Last week, if you came to Church, you would have heard Jesus telling us to “pray continually and never lose heart.” He reminded us persevering in prayer, because prayer is not just for hard times, it is not just when we need God we start to pray — it’s a way of living for our life. Keep trusting. Keep knocking the door. Keep speaking to God who loves us.

For those who watch the Olympics, one of the so-called “blue ribbon” or glamour events is the 100-metre dash. It is a race where most of the time it will be over in about 10 seconds.

Today, the first reading, from the Second Book of Kings, speaks about Naaman the Syrian. This is a beautiful reading that all of us need to remember because it is a wonderful teaching about our relationship with God.

One of the more difficult sayings of Jesus is in today’s gospel: “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to the mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted’ and it would obey you.” Wow.

Today’s readings speak with one voice. They give us a warning, a challenge, and an invitation. And they leave us with one very powerful question: Are we really seeing the people around us?

There was this story of an old but sick man who won a huge prize from lotto. The relatives were afraid that if they broke this news, he might have a heart attack and die.

Today our Holy Mother Church celebrates the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The purpose of this feast is to focus our hearts and minds on the Cross of Christ.

For those, like me, who have ever played the game “Pokemon Go”, you might be able to relate with me. As far as I understand the game, you capture as many Pokemon monsters as you can.

In 2018, I attended the episcopal ordination of Bishop Ewald Sedu, in Maumere. Maumere is a very Catholic town, on the very Catholic island of Flores, in very Christian eastern Indonesia. Not surprisingly, this ceremony was a very grand affair.

Last Wednesday, I had the chance to attend an interfaith network gathering, held once a year since 1989. About fifty people came—Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Orthodox Christians, and us Catholics—all in one room.