Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead, and so enter into his glory.
LK 24:46, 26
ACTS 14:19-28
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
"It is necessary to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of heaven." You paid the price and You unlocked the gates to the Kingdom and You commanded Your disciples to go out into the world and spread the Good News. How will they know if those who believe are silent?
The enemies of the Good News are prepared to kill, destroy, maim, and murder all those who defy them and boldly proclaim the Gospel that sets us free. The Apostles and disciples gladly accepted all kinds of persecution, faced imprisonment, and were even put to death. Their courage must embolden us as well.
The Church You built was formed from Your pierced side. Those of us who have received the gift of faith with no struggle take it for granted but there so many all over the world who receive it at great cost.
The great tragedy of luke-warm Christians is that we take our faith for granted but those who have received the Kingdom of God through immense suffering understand its immeasurable worth. They evangelize with fire and fervor and make far greater witnesses than those who received the faith without any struggles, ever will.
PSALM 140:10-13AB, 21
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
I thank You for this perplexing time. It is a time when all that we once took for granted, all our hustle and bustle, all our toil, and our to-ing and fro-ing has come to a standstill. We are forced to be quiet and to take stock of our lives.
We would not listen to the quiet, still voice of the Holy Spirit, in fact, we drowned Him out with all the clamor and noise we made with all our useless activity and frivolity. Now, Beloved, we are quiet and we give You our focused attention. Life as we knew it has come to an end. We now hear the sounds of nature, the colors of nature, the variety of nature, the beauty of nature and we see all that God has created for our pleasure.
Many are learning to pray, perhaps for the first time or after a long, long time. Many are using their talents to raise the spirits of others who are alone. The Church is alive in a way that she was not and her people are beginning to understand the value of what we once had and took so lightly.
We needed this time and we do not know for how long it will go on but for as long as it is granted to us, direct our hearts, our minds, and our vision to appreciate what we have and to learn to share gladly and generously with those who have not.
JOHN 14:27-31A
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
In our new world of sadness, uncertainty, tears, mourning, fear, loneliness, sickness and death You come to us as You first did to Your disciples after Your Resurrection and You say to us as You said to them:
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid."
Nothing the world had to offer in the life we once knew gave us peace the world cannot give what it does not possess, an abiding peace that is only Yours to give.
We do not know when You will return, Beloved, but You have assured us that You will return. But for now, we must rejoice that You are with the Father and since we are one with You and You are one with the Father we too are one with Him.
You have vanquished the Enemy. This is true. Now we wait in faith, hope, and trust - expectantly, eagerly and in silence, our gaze lifted to You for the wonderful new thing that You are about to do to draw us all close to You once more.
LK 24:46, 26
ACTS 14:19-28
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
"It is necessary to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of heaven." You paid the price and You unlocked the gates to the Kingdom and You commanded Your disciples to go out into the world and spread the Good News. How will they know if those who believe are silent?
The enemies of the Good News are prepared to kill, destroy, maim, and murder all those who defy them and boldly proclaim the Gospel that sets us free. The Apostles and disciples gladly accepted all kinds of persecution, faced imprisonment, and were even put to death. Their courage must embolden us as well.
The Church You built was formed from Your pierced side. Those of us who have received the gift of faith with no struggle take it for granted but there so many all over the world who receive it at great cost.
The great tragedy of luke-warm Christians is that we take our faith for granted but those who have received the Kingdom of God through immense suffering understand its immeasurable worth. They evangelize with fire and fervor and make far greater witnesses than those who received the faith without any struggles, ever will.
PSALM 140:10-13AB, 21
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
I thank You for this perplexing time. It is a time when all that we once took for granted, all our hustle and bustle, all our toil, and our to-ing and fro-ing has come to a standstill. We are forced to be quiet and to take stock of our lives.
We would not listen to the quiet, still voice of the Holy Spirit, in fact, we drowned Him out with all the clamor and noise we made with all our useless activity and frivolity. Now, Beloved, we are quiet and we give You our focused attention. Life as we knew it has come to an end. We now hear the sounds of nature, the colors of nature, the variety of nature, the beauty of nature and we see all that God has created for our pleasure.
Many are learning to pray, perhaps for the first time or after a long, long time. Many are using their talents to raise the spirits of others who are alone. The Church is alive in a way that she was not and her people are beginning to understand the value of what we once had and took so lightly.
We needed this time and we do not know for how long it will go on but for as long as it is granted to us, direct our hearts, our minds, and our vision to appreciate what we have and to learn to share gladly and generously with those who have not.
JOHN 14:27-31A
My Beloved, Soul of my soul,
In our new world of sadness, uncertainty, tears, mourning, fear, loneliness, sickness and death You come to us as You first did to Your disciples after Your Resurrection and You say to us as You said to them:
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid."
Nothing the world had to offer in the life we once knew gave us peace the world cannot give what it does not possess, an abiding peace that is only Yours to give.
We do not know when You will return, Beloved, but You have assured us that You will return. But for now, we must rejoice that You are with the Father and since we are one with You and You are one with the Father we too are one with Him.
You have vanquished the Enemy. This is true. Now we wait in faith, hope, and trust - expectantly, eagerly and in silence, our gaze lifted to You for the wonderful new thing that You are about to do to draw us all close to You once more.
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