April 23, 2020

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

Readings for Today

Saint George, Martyr—Optional Memorial

Saint Adalbert, Bishop and Martyr—Optional Memorial

Title: Pouring of the Holy Ghost; Artist: Anthony van Dyck

He does not ration his gift of the Spirit. John 3:34

At wartime, when soldiers have a scarce amount of food, they have to ration it. They only eat small measured portions each day so that the food will last as long as possible. If they do not, they may run out and starve.

What if this were the case with God and His grace? What if the Holy Spirit were to say to us, “Now I’m only going to help you to a limited degree. Once you use up the grace I’m offering you, you’re on your own.” Ouch! That would be problematic.

Of course the good news is that God acts in the completely opposite way with us. He commits to a full outpouring of the Holy Spirit and offers all the grace we could ever need or want. The problem is that we often “ration” His grace anyway. We don’t do this because we believe God is limited. Rather, we often do it because we are afraid to let God unleash His almighty power in our lives.

Reflect, today, upon what your life would look like if you let God do whatever He wanted with you. What would change? How would your daily life, your relationships, your words, your actions and your future be different? Intellectually speaking, we know it’s right to fully embrace the will of God in all things. But when it actually comes to doing it, there is often much hesitancy. It may be fear of the unknown. Or it may be that we do not fully want to change. Whatever the case may be, God is offering you an unlimited amount of grace by the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit. It’s up to you to decide if you will ration or not.

Lord, I do want to let You do whatever You want in my life. I want to be fully immersed in Your grace. Help me to say “Yes” to You no matter what that leads to and help me to trust in this glorious “Yes” You are calling me to make. Jesus, I trust in You.

Easter Prayers

More Gospel Reflections

Divine Mercy Reflections

Saints/Feasts for Today

Mass Reading Options