Monday of Week 21 – 2 Thes 1:1-15,11-12; Ps 96:1-5; Matthew 23:13-22

We hear the words of the letter of the apostles: “the love that you have for one another never stops increasing [so that] we can take special pride in you.” We hear the warning of Jesus: “You who shut up the kingdom of heaven.” Am I an obstacle or an encouragement to others? A warning or a boast?

We are Christians – that much is known. But the style of this existence depends on us. An encouragement? An obstacle? Sometimes we are neither one nor the other. And it is not because of excessive modesty or pride. We close nothing, we open nothing – because it simply does not matter to us. The lifestyle of those who rush to the ends of the world, driven by faith, is alien to us. The style of those who are ready to call for the Holy Spirit in stadiums scares us away. The style of those who consider faith to be so valuable that they are ready to defend it, set conditions and obstacles surprises us greatly.

What is wrong with us? To proclaim His glory, to proclaim His miracles, to believe amidst persecution, to call upon Him in the temple, to be a sign for others – all openly, loudly, and in plain sight.