Spiritual Inspirations & Bible Verses Archives

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Once the great English writer, G.K. Chesterton, was playing a little quiz game with some friends. He asked, "If you were shipwrecked and alone on a deserted island, what one book, above all others, would you wish to have with you?"

One of the players immediately said "The Bible," and gave a pious reason for his selection.

Another said "A volume of Shakespeare," and gave a very learned reason for wanting Shakespeare. Chesterton said, "Well, if I were allowed just one book on that deserted island, I would choose a manual of instruction on Boat Building."

Chesterton didn’t intend to downplay the power of the Bible but in times of survival, he chose the most practical means.

We’re still in the season of Easter. Easter is a feast of our redemption brought about by Christ’s sufferings, death, and resurrection. But the fact is, He already redeemed and saved us. What’s needed now is our personal response or doing our part in saving ourselves.

As that Chesterton story teaches, we have to be practical. We cannot depend on prayer alone. I’m reminded of a middle-aged man, who once approached me for counseling. "I lost my job, Father," he lamented. "I’ve been praying to God to help me. I even make novenas in Quiapo church, but why are my prayers not answered?" After listening patiently to his story, I asked for referrals with whom I could talk.

I rang them up and, surprise of surprises, a different version came out. The man owed the company where he worked R20,000 he could not account. The manager told him to pay the amount first before rehiring him.

That’s how he lost his job. But in the meantime, he was not doing anything positive, like borrowing or looking for some odd jobs in order to gradually liquidate the debt – except to pray. Praying, of course, is important and I am one who believes in the efficacy of prayer. But in this particular instance, along with prayer, he should have tried hard to raise small amounts to pay the company, thus regain his job and source of income.

The story illustrates a failure to do one’s share to save himself.

There are, however, people who can not help themselves due to extreme poverty, sickness, or physical defects. One time, the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta was criticized for her work with the poor as a mere dole-out service. Her critics quoted to her the proverb: "Give a man a fish and he will live for a day; teach him how to fish and he will live for the rest of his life."

Mother Teresa’s witty response was: "The poor we’re taking care are so poor they cannot buy a fishing rod or are so weak to lift a fishing rod."

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