Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter
Today we have a marvelous opportunity to bask in God’s love. I invite you to sit back, relax, and soak in the love of the Holy Trinity, much like you might soak in a luxurious bath – only it’s so much better. Allow God’s love to surround you, support you, swirl within you. Immersed in God’s love, allow yourself to be drawn ever more deeply into God’s presence and listen for the voice of Love whispering to you the sweet assurance that God truly loves you, desires to be in relationship with you, and has a plan and purpose for your life.
Our Gospel begins, “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.” I invite you to read that first phrase slowly and repeatedly, emphasizing a different word each time. For example, “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son . . .” Then “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son . . .” Then “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son . . .” You get the idea. Repeat until you’ve uniquely emphasized each word. Take some time with that exercise and allow the Holy Spirit to impress particular words on you and speak God’s truth to you.
I tend to emphasize “so.” God SO loved the world that he sent his Son. Let’s personalize that phrase. “God SO loved me that he gave his only-begotten Son . . .” “God so loved ME that he gave his only-begotten Son . . .” WOW! Stop and allow that truth to soak in. You and I are included in the mass of humanity whom God the Father loves SO much that he sent the Son for our redemption and that we might have eternal life in him. Repeat that phrase a few times as a prayer: “God, you so loved me that you sent your Son to die for me . . .” What rises up in you as you pray those words? Continue to sit with the Father in prayer.
I heard a priest say recently on a podcast that one of the fundamental teachings of the Catholic Church is, “God loves you, God desires to be in relationship with you, and God has a plan and purpose for your life.” Let’s ponder that truth in light of today’s Gospel. God . . . loves . . . you. Continue to soak and immerse yourself in that life-giving truth. If that doesn’t feel true for you, take that to prayer. Ask God to reveal the depth of his love for you. Sometimes we feel unlovable or unworthy of love. If that’s you today, reject the lies of the enemy who seeks to discourage you. Pray for God’s grace to help you embrace the truth of God’s intimate and personal love for you.
God desires to be in relationship with us. This desire of God goes back to the very beginning with Adam and Eve. After they ate the forbidden fruit, they felt ashamed and hid from God. Walking in the Garden with them, God calls to them, “Where are you?” (Gen. 3:8-9) It’s not that God didn’t know where they were, certainly he did. In that question, I hear God inviting Adam and Eve to admit that they’ve turned away from God; I hear God inviting them to return and regain their fellowship with God. Perhaps you’re hiding from God today. Listen for his loving voice saying to you, “My beloved child, where are you? Why have you turned away? Please return to me. Let me love you.” There’s nothing that we’ve done that’s unforgiveable or outside of God’s mercy. I wonder if Jesus sits in the Confessional booth sometimes and calls out to us, “Where are you?”
God has a definite plan and purpose for our lives. Jeremiah 29:11 has been a life verse for me: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” Sit with that verse for a few moments. What is the Holy Spirit revealing to you? We see this assurance of God’s plan in the lives of the apostles in our first reading. So solid was God’s plan for them to evangelize that not even prison bars could contain them. The text says, “But during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said, ‘Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.’” God has a plan and a purpose for your life. What steps might you take today to better discern God’s will for you? Breaking it down, where is God leading you today? To whom is God calling you to minister today? What is God’s plan for today?
God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life. Alleluia!
-Elizabeth Wells