If you were a light, what kind of light would you be? No this isn't some weird youth ministry ice breaker questions, I really want you to think about this. Are you the candle that burns brightly and consistently? Are you the sparkly chandelier that reflects light? Are you the Pixar light that bounces everywhere? I think I would be the lamp that I have next to my bed, it is gold and shine bright so I don't trip and stub my toe or bash my knee. 

What I really want you to reflect on is how are you a child of the light? How do you shine Christ's life in the world?

That is our call, that is our mission. Even when we are surrounded by uncertainty and darkness we must be the light.

How do we do this? Lucky for us, St. Paul gives us instructions.

Be kind to one another, compassionate,
forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ.

These first things are: be kind, be compassionate, be forgiving are lessons that we teach preschool children. Yet, they seem to be lessons we forget when we grow up. We take opportunities to be unkind to those around us, on social media, talk back to our parents, snap at our friends, kid or spouse. We forget to think about what someone else is going through, rather we just judge them. And we forget to forgive, it seems now more than ever were holding on to grudges and preconceived notions.

We need to go back to our first lessons and remember what it means to be a light.

It all comes down to this from St. Paul,
Be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love,
as Christ loved us and handed himself over for us.

Love as Christ loved and you will bring His light to the world.

What kind of light are you? What is your purpose as a light?

How have you been practicing kindness? Compassion? Forgiveness? Which of these do you need to work on?

​How can you be more like Christ? 

"Be a light."

"I am a child of the light."

"Help me be more like you."

Today what is one way you can practice compassion? Kindness? Forgiveness?

Our Gospel today is amazingly simple to hear, but remarkably difficult to follow.
"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"
He said to him,
"You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."

I was recently speaking with a priest friend about the group of people in our Church who do not always have clear ministry opportunities- Young Adults. Navigating the waters of discerning your Vocation, while learning how to be independent, while remaining professional in your job, while also trying to put yourself out there in friendships with other like minded Christians is not impossible, but difficult. When I had asked this priest how I could help get more young adults in my area to be committed to the community, he pointed me towards the simple truth and said, “keep growing in love with Jesus and the rest will take care of itself. Then care for those in the community just as others have been patient and loving towards you in your walk with the Lord. That’s it!”

I was somewhat disappointed in his answer, because of course I wanted a concrete action plan so I could check off boxes, or tangibly do tasks to help increase numbers or enthusiasm for the Young Adult community, but, silly me- that’s not how it works when you’re a disciple of Christ. It can be easy to be unsure of what to do with the unrest we have within us when we see certain injustices, hear of others pain, or learn of challenges others face. It is natural and good to be a do-er when difficulties are before us, but as followers of Christ, if we do not allow our hearts, our souls, our minds to be transformed by His love, then how are we to love our neighbor as ourselves? It’s like the announcement on an airplane when the flight attendant speaks about procedures in an emergency- adults put your oxygen mask on before assisting children. We cannot give to our neighbors any amount of authentic love, which as we know is not all rainbows and butterflies, but requires hard work of truth to be shared and respect to be exchanged, if we have not grown in our love of the Lord first.

When we make the commitment to spend time in silence and prayer with the Lord, our hearts change. When we share our unrepeatable gifts and talents we’ve been given for God’s glory, our souls are encouraged. When we read Scripture, ask questions about our faith, or have dialogue about the Lord, we open our minds to Truth.

The call to love our neighbors as ourselves is very apparent in our world right now. Our neighbors are those of different religions, races, and regions, and our neighbors are those we interact with everyday. It might be hard to see, but the Lord is visible in all of our neighbors. Despite differences we may hold on beliefs or opinions, by loving God, we love our neighbor as well. If we are merciful with ourselves and our shortcomings, we can be merciful to our neighbors as well.

So harking back to the exhortation I received from my priest friend- I want to commit to loving the Lord more each day with all my heart, soul, and mind. I want to commit to remembering that I’m the Lord’s beloved...and so are those around me. If I show them love as I have been shown, the rest will take care of itself.

How are you committed to loving the Lord each day? 

How when you love the Lord does that show to others?

How can you be Christ to those around you? 

"Love God."

"Help me love you Lord."

​"I want to love you more."

What is one thing you can do to love God today? Write Him a letter? Go to adoration? Make a plan and do it. 

​I feel a lot of hope when I read the parable Jesus tells in today’s Gospel. The owner of a fig tree told the gardener to cut it down because it wasn’t bearing any fruit. But the gardener basically replies to the owner, “Just give it one more chance! I’ll personally take care of it and help it bear fruit.”

Lately I’ve been struggling a lot with anger. I especially lose my temper with my kids. They’re awesome, but I can be really impatient and close-minded at times. Every time I yell at them unnecessarily, I feel guilty about how I’ve treated them. I often feel even worse if I think about how many more times I’ve lost my temper with them before.

When we get really discouraged we can wonder, “If I’m a tree that won’t bear fruit, how much longer until God loses patience with me and just cuts me down?” But the image of Jesus as the good Gardener gives me such hope.

Even though I often fail to bear good fruit, He looks at me and sees who I really am and all the potential I have. No matter how many times I fail, He patiently forgives me. And He loves me. He never gives up on me. Just like the gardener in the parable, Jesus says, “Just give Dan another chance! I’ll personally take care of him and help him bear fruit!” I feel such consolation when I read this passage because it reminds me how much personal, individual, and intimate care the Lord has for me. It reminds me that He always wants to give me another chance and to help me follow His will more closely.

​I’m not in this spiritual battle alone. Jesus kneels down in the dirt next to me. He carefully and lovingly cultivates the soil of my life to help me bear fruit. And when tomorrow comes and I fail again, Jesus repeats, “Just give him another chance.” That makes me want to try that much harder to live my life for Him.

What are areas of your life today where you feel you are not bearing fruit and you know you need to turn back to the Lord?

How have you seen God, in the midst of whatever you have been experiencing in your own life during all that is going on in the world, bending down and tilling the dirt to help you bear fruit in your life?

In what ways have you allowed yourself to become discouraged, for which you'd like to turn back to the Lord and find his encouragement and his patience today?

"You are the good Gardener."

"You can bear fruit in me."

"Thank you for loving me as I am."

Rake leaves cut the grass, pick up sticks, garden; do something physical today to remind you of the good Gardener, our Lord, who works slowly and patiently on our hearts to allow us to bear fruit through his patient love.