Have you ever wondered what life would have been like for the Apostles in the days after the Resurrection? They were so filled with joy, wonder, and a deep interior drive to share Christ’s message that they truly cared not about what others thought about them.
In today’s First Reading, the Sadducees were jealous of all the attention the Apostles were getting. They threw them in jail, God got them out, and the Apostles just kept on preaching, as if nothing had happened. Eventually, the leaders of the time caught on and realized that this was something out of their power, and the Apostles marched onward, to spread the Good News to all the nations.
I wonder what today’s world would be like if we truly cared about nothing other than spreading the message of Christ. Would we be filled with that same joy, peace, and drive that nothing would stop us, not even “the virus”?
It has got me thinking about mindset and priorities. How is my attitude these days? Am I so busy lamenting my boredom and restlessness that I have forgotten to be a beacon of joy during this Easter Season? Have I allowed myself to become so overwhelmed with worry and fear that I have forgotten what truly matters? What is really important to me? Health, family, financial stability…yes, but even if all these crumble to pieces, I still have my God!
The Gospel reminds us of perhaps the most well-known passage in the whole Bible: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
There are some that think we are in the end times, that this world is coming to pass. I am in no position to say one way or the other, but it has got me thinking about eternity for sure. If it’s my time to go, so be it. I would love to be the beneficiary of God’s loving promise.
Let us not be a people who prefer the darkness to the light, but rather a people who live the truth and come to the light. May our lamenting turn to praise as we join in the words of the Psalmist:
“I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.
Taste and see how good the LORD is;
blessed the man who takes refuge in him.”
Tami grew up in Western Michigan, a middle child in a large Catholic family. She spent early young adulthood as a missionary in Mexico, studying theology and philosophy, then worked and traveled extensively before finishing her Bachelor’s Degree in Western Kentucky. She loves tackling home improvement projects, finding fun ways to keep her four boys occupied, quiet conversation with the hubby and finding unique ways to love. She works at Diocesan, is a guest blogger on CatholicMom.com and BlessedIsShe.net, runs her own blog at https://togetherandalways.wordpress.com and has been doing Spanish translations on the side for almost 20 years.
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