Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent - March 24, 2023

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Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22 John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30

Sometimes I fi nd myself thinking the same way as the people described in Wisdom. This faith that I profess is obnoxious! There are so many rules! It’s tough! It’s a hardship for me! The ways of the just, of Jesus, are too different from mine! At which point I’m faced with a decision: settle for my comfortable, well-planned, and easy life, or take strides toward Heaven.

Why do our lives seem so contradictory to the ways of the Saints? I suppose it’s a simple yet difficult truth. The devil, or wicked, wants us to fix our eyes and hearts solely on this earth, this life. He wants us to put all stock in the here and now. So, we race after the pleasure, money, power, prestige like it’s going to give us everything we want. No wonder our lives can seem vastly different than that of Jesus.

God never created us to continuously dwell on this earth, though. He intends for us to spend eternity with Him in Heaven. How can we look forward to, or even make strides toward, a place we’ve never seen or been to? “You know me and also know where I am from,” Jesus says. Get to know Jesus! Act like Jesus. Live like Jesus. Love like Jesus. God gave us the gift of His Son to save us from our sins, but also to give us an example of holiness. He wasn’t a king. He wasn’t a governor. He wasn’t even  monetarily rich. He was just an average Joe like me. So, the next time I’m deciding whether I should stay put or push toward Heaven, I’m going to look to Jesus!

Q: What one quality of Jesus and the way he lived on this earth can I incorporate into my everyday living?

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