ONLY FOR YOU!
Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter
My dear encountered couples:
There is a very special, personal relationship that Jesus wishes to have with each of us. It is a relationship that is impossible to give to others or explain to others. As there is special, unique love between husband and wife, parents and children, friends and lovers that can only be understood and experienced by them, there is a unique love between each of us and Jesus Christ that no one else can ever even sample. It is all ours and only ours.
Jesus said to his disciples: “He who obeys the commandments he has from me is the man who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father. I too will love him and reveal myself to him.” The revelation of Christ’s love to you is one that only you can feel and know. Your receiving it depends on your openness to that love. And your openness is brought about by your willingness to live as Christ has told you to live - a life of properly loving God and neighbor and self. The commandment to live that life of love is given to all of us. How to carry it out in everyday practice differs for each of us. Jesus reveals that to us also, to those of us who really want to know, to those of us who are serious about life.
God has special love for us. It is to be revealed to us alone through Jesus Christ, by the help of his Spirit dwelling in you. Especially now in this crisis and surreal world, we realize that this relationship with our loving Father is so vital, so essential to our very being. Yet we know that we have let the relationship not be nurtured as it should. Instead our time is focused on getting ready for Zoom meetings with our families or friends or students, and do the follow-up necessary from the Zoom meeting. We seem to have forgotten our Father and scheduling time with Him.
As a read and reflected on today’s readings, I may be no better than the Lystrans and their wanting to pay homage through their sacrifices. I’m so busy paying homage to all my electronic devices to keep working and not let anyone down, I let myself down and let my most important relationship be unnurtured. I know when I open that door, my BFF will be there. Jesus will be sitting there – He has not moved away, just waiting for me to “wake up.”
