FROM PANIC TO PART

 Scripture Text "They saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near to the boat, and they were frightened/panicked" Jn 6: 19

Theme   -             “FROM PANIC TO PART”  

I would start my sharing with the expression

 "When a friend becomes a stranger, it feels like a part of me is missing". In today's gospel, Jesus becomes a stranger to the disciples who thought Jesus was a ghost and they were unable to recognize him. A stranger Jesus made them panic. 

Herod was panicked about Jesus’ birth which would result in the deaths of many infants. Followers became panicked about his authority in words and deeds. Peter, James, and John became panicky at his transfiguration in Tabor (Mt 17, 1-9). From the time the Pascal mystery occurred until the first day of his resurrection, the disciples experienced panic. Later, they experienced panic again when they witnessed the miraculous catch of fish/haul of fish in Tiberias (the Gospel on Friday of the last week; John 21:1–14). Today, they experienced panic once more, which caused them to believe in nothing, not even the resurrected God, but thought of as the ghost. In contrast to the common perception, people follow Jesus around passionately, talk about him, search for him, and find an opportunity to go to him wherever he may be. 

In association with my journey, I experienced panic in times of chaos, exhaustion, anxiety, and perplexities - to use the metaphor of the sea – all of which I experienced: The sea is a large place where I immerse in human interactions, slipping and falling on the waves of my studies. I can't even identify myself in this moment, let alone God. However, the resurrection has given me hope, as has the new spirit. I no longer have a panicked attitude, but the journey has given me a fresh perspective and a new foundation. 

This makes me realize that my life will float and constantly drift if I hold on to the sea. But if I shift and connect to God, I will find peace just as the disciples did when they acknowledged God and entered the land. The P – in Panic has been changed - God is no longer a Panic but he is a PART of me, the spirit has cast me out of panic, given me a POWER, made a PATH for me to grow, urged me to meet PEOPLE, to PROSPER the encounter. As the disciples then, Jesus became a crucial Part of them, giving them the Power to Proclaim the Good News, the People who encountered them were Prosper in life. 

To conclude, in a daily journey - I am invited to inculcate God’s presence so that 

“The PROFILE Of God Is Never Be A Stranger In The Dark But Always A PART OF MINE.”

April 9, 2024 - Cu Mấm

Joseph Nguyen Le The Vuong, MSC