As we journey through the forty days of Lent, we remember that it is a time of sacrifice, almsgiving, and reflection. As Catholics, we prepare over these six weeks for the
crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. As God sacrificed His
only Son for us, we must, in our own way, take time to reflect on God’s gift and
sacrifice to help others to follow in the example that God has given us. Perhaps we
could help a neighbor in need or donate some food to a food pantry or care for the
elderly or infirm. We can be that light in a time of darkness. Take some time each day
and reflect and be thankful for what God has done for us.
When I was asked to write a reflection on this week’s Gospel, I thought I had hit the
jackpot! Everyone knows and has seen signs at sporting events that say John 3:16: “For
God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in
Him may not perish but have eternal life.” This is the essence of what we believe: that
God loves us so much that He was willing to have His son tortured so that we could
have eternal life. How powerful is this love that God has for us? It is love that is
enduring and never ending. God loves us when we fail or when we don’t follow his call
to us. God does not abandon us - no matter what. We may bail on God, but He won’t
ever bail on us. He will take us back every time. God wants to have this relationship
with us, but it is up to us to keep that relationship going. God will always listen to us,
even if we at times don’t listen to Him.
I often think that when things are going great, we forget about God; what do we need
Him for? However, when things are tough, to whom do we turn? We turn to God. We
have all faced challenges in life and sometimes we don’t understand why something is
happening. However, isn’t it great to know that God will walk with us every step of the
way? If we are hurting, He will comfort us. The promise of eternal life is an amazing gift
from God. It is so comforting to me to know that when we lose a loved one, we will see
them again. As Catholics, we look at death and a funeral as a celebration of that person
because we know we will see them again. Death and celebration don’t seem to go
together, and it is difficult because we will miss that person, but we know in our hearts
that God has wrapped His arms around our loved one and we will see them again one
day for all eternity.
I challenge myself and I ask you to challenge yourself by asking the question: have you
lived up to this most precious gift God has given you? We are only here on earth for a
short while. When God calls you home, ask yourself, have you tried to live up to what
God has asked you to do? Have you protected life from conception to natural death?
Have you helped those in need? Have you helped feed the hungry and clothe the
naked? There are many people in the world that help others, but we as Christians do it
in God’s name as a way of thanking God for what He has done for us.
In a world of darkness, God has brought light and we should share this light with
others. This past year has been very difficult on all of us; the pandemic has impacted
each and every one of us. We have experienced the death of loved ones, the loneliness
of being shut in, the loss of jobs and ability to take care of our families, and the
struggles of our children not being able to go to school. Many of us have turned to God
and relied on the knowledge that God’s love is comforting. A friend of mine has a
saying that stuck with me: “Today is a gift from God, what you do with it is up to you.”
Let’s reflect on this and work towards thinking of others instead of ourselves.
I wish you a blessed Lenten journey…Remember the pain of Good Friday will lead to
the joy of Easter Sunday!