What Troubles You?

“I am troubled now.  Yet what should I say?
‘Father, save me from this hour’?
But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour.”

John 12:27

As Jesus entered into Jerusalem for the final time before His Passion, the Greeks were beginning to grow curious about Jesus. They tell Philip they want to see Jesus, so he goes and tells Andrew, who in turns tells Jesus. Perhaps we expect Jesus to become overwhelmed with joy and excitement that others might be moved by His works to come to knowledge of God, but the reaction of Jesus was very different.

He goes on to say that the “hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified” and gives the imagery of the grain that must die so that fruit might be borne. When one hears of being “glorified” perhaps the image of a throne comes to mind or some dramatic scene where the person is held in high esteem and celebrated like a king. But Jesus’s glorification was far from that. It was not a lofty throne or even a few people bowing down to Him. Jesus’s glorification was His Passion and the Cross. Jesus reminded His disciples that to truly live means to lay down one’s life and that those who follow Him must have their eyes and hearts set on things not of this world, but that which comes from the Father.

Then, Jesus utters words filled with emotion, “I am troubled now,” giving us a glimpse of the human nature of Jesus. What must have been weighing on Jesus’s heart, the burdens of the world, the weight of humanity’s sins. But even in the moment of a troubled heart, Jesus surrendered to the will of the Father, abandoning Himself so that others might come to experience the love of God. Jesus did not allow fear to cloud His judgement. He knew fully what His mission was and what the will of His Father was for Him. When one is in right relationship with God, trials and tribulations do not have power over them. They acknowledge their own fears and weaknesses, yes, but they also acknowledge the power of God, trusting that no trouble can match the power that comes from the Father. So, as Christians, we must remember that troubles will come, but we must neither let them overtake us nor pretend they do not exist because both are from the enemy.

What are the things that trouble you? Look at them with the Lord today and pray, “I am troubled, Lord. What should I say or do but to I surrender them all to You, for you have come to make all things new.”

Click below to watch this week’s reflection.

Letting the Light In

“But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, 
so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.”

John 3:21

Blessed Fourth Sunday of Lent! On this day the Church implores us to “rejoice;” hence this Sunday of Lent is known as Laetare Sunday from the Latin meaning “to rejoice.” Why does the Church tell us to rejoice during what is supposed to be a solemn, penitential season? Because of that to which we look forward: the Resurrection. In His great love for us, the Father sent His only begotten Son into the world so that while we were still dead in our sin we might be saved. For this, how can we not rejoice? Although our salvation has been won, we must choose to live a life that leads us to it.

Jesus is the Light that has come into this world of darkness so that those who wish to run to the light might be saved. Many people choose to live in the darkness, and by darkness I do not mean the physical darkness that comes at nightfall, but the darkness that clouds our minds and hearts. The darkness seems to be a place of darkness, a place where one can do and say what one would not in the light, in public. A place where immorality and the lure of the world rule. Sometimes we prefer the dark because living in the light becomes difficult. Following the Commandments becomes burdensome. Praying seems useless. It’s just so much easier living in the dark, not having to worry about laws and rules. Life becomes easier not having to stand up for the truth. And once we allow ourselves to get comfortable in the darkness, our lives slowly become less and less conformed to the heart of Jesus. On the surface, it may seem like life becomes so much easier and better, but soon we will experience pain and sorrow because a life apart from God is a life that will slowly turn into emptiness. We might experience some temporary comfort and even pleasure and joy in the darkness, but it will not last. We must allow the Light of Christ to penetrate our hearts.

When we live in the darkness, we allow the enemy to rule our hearts and desires. And we know the tactics of the enemy. First he lures us is, makes us feel good about the things we do and choices we make and then he attacks us and accuses us, making us feel bad for falling into his traps, attacking our faith and and highlighting our infidelity to God. This usually leads us further deeper into the darkness because of our shame and guilt. But, brothers and sisters, at those moments we must turn to God and allow His light to enter into our hearts. We must slowly walk towards the light and leave behind the darkness. It will not be easy at first, but we must keep going. Just as turning on the lights after being in the dark for a movie will make us want to cover our eyes and faces so too will this initial step of walking towards the light. The natural tendency will be to go back into the darkness, but we must go away from it. We must let the light in.

God does not require us to be perfect. He simply needs us to want to return and for us to seek Him. All that is needed is for us to say, “Lord, I want to leave the darkness. Let Your light shine in my darkness.” God will do the rest. It is less about what we have to do, and more about what we allow God to do in and through us. Once we allow the light to enter into our hearts, the other places of darkness will slowly dispel and the enemy will flee. When we see and experience this, how can we not rejoice?

Have you checked out “Return to Me,” a book of Lenten Reflections? If not, I invite you to pray with me using it this week. Each day’s reflection (and other Lenten resources) can be accessed here. Pray with me!

Click below to watch this week’s reflection.

Choosing Your Battles

“Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 
but we proclaim Christ crucified, 
a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.”

1 Corinthians 1:22-23

When we experience some discord or find ourselves on the receiving end of some injustice and we are thinking about saying something back or retaliating, someone may offer some words of wisdom saying, “choose your battles wisely.” Those are indeed wise words, but there are some battles that come without our choosing it and some battles that we must choose to fight.

As time for Passover neared, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. When He arrived at the Temple, He found moneychangers and people selling various livestock filling the temple area. This did not sit well with the Lord. The Temple ought to be a place of prayer and worship, but it has become a den of thieves, a place marketplace. But we also need to understand something. They moneychangers and salespeople were there for a reason. Sacrifice was a big part of the Jewish worship, and the animals offered need to meet certain criteria, and so these salespeople were simply offering a service to help worshippers. But could it really be that simple? If so, why was Jesus so mad? It was greed and loss of priorities that set Jesus off.

The moneychangers and salespeople were charging people excessively, putting heavy burdens on people who wanted to worship from the bottom of their hearts. People using God to benefit themselves. How disgraceful? How disgusting? How real. We see this later when indulgences were sold, offering pardoning of sins and even lessened time in purgatory for a favorable amount of money. And we also hear of the Church cheating people of their money, selling of positions, etc. This happens today still in other forms, whether it be clergy taking advantage of the people whom they serve or Church organizations using monies for inappropriate uses. So, Jesus was angry at this. This was a battle that Jesus chose to fight, a battle that could not go unchallenged.

People have lost sight of why the Temple was there. It was first and foremost for the worship of God, not a place to make a profit. Instead of following the spirit of the law, they focused simply on the letter of the law or not following the law at all. Jesus wanted to remind the people of this — to love God with all their hearts, minds, souls, and beings. To do what is right, to reject lies, and to stand up for the truth. In other words, to choose the battles that must be fought. St. Paul tells us that the Jews demanded signs and the Greeks sought wisdom, but Christians proclaim Christ crucified. Signs and wisdom apart from God mean nothing. The Jews kept asking Jesus to show a sign that He has authority to say this or do that. The Greeks had no notion of an all-powerful and monotheistic God, but focused on seeking wisdom. Those were battles that were worth fighting for them. For Jesus, the battles that were worth fighting were battles that transcended the natural realm. The battle for salvation, for eternal life.

Brothers and sisters, what are the battles we are willing to fight? Do we speak for the voiceless? Do we protect the vulnerable? Do we stand up for the Truth? Do we say no to the devil? When we hear the advice, “choose your battles wisely,” may we not base our decisions on the probability of winning, but rather on whether or not they conform with what is right, good, and true. May we, like the Lord, have the courage and strength to drive out the evil in our communities and restore the holiness that ought to dwell.

Click below to watch this week’s reflection.