LABOURERS IN THE LORD'S VINEYARD

“… A LABOURER DESERVES HIS WAGES” LK.10,6- ALL TO THE GREATER GLORY OF GOD. BY REV FR PAUL IKECHUKWU OGUJIOFFOR, S.P.S. OKIGWE.
God never allows his servants to be in want’,
And the Psalmist said: “The Lord is my shepherd there is nothing I shall want”,
Indeed Christ was aware of this,
Hence he said, ” a labourer deserves his wages”.
Christ mandated us priests of the necessary things needed in the mission,
He also knew of the difficulties involved,
Hence he said, ” I am sending you out like a lamb among wolves”,
He also emphasized, “if you want to be my follower carry your cross everyday and follow me”.
Being a labourer in Christ’s vineyard implies imitating him,
This imitation is engraved in the sincere following of Christ,
For Christ, we are to be sustained in the vineyard,
In union with other things the wage ought to sustain us individually.
As a sincere servant our “WANTS” should not be prior to our “NEEDS”,
When the “spirit of want” is more than the “spirit of need” in the priestly life,
There is always a cohesion between spirituality and morality,
Indeed egocentricism and bankruptcy in priestly dignity evolves.
The result of this is lack of shame,
No shame in our urge for the pursue of money,
No shame in an unholy competitions,
No shame in our words and actions.
When we become “breadwinners” outside the sincere mission of Christ,
Our personal wants increases in geometric progression,
Then our hearts and minds will travel even faster than sound,
Thereby the genuine sacrifice of priestly life is in total eclipse.
In my priestly life I need to re-emphasize the virtue of detachment,
The spirit of detachment will help me increase the sincere love of the wage,
The wage ought not be weighed or equated in quantity,
For the spirit of weighing increases the inordinate search of “wants”.
This inordinate search of “wants”,
Makes the priest to be “invisible” (unavailable) in his area of apostolate,
When he is visible (available) many a time he is incomprehensible,
Why? Because his thoughts, words and actions mostly in liturgical services are incoherent.