Finding God In Our Hearts with Msgr. Don Fischer

Gospel Mark 11:27-33 Jesus and his disciples returned once more to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple area, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders approached him and said to him, "By what authority are you doing these things? Or who gave you this authority to do them?" Jesus said to them, "I shall ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was John's baptism of heavenly or of human origin? Answer me." They discussed this among themselves and said, "If we say, 'Of heavenly origin,' he will say, 'Then why did you not believe him?' But shall we say, 'Of human origin'?"– they feared the crowd, for they all thought John really was a prophet. So they said to Jesus in reply, "We do not know." Then Jesus said to them, "Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.” Reflection Jesus in this passage exposes something in the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders. They had a position of authority, but they had no interior authority, because they did not open themselves to the source of all authority. And that's authenticity. The truth. And when Jesus poses a problem for them, and their answer is, they do not know. They weren't admitting that they don't know, but what Jesus wanted them to say is, we don't listen to your truth. Closing Prayer Father, open our eyes and our minds to your truth. It is the one gift that you have given us that can change the world and free it from all illusion and lies. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Luke 1:39-56 Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever.” Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home. Reflection One cannot understand the New Testament without the Old Testament. It's connected. And it's interesting, in this story we see John the Baptist, the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, being born at the same time as Jesus, and they are cousins. It makes a very interesting link from the old to the new. And the fundamental differences may be seen in this story. When Elizabeth praises Mary for having trusted in the promise that was made to her. And Mary gives all the praise to God in the canticle that she she proclaims, and manifesting the newness of what Jesus is going to bring to the world. Closing Prayer Father, your teaching has evolved. Help us in our work of interpreting Scripture so that we can see the fullness of this message. And be able to proclaim it in our lives. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:46-52 As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.” He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. Reflection The request of Bartimaeus is radically different than the disciples, who often asked, Lord, give us a position of authority. Let us sit at your right, and another one will say, let me sit at your left and what Jesus is not calling us to is not a worldly authority over people, but he's calling us to an insight to see and understand who we really are, the beauty that we have, the dignity that we have, and to encourage others to see it for themselves. Nothing is easier for God, in Jesus, to give you what you ask for when you ask for sight. I want to see. I want to know. I want to experience your love. Closing Prayer Father, we often find ourselves in a kind of dark place where we're confused. It's a perfect time to turn to you in that darkness and say, Please give me the light that I miss. Give me the understanding I don't see. Open my eyes to a way that I've never thought of before. And that is always answered, because it's what he longs to give to the world. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:32-45 The disciples were on the way, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus went ahead of them. They were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. Taking the Twelve aside again, he began to tell them what was going to happen to him. "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles who will mock him, spit upon him, scourge him, and put him to death, but after three days he will rise." Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you." He replied, "What do you wish me to do for you?" They answered him, "Grant that in your glory we may sit one at your right and the other at your left." Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I drink or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?" They said to him, "We can." Jesus said to them, "The chalice that I drink, you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared." When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. Jesus summoned them and said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Reflection Jesus is describing to his disciples the essence of who he is. He is a servant coming into the world to do something for everyone else, even giving up his life. And he wants to teach this to his disciples. And in a very obvious way, in this story, they don't get it. They don't understand it. Not only do they not get it, but as soon as he describes his self-giving, they turn to him and say, we want you to give us what we want. And Jesus in his kindness, and his gentleness just makes it clear to them, look what I'm asking you to do in this world is to be engaged in me. In me and you through baptism. And you want to drink the cup. And the cup is selflessness. You learn how to be a servant. That's the essence of what I long for all of you to be. It's a beautiful way of making clear how difficult it often is for us to get past our self-centeredness. Closing Prayer Father, it's natural for us as human beings to be caring about what we need. But break us of that habit that we can open ourselves to what you empower us to be. It's not that we can be the selfless creatures you want us to be, but with you we can be that selfless creature. Fill us with a spirit of giving and we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:28-31 Peter began to say to Jesus, "We have given up everything and followed you." Jesus said, "Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.” Reflection Jesus is giving his disciples a radically new message, which flies in the face of so many things that everyone believed. And we know that when we take on some new vision of life different from our family of origin, different from the people all around us, we're going to experience persecution, rejection, and what Jesus warning his disciples, don't let that be in any way, shape or form anything that will keep you from doing what I'm telling you. Because the community that you're called to is so much more than those that have formed you in the past, those that are being created and new through this message will make you a new community, and it will reach everyone. Closing Prayer Father, we seek approval from people. We want them to agree with us. But so much that you teach us is different. And help us to be so convinced of your truth that it just resonates from us and gives people a direction to follow. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:17-27 As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother." He replied and said to him, "Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth." Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me." At that statement, his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the Kingdom of God!" The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, "Children, how hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God." They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "For men it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.” Reflection The story of the rich man is a clarification for the disciples to understand one simple truth, the love that God has for you, his redeeming act of giving you life eternal is a sign of his love. And to say to God that I have earned that by what I do, what I possess, what I become is really a rejection of the very essence of what love is. God loves us not because we perform so well, he loves us because of who we are and who he is. That's what's essential. And the gift of salvation is never earned, it is always humbly accepted. Closing Prayer Father, it's very natural for us to try to earn your love. To please you by our work. But the shadow of that is that we often fear that you leave us when we fail. So we pray for the humility to receive salvation and to stop trying to earn it. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:13-16 People were bringing children to Jesus that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.” Then he embraced the children and blessed them, placing his hands on them. Reflection The Kingdom of God is not something has to be reasoned and rational. It is something that's experienced. What I love about this passage is that the Kingdom of God is described by an action of Jesus embracing children and children embracing Jesus. And that's the image of the kingdom that he wants his disciples to see. They disregarded as their culture did, the importance of children. But Jesus lifts them to a place of honor by saying, They are the ones who know the kingdom intuitively. And what happens in life is that we lose that sense of that because of the way we're treated, because of the way the world is. Closing Prayer Heavenly father, help us to witness the Kingdom of God. That it’s not in the way we describe it, or the way we explain, it is always in the way we are living, the way we love, the way we listen, the way we touch, the way we feel what our brothers and sisters are going through. Bless us with this gift, and we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 10:1-12 Jesus came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan. Again crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom, he again taught them. The Pharisees approached him and asked, "Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?" They were testing him. He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?" They replied, "Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce and dismiss her." But Jesus told them, "Because of the hardness of your hearts he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate." In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this. He said to them, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.” Reflection Jesus in this passage is not saying that there is no way in which anyone can be divorced. Divorce is something that has to happen in certain cases. And so how do we read this? Why is he so stressing the union that has to be established in marriage and must be preserved. He told us at one time in the Old Testament that he wanted to marry us. And that image sticks with me when I think about the way he describes marriage, it’s a commitment of two people. And when they're there totally for each other, giving to each other, supporting each other. That's the heart of what all relationships are to be. And God is the model for us. His relationship with us is the model for all of us to live, to be committed, to be caring, to be supportive to one another. Closing Prayer There's a danger that we always want to make things simpler. Black and white. Either or. And what I know that God is calling you and me into is a thing called wisdom, which is very different. It somehow allows for a kind of mysterious dimension to everything, so that there isn't any simple one answer to every situation. Keep us in that world of wisdom as we discern the difficult issues that come across our life. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 9:41-50 Jesus said to his disciples: "Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward. "Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched. "Everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid, with what will you restore its flavor? Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.” Reflection What Jesus is pointing out in this passage, is that there's nothing more despicable, in a sense, in his mind, than leading the innocent into sin. And he wants us to be committed to not doing that. So he gives us this long list of what are you willing to give up in order not to do that? And he's saying, You have to be willing to give up half of everything you are. The half of you that is negative has to give in to the part of you that is so powerful and strong and loving. And so it's an invitation to go through a purification process where fire and salt that preserve and transform, are going to be part of your evolution of consciousness into the person you want to be, in sensitivity to the needs of others. It's about being committed to never leading another into sin. Closing Prayer Father, make us more aware. Purify our sight and our ability to see what we're really doing. So that if we are doing anything that harms anyone, you will show it to us. You will purify us of it, so we can live in unity and peace with one another. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 9:38-40 John said to Jesus, "Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us." Jesus replied, "Do not prevent him. There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name who can at the same time speak ill of me. For whoever is not against us is for us.” Reflection What this passage says to me is that there is a truth that God is revealing through Jesus. When you're in that truth, that truth is then producing the abundance of goodness that is promised. So what we see here is that anyone who seeks to love, to seek to serve, to seek to give life to others. They are in the Kingdom, whether they are followers of a particular religion or not. It's where their heart is that counts. And if you live in the truth, you will be fruitfully abundant. Closing Prayer Father, love is what you call us all to live in. To be loved to others. It is the mysterious power that changes the world and opens people to the light. Whenever we are loving, or whoever is loving is doing the work of the kingdom. Bless us with understanding as we witness love's transforming power. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel Mark 9:30-37 Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee, but he did not wish anyone to know about it. He was teaching his disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men and they will kill him, and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.” But they did not understand the saying, and they were afraid to question him. They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, he began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they remained silent. For they had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest. Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” Taking a child, he placed it in their midst, and putting his arms around it, he said to them, “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me.” Reflection Jesus is describing to his disciples that he's going to have to give up his life, give it away in order to save the world. They have no idea what that means. Therefore, they ask no questions. And we see why in what follows, because they, like the rest of us, like culture, creates in us a spirit of competition and wanting to be the best. Life hasn't changed much since then. And yet, what Jesus wants to say is, Look, you have to let go of understanding how this is all going to work. Look at children. Children can be filled with awe and wonder over a story that promises something. And they never ask exactly how do I do that? Or how does that happen? We need that childlike trust and faith in images that Christ gives us over and over again of the way the world should be, and we need to ponder them without trying to figure out how they can happen. Closing Prayer Father, give us a childlike spirit and enthusiasm and excitement for all that you are teaching us and showing us each day. Help us to be docile to the things that we don't understand fully, and fill us with expectations of promises fulfilled that you have made to us. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 19:25-34 Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home. After this, aware that everything was now finished, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I thirst.” There was a vessel filled with common wine. So they put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth. When Jesus had taken the wine, he said, “It is finished.” And bowing his head, he handed over the spirit. Now since it was preparation day, in order that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for the sabbath day of that week was a solemn one, the Jews asked Pilate that their legs be broken and they be taken down. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately Blood and water flowed out. Reflection What this presents to us is an interesting image of the role of Mary now, today in the church. She is our great intercessor. She is caring for the disciples and caring therefore for the church, for its teachers, its pastors, its flock. It's a beautiful image of a feminine figure that we can trust and know is always there with the Holy Spirit working for us, in the process of growing and becoming who were called to be. Closing Prayer Father, help us to recognize Mary as a source of great help and support for us. Help us to place her in the role that she longs to have. To draw us closer over and over again to her son, to his love, to his gift of his life. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 21:20-25 Peter turned and saw the disciple following whom Jesus loved, the one who had also reclined upon his chest during the supper and had said, "Master, who is the one who will betray you?" When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, "Lord, what about him?" Jesus said to him, "What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me." So the word spread among the brothers that that disciple would not die. But Jesus had not told him that he would not die, just "What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours?" It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written. Reflection The relationship that God has with us, is one of intimacy. And it’s something that grows slowly and develops more in some than others. And what Jesus is saying in this passage is that, Why compare where someone is in their spiritual life with God, with where you are? Why are you doing that? Just follow God, follow Jesus, follow your destiny. That's your responsibility, not to compare to somebody else. Closing Prayer Father, competition is something that doesn't fit in the spiritual world, but we get caught up in it. And we can be envious, and we can be thinking that we're better than someone else. So take those things away from us, let each individual be honored for where they are with their God. Long for their faith to deepen. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 21:15-19 After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and eaten breakfast with them, he said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" Simon Peter answered him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." He then said to Simon Peter a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Simon Peter answered him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, "Do you love me?" and he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, "Follow me.” Reflection This is one of the first appearances of Jesus to his disciples after he is risen. And what we see in it is a way that Jesus is preparing Peter for his role as the leader of the community, that he is founding. And when he says, I want you to do something, I want you to take care of people. But he uses two images that I think are really interesting. I want you to feed them and tend them. What's the difference? One is making sure of everything that they need that they have. Give them the truth. Give them what they need. But tending is like a bending over and a caring for how they're doing on their journey. It's a thing that we often don't find enough in the religious world that I live in. It's more about feeding them, sending them out. But the tending is at the heart of what I think Jesus is asking all of us to do. Closing Prayer Father, to tell someone what they should believe, or what they should do is one thing, but to give them what they need to be able to do it, is another. And then to stay with them as they struggle is even another very important part. Keep us in that mode of feeding and tending and being there for each other. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 17:20-26 Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: "I pray not only for these, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.” Reflection This passage in John makes one of the most important teachings of Jesus more real for us. The incarnation is Jesus coming into the world, and we know that he came in as a human being, but he also came as a God. He was both human and divine. The model that he is giving us is a model of friendship, of relationships, of love. Just as a father is in Jesus, Jesus is in the Father. So Jesus is in his disciples and disciples are in Jesus, and just as friends are in each other, they become one. It's a great mystery, and it makes clear that the work that we have is to surrender to reality, not to try to create something, but to allow a mystery to be real, to be lived, to be understood. Closing Prayer Father, we have a hard time in relationships. Often we find them difficult because we are trying to make them into what we think they should be, or we're trying to control the other person. Help us to enter into this mystery of oneness. Fill us with compassion, understanding, and a desire that all of us grow together in unity. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 17:11b-19 Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed, saying: “Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one. When I was with them I protected them in your name that you gave me, and I guarded them, and none of them was lost except the son of destruction, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you. I speak this in the world so that they may share my joy completely. I gave them your word, and the world hated them, because they do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the Evil One. They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world. And I consecrate myself for them, so that they also may be consecrated in truth.” Reflection There are many ways to understand the message of Jesus, but the one that is expressed here is really important. It is Jesus came into the world to reveal the truth, reality, what life is really for and what it's about and how we're supposed to live in it and change it. We have been set apart, consecrated with the power to hold and to teach and to be in the truth. That's our destiny, and that's the work of God within us. Closing Prayer Father, so much of what you teach, we first have to believe in before we understand it. Give us the wisdom to stay with you, even though we're not sure what you're asking of us. Give us perseverance, curiosity, imagination so we can find and live in the truth. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 15:9-17 Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. “I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.” Reflection When Jesus tells his disciples that he loves them, he uses as an example. He says, My love for you is the same love that God has for me. And what I want you to understand is that unless we believe that we are loved unconditionally, not based on anything that we say or do, if we think anything we can do diminishes the love that God has for us, we've missed the mystery and the power of this teaching. You can't love if you're not loved, and you can't feel love if it's based on performance. So the challenge is to let go of our ego and our personality and surrender to simply a God who is nothing but love. Closing Prayer Father, open our minds and most especially our hearts to the fullness of what it means that you are so deeply in love with us, just as we are. Not because we improve. Not because we're doing better. Simply because of who we are. We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Gospel John 16:29-33 The disciples said to Jesus, “Now you are talking plainly, and not in any figure of speech. Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God.” Jesus answered them, “Do you believe now? Behold, the hour is coming and has arrived when each of you will be scattered to his own home and you will leave me alone. But I am not alone, because the Father is with me. I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.” Reflection The disciples were students. And it's interesting that as a teacher begins to open the mind of someone to a new world, it's really hard for them to grasp. But here we see that they're beginning to really grasp it, they see the truth in it. But they're not finished in their evolution of understanding it. So Jesus reminds them, you will deny me. You will leave me, but know that I am with the father. Don't worry about me, I have the father with me, and you will have the father with you. Trust, even though you don't fully yet understand. Closing Prayer Father, we've never fully grasped the mystery of who we are in you and who you are in us. And how we are to live our life. It's always a process of learning more and more. Bless us with an eager heart and an open mind that we might fill ourselves with more and more of the truth, as we fulfill our obligation to follow you. And we ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.