The Gifts of Easter Continue...

Reflection on the gospel reading

2^nd Sunday of Easter (4/15/12)

John 20:19-31

The gifts of Easter continue…

There were two verses from today’s gospel that stood out to me.

“Peace be with you.”

“Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

God does want us to have a peaceful heart and mind.  Jesus greets the apostles twice in this one reading with the words, “Peace be with you.”  Think about how you feel when you do God’s work or when you’ve made a decision based on prayer – we tend to be overcome with a sense of peace or even joy.  That is what Jesus is offering to us.  That is yet another gift He wants to give us, but we have to be open to receiving it.  If we insist on seeing the wounds - the lance in His side - or ask for miracles to happen on demand, we are missing out on the amazing beauty of God’s glory that surrounds us every day.  Our hearts are shut off from the peace that can be found in a simple still moment.

If we believe without having seen, we can find the peace that Christ offers.  That line in the gospel is speaking to all of US.  We are the ones who have not seen and have believed.  I feel like this message can be applied even beyond belief in Christ.  Even though we cannot see the plan that God has laid out for our personal lives, if we believe that He will sustain us and that He knows what will bring us happiness, then God will bless us in our journeys because we have believed.  He will bring us joy.  Through our belief and trust, we can learn to hand over our worries and allow Christ to sustain us…to fill us with “life in His name.”  I’ll be the first to admit that handing over my worries is not an easy task, but it is one worth striving for.  I believe that faith and trust go hand in hand.  As I work to build my faith, my trust will also grow, allowing me to depend more fully on Christ and His plan. 

The Upper Room

On Thursday MIYA  had a wonderful opportunity to join in on the experience of the Upper Room. The Upper Room, if you are not familiar, is a group of young adults from around the area that join together for a time of praise, worship, adoration, intercessory and open prayers once a month. I encourage you to join next month for it was an experience that not only rekindled my love of Jesus, but also allowed for my heart to be open to what God wants for me and those that attended.

We began with the Blessed Sacrament being exposed for all to see. It was an amazing scene as we all knelt before Jesus to begin our journey with him. As we began to take in the wonderful experience, we joined together in beautiful song of praise and adoration and internal prayer preparing our hearts for Jesus.

As we continued our journey with Jesus, an amazing moment happened when we were allowed to be silent and be with Jesus in the moment. As we were in silence, it gave each and every one of us the time to slow down and mediate on the true awesomeness of this moment. A moment of being in the presence of Jesus and feeling his love for each and every one of us. The moment where we could lay down our struggles at the foot of the cross and truly listen to what God is saying to us.

As we were moved by the spirit, many of us opened our hearts to Jesus and allowed him to move us through open prayer. The prayers of those present were beautiful. They were prayers of thankgiving and praise for what has been put into their lives. A thankfulness for struggles and the gratefulness for the joy that has reached their heart were touching. Father Michael spoke a wonderful verse from Philipians 4 that really stuck with me as a particpant.

^"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

I personally was moved to my knees several times and eventually brought to quiet tears. Tears streamed down because I truely felt connected with God and that He was listening to me. I was overwhelmed with the moment when my heart was on fire and in being in the moment with Jesus. The room, although filled with furniture, people, sounds of the air condition, singing, guitar and mumbles of prayers from those around me suddenly fell slient. It was Jesus, me and His love. What an amzing feeling! Nothing mattered. I laid down my sorrows  and concerns and thankfulness at the foot of the cross. In that moment of connection with Jesus, I knew that there was a plan for me. I lifted up my heart and shared with Jesus that I will trust with patience what he is doing in my life and the life of my family and also for what he has to come in my life and those around me.

As we closed the night, I felt a sense of calmness and relief as I had just spent two hours with Jesus and was able to have a dialouge in my heart with Him. I was encouraged to have faith and trust and to know that I am where I need to be right now. For many young adults, we often wonder about the paths and where they are supposed to take us. I hope that this post has given you some sort of encouragement to believe that there is a reason for everything and I pray that we continue to trust in the paths that are sent forth for us even at the most difficult of times. .