Sunday, March 26, 2023
We are a joyful community of disciples proclaiming the Good News and inviting all people to encounter the love and mercy of Jesus Christ.
“O my people! I will put my spirit in you that you may live, and I will settle you upon your land; Thus you shall know that I am the LORD.”
(Ezekiel 37:12)
God Keeps His Promises
Each one of us has a very different and unique relationship with God. We each walk very different paths. Today’s readings remind me that no matter the path God has us on, He is leading each of us to abide and live fully in Him. He is helping us trust in Him enough so that we can surrender more and more to Him. Through our relationship with Christ, He is helping each of us die to the flesh and grow in the spirit.
Today as God tries to help me die to self and grow in the Spirit, he starts by bolstering me with a reminder that God always keeps His promises. “When I open your graves and have you rise from them, O my people! I will put my spirit in you that you may live, and I will settle you upon your land; Thus you shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 37:12)
Today as God tries to help me die to self and grow in the Spirit, he starts by bolstering me with a reminder that God always keeps His promises. “When I open your graves and have you rise from them, O my people! I will put my spirit in you that you may live, and I will settle you upon your land; Thus you shall know that I am the LORD.” (Ezekiel 37:12)
God has already lifted me out of my grave and set me upon my land. That land is trying to abide in God no matter what storm may be trying to shake me at any given moment. My home is in the Lord and as long as I remember that I will always have everything I need.
In the second reading God is reminding me how to get through the current challenges I am facing, when he reminds me…“But you are not in the flesh: on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.” (Romans 8:8-11)
In the second reading God is reminding me how to get through the current challenges I am facing, when he reminds me…“But you are not in the flesh: on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.” (Romans 8:8-11)
God knows that I need this reminder. God knows that I have grown weary lately and he is reminding me to not let my flesh lead me, but His Spirit. Afterall, our purpose as Christians is to die to self and grow in His Spirit. Especially during this Lenten season when we take extra care to fast, pray, and repent so that our spirits can grow stronger as it conquers our flesh more and more.
In the Gospel, God reminds me to keep my eyes on the long term goal. “I am the resurrection and the life: whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11 1-45) As storms and the busyness of life try to divert my attention, I must focus only on God and remember that He has proven to me that He always keeps His promises.
In the Gospel, God reminds me to keep my eyes on the long term goal. “I am the resurrection and the life: whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11 1-45) As storms and the busyness of life try to divert my attention, I must focus only on God and remember that He has proven to me that He always keeps His promises.
How is God leading you to die to the flesh and grow in the Spirit during this Lent?
Dear Lord, you know intimately how each of us needs to die to the flesh and grow in the Spirit. Thank you for leading us to believe more deeply and live more fully in You.
Dear Lord, you know intimately how each of us needs to die to the flesh and grow in the Spirit. Thank you for leading us to believe more deeply and live more fully in You.
Reflection by:
Gretchen Covine Ammons, loves being a parishioner at Resurrection Catholic Church in Riverview. She is currently participating in the LPMI program which she believes to be an incredible program for anyone who wants to grow and enrich their faith life and learn more about living out their baptismal call. She has been blessed with a large family, many loved ones, and three sons, and a loving husband who have taught her much about God’s love for each of us.