in every person that he meets and serves.  Since everyone deserves to love and be loved, the kind of love must be standard to our Jesus. Everyone is embraced by God and through His embrace, He moves people to do the same. According to Fr. Alex, “The power and possession are use in life to serve the unloved and the poor. Jesus embraces all inclusively and His love is endless, with mercy and compassion.”

We need to be an instrument of liberation and not slavery. Though no one is holy, we still must do our best to be holy - one like Jesus. We should be a community that everyone longs for, a community of love woven as one. Our society is wounded. Our people are wounded. We are all fragmented in this modern world. We are all in pain. 

The recent massacre happened not because of politics and religion. But it happened because many does not have a heart and compassion for others. We have a social segregation.

Remember that we are not saved by God in Pain but because of love. That love should make us a transformer of that pain to love, doubt to faith and selfishness to generosity. We are all called – the transformer with mercy and compassion. We sacrifice for each other by caring and loving one another. We need to pray for others and that prayer must be coupled with action, “for prayer but without action is dead.”

I always remind my students to make ‘pakialam’. Have that social conscience to observe, to learn and to take the initiative to help. We love to see everyone with need. We need to respond to that need. We can’t consider each other just like a ‘commodity.’ 

Fr. Alex reiterated, “Discipleship is a constant struggle to be like Jesus.” During his talk, he told stories that inspire him and others, too. He said that in order for others to see Jesus, “We must tell them our stories of struggle, how we overcame it and how it changed our heart and others hearts, too. We must tell true stories and real experience where we benefited the miracle of Jesus. Stories that would touch the heart of others and change them to become like Jesus, too.”

We recollect to go back to our memories and think of who we are now, what we are now and if we have matured our faith in God. We listen to the speaker with the hope to get something that would motivate and change our heart, to live the best practices we experienced and do the same for others, too. The speaker is the instrument of Jesus to tell others that there is Jesus within us, within you and me. 

The challenge of Lenten Season is a process of identification to those in need of help. It is likewise a process that when we are able to identify them, it would change our heart, too, the way we consider people, not merely as a ‘commodity’ but as brothers and sisters, for we are a living sacrifice.

The beauty of sacrifices is what gives us value in life. At the end of the day, “we will not be remembered with a beautiful face, but we will be remembered as the person with a beautiful heart and soul.” /MP