Today’s Alleluia verse reminds us how important we are to God. And that He created us for a specific purpose of His own. I chose you from the world, to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord. (Jn. 15; 16). The more we recognize and appreciate Him, the more we want to do His Will. And be His hands and feet while we are here on Earth.
We buried a close friend yesterday. His health had declined quickly, and he was relatively young. Preparing to sing a requested song at his funeral, I inadvertently mixed up the lyrics and uncovered a valuable perspective. The lyrics are “Go rest high on that mountain, son your work on Earth is done; Go to Heaven a shoutin’ love for the Father and the Son” (Vince Gill). As I was driving, singing along to learn the song, instead of “son, your work is done” I sang “Lord, your work is done.”
This inadvertent stumble made me smile, thinking about the Lord using our friend who had passed for a specific purpose, which he had accomplished. The Lord’s work, which needed to be done by our friend, was done. How important he was! Not only to his family and friends, but to God! What a blessing it is to be able to share his legacy with Gratia Vobis Ministries’ readers all over the world and ask you for a prayer for this faithfully departed soul and for his family.
God loves us immensely, in the same way He loves His own Son, whose parting words were “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30). Do we look at our lives as part of God’s work, and part of His plan for the world? What is He asking of you today? What role are you playing in moving His creation forward in the way He needs you to move it?
Bearing Fruit that Will Last
We are offered a reward for investing our lives in God’s will. He has chosen us and appointed us to accomplish His specific mission for us. If we take on the challenge of following His will in all we do, we are promised a return on our investment, “so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you” (Jn. 15:16).
The parable in today’s Gospel reminds us that God needs us to do something positive, something good, with whatever understanding we have of what He has given us. “I tell you, to everyone who has will be given more; but anyone who has not will be deprived even of what he has.” (Lk 19:26).
The 11-year-old first grandchild of our friend who passed, wrote a reflection shared with permission by her mom. She reflected on what she did and did not understand. She did not understand the bright white light she had seen several times while her grandfather was dying. She did understand she saw his image, his silhouette, within the white light. Intuitively, she shared “What I do know is that I love Opa, and Opa loves me.” Our friend bore fruit that will last.
Take a few minutes to reflect on what you have with the Lord. Take whatever feelings, whatever understanding, whatever love you have. This is yours, given to you by God. Ask Him what He needs you to do with it today. Tomorrow He will give you more.
That was beautiful
I agree with Joanne’s comment. Beautiful reflection. I love the shift in focus from my work being done, to the Lord’s work being done through me and my role complete at the end of my life. May I be found to have cooperated with his plan so that I too may say “It is finished.” Thank you for your insight.
Wonderful work.
This is such a beautiful reflection. Thank you!