Kia tau te rangimarie ki a koutou. Last Thursday, June 11th, was the Feast of the Apostle Barnabas, seen in the photo with St Paul. The first Scripture reading that day was from the Acts of the Apostles. Part of the Reading said: “The Church in Jerusalem heard about this and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. There he could see for himself that God had given grace, and this pleased him, …“ (Acts 11: 22-24)
For some reason that day these words appealed to me and I began to reflect on them. I asked myself that if I approached different situations and different people would it make a difference if I tried to see where God has given grace? Could I look and try to see the positive and realise that God is already there at work? Would this help me to be pleased about this?
It seemed to me to be energising to think that I could see that God’s grace is at work, and I can be pleased with this. The actions and attitude of Barnabas became a valuable lesson for me. I have known for a long time that it is always my responsibility to try to change things in our world. I know that I cannot sit back and expect everyone else to change.
I also know however that we can support and encourage one another. Therefore, I share the above thoughts this week. If we could all look and see that God has given his grace there will be more peace and harmony in our world. When we see God’s grace at work in all people, regardless of colour, religion, age status, then maybe we, like Barnabas, will be pleased, not at what we have done, but what God’s grace is doing. The more pleased we are the more grateful we will be.
With every blessing
Naku noa
+ John