"Seek ye first the
I am very sure that everyone has come across this phrase before, either in the Bible or in one of the songs that we sing in church. I think it needs no explanation because I believe everyone knows what it means. But how many of us, especially students, really say it with meaning? How many of us are really practicing or living it? I dare say that only a handful is living it in their lives.
I believe many of us are born and baptised as Catholics. But very often, we take our faith for granted. Converts are different in the sense that they found their faith and this makes them stronger. But both born Catholics and converts have something in common; both are children of God and have the same Lord. A Catholic student would normally just go for mass on Sundays to fulfil his/her obligations “I have fulfilled my obligations, don’t ask more of me” “I’m busy” “I have to study” are some of the excuses given when you ask them to go for camps or rallies. Some don’t even go to mass except on Good Friday and Christmas.
One question arises here, is it enough to attend one mass per week? You can give a million and one excuses for not attending mass and the most common reason is “No time” God gave us 24 hours a day and all He asks of us is 1 to 2 hours to be with Him. These days everyone spends a lot of time studying, going for movies or going online and neglecting God altogether. When we do badly in our exams, we blame God, we blame everyone except ourselves.
“Seek ye first…” again this phrase comes in. We do not realise that by neglecting our faith and seeking worldly gains, we are only cheating ourselves. When we learn to seek the will of God and His righteousness, He will grant us many blessings that are always much more than what we can dare to think of! Having material goods and wealth will not make us happy or contented. Even if it does, it will eventually dry up. By seeking God’s kingdom first, “…all other things will be added unto you”, it may not be wealth, fame or honour but peace, happiness, love, joy and little simple things in life and it is these that make our lives complete, whole and worth living.
Seeking God’s kingdom does not mean becoming a priest or a nun. It means spending time with Him and serving Him through our brothers and sister in Christ in whatever way we can. There should be a balance between studying and serving God. We ask God for so many things yet we are not willing to spend time with Him.
“…and it shall be given unto you” Asking for something without seeking for it will not bring any result. In conclusion, I say again “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, all other things shall be added unto you”
If you constantly seek, you will definitely find what you are looking for
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