​When I read today's Gospel, the one word that comes to mind is- real. All of this is so real. Jesus does so much to comfort the disciples in this passage. They had just witnessed their Lord, Jesus Christ die on a cross and now all of the sudden He is standing in their midst. It's no wonder He has to lead with "peace be with you." They were probably all FREAKING out. As He continues speaking, everything becomes clear. He is real. Jesus really rose from the dead. Everything He said would happen-did happen. It is all real and it is all occurring right before their eyes. It's like when you know something is amazing is about to happen but even when it does you are still in disbelief.

​Is this real life? Jesus knows that this is pretty incredible, and He knows that He needs to pick their jaws up from the floor. There is one sentence in this Gospel that took me by surprise. I thought to myself, well that's random! The Lord is like, "Got any grub?" This is what I love about the scriptures and our Lord. He knows that the people are terrified. He wants them to know that He is not a ghost. He wants them to touch and feel that He is really with them. What better way to be with someone than to eat together? It's a huge part of community and family. We eat together. We break bread together. God chooses these everyday moments to show us His love and the reality that He is truly the one who saved us. Our Lord is so good at meeting our needs right where we are. He comforts them in this moment. He reminds them of all He said would happen, and He tells them that this is what is going on right now. They are witnesses to this amazing act of love and sacrifice. God truly died and rose for us! In every word, I hear Jesus' comforting tone. I hear Him speak to me of the beauty of the Resurrection. This Gospel just continues to beauty and joy of the Easter story. We saw Jesus die, now we see Him alive, and we want to go share it with the world. We can take that joy into every moment of our lives. Into every interaction. Into every small tiny movement of our day. Into every time we eat. Because just like that day, God is truly present in those too.

What would you say to Jesus if you were there when He appeared to His disciples?

In what aspects of your life do you need to Lord's comfort?

​How can you share the joy of Easter through your life today?

"Thank you."

"I love you."

​"Help me receive you."

Today, live the Good News and share it with others through out the day. Through you interactions with others, in your words and deeds, love like Christ and share the joy of His resurrection with the people you encounter. 

Use the following meditation to help you reflect more deeply on the Scripture (you may want to read the passage again).

What holds us back from being on fire for Christ and sharing the Gospel with others? One of the major themes in today’s gospel is on this exact question. The disciples, in today’s story, had an experience of suffering, which led to a doubt, and this caused them to be held back from being transformed by God’s salvific action. They were in desperate need of consolation from Christ, and that is exactly what Christ offers them as the Divine teacher and healer. 

The experience of Christ’s cross – of his suffering and death – was a shocking and traumatic event. Their hopes in Jesus as the Messiah were shattered, and they could not see God’s hand in such tragedy: “But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel.” Jesus’ death caused them to doubt in Jesus’ identity as God - maybe he was a good person, but not the Messiah. Not even the testimony of their friends, who witnessed Jesus’ resurrection, could shake them from their doubt and shock of his crucifixion. How true in our life, when we undergo suffering, that we experience doubt in God’s wisdom, reality, or goodness, which saps our joy of sharing the Gospel. Others may have found the Lord, but I find it hard to see him due to my life’s experience. 

The disciples trudged along the road blind and confused, and Jesus comes to offer them spiritual ointment to see suffering, himself, and God’s plan in a new light. Jesus does this through three ways: conversation, scripture, and the mass. Jesus begins with relationship and conversation, then he sheds light on God’s plan that does not reject suffering but transforms it, and finally, he shows them himself through the great gift of the Eucharist. This encounter with Christ totally transforms their hearts, and they literally run to share what they received with others. This image of running with the Lord is a great metaphor for the Christian life when we have truly met Christ, as opposed to the slow trudge of the disciples earlier in the day, absent of Christ’s joy. 

The Lord, through his Church, offers us opportunities for real encounters with him through the Scriptures, in the Mass, and in the Sacraments. He desires to bring us the same Easter joy that these disciples received; he is the Resurrected Christ coming to find us on our road, to walk alongside us, to transform our hearts and then to send us out on fire with joy to evangelize. So what holds us back from being on fire for Christ, of running to share the Gospel with passion and joy, and what do you need from Christ to heal you and send you out this Easter Season? 

These questions are to be used to talk to God; have a conversation with the Lord about these questions and what is going on in your heart as you pray today.

What has been my response to suffering in the past? How has Christ transformed my suffering?

Where have I encounter the Lord in the Church?

​What is holding me back from being on fire for Christ? From what do I need Christ to heal me?

In this step, you listen. Stop talking, let God speak to your heart. You may repeat one of these short phrases to focus your mind on the Lord.

​"Transform my heart."

"Share the joy."

​"Help me to find you in the suffering."

In light of today's reading and your time spent in prayer with the Lord, what concrete action or actions will you take to let this encounter with the Lord bear fruit in you today?
​
Allow Christ to transform the sorrows and sufferings of your heart into a joy that you can then go out and share with others.

​“Where are you, Jesus?” 

This is a question I’ve asked plenty of times in my life, and maybe you can relate. So many times I struggle to see where God is and how he is moving in my life and I’m driven to despair and cry out with this very question. Any number of situations can lead to us failing to recognize where God is in our lives, whether it’s pain, sorrow, struggles, misunderstanding, or any other thing that pulls our attention away from him. 

Today, as we continue the celebration of Easter, we see Mary Magdalene facing a similar situation. She comes to the tomb of Jesus, the one who saw her for who she really was and forgave her of her sins, called her into a new life, and shared the intimacy of his divine love. While she sits at the tomb and weeps, not finding Jesus’ body, she is in the same situation many of us face and cries out in her heart, “Where are you, Jesus?” Our situations may not be exactly the same, emotionally, as sitting in front of Jesus’ tomb and not finding his body, but it’s still the same for so many reasons. 

When we encounter times in our life when we are looking for Jesus in the place we expect him to be, he can often surprise us and reveal where he really is through an intimate moment like we see in the Gospel. So often we try to find Jesus where we expect him to be— whether that’s in the midst of suffering and pain, or even in the good moments. Today, Jesus is revealing that he is bigger than our expectations and our anticipation. He is Lord and he is always with us, even when we fail to see him at first. 

Where do I see God working in my life right now?

How do I let my expectations or anticipation get in the way of seeing God working in my life?

In what ways do I need to see that God is with me right now?

"Where are you, Jesus?"

"Help me see your love."

​"Jesus, I trust in you."

Ask God to surprise you today. When you approach him in prayer, looking for him in specific ways, ask him to surprise you by showing you where he is working that you don't already see.

Two things stand out to me in today's Gospel from Matthew. The first is Mary Magdalene meeting Jesus on the way and being greeted with "Do not be afraid." What did they have to be afraid of? Was it the fact that Jesus, a man they just watch die, was speaking to them as if nothing ever happened? Was it that they were running from something already? Were they afraid for their lives? 

I want to say that they were not afraid for their lives, but everyone knew they were members of Jesus' group. People were out to kill Jesus and all those associated with Him. 

Which brings us to the second thing that stands out to me. The chief priests and the elders assembled to bribe the soldiers to tell a lie. They were scared that it would get out that Jesus had risen from the dead and was no longer in the tomb. We don't craft lies about events that no one will even believe happened. 

So were Mary Magdalene and the other woman afraid because Jesus was risen or because they were scared they were going to be killed as well. I'd venture to say the second. Nevertheless, they persisted in believing that Jesus rose from the dead.

They declared the truth even when their lives were at risk.

Do I do the same? Is my life even at risk? Not my physical life, but how I'm seen, perceived, and looked upon by the world. Those areas of my life might be at risk for declaring that Jesus rose from the dead and He is alive in our midst. 
​
So instead of believing the lie the chief priests and elders paid the soldiers to spread, let's embrace the message of Christ who says "Do not be afraid."

What are you afraid of? Invite Jesus into your fears. 

How do you declare the wonder that Jesus rose? What limits you from telling everyone? 

What lies do you believe? How can you turn away from them?

"Be not afraid."

He is risen."

"He is alive!"

Today, make a point of sharing your faith with someone. Don't just do a post on social media, but have a one-on-one conversation with someone and share how Jesus has impacted your life.