“’Stirring up our lives’ to savour the sweetness of joy, peace and serenity of the Lord!”

(Based on Acts 15:7-21 and Jn 15:9-11 – Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter)

One of the wonderful SMS’s that has been read and circulated by many of us, goes thus….

“Life is like having a cup of coffee…
You sit by the window, lift the cup, take a careless sip…
… and find no sugar.

Too lazy to go for the sugar, you somehow manage with that sugarless cup.

On finishing, you find undissolved sugar crystals, settled at the bottom!

That is life!

We don’t make any effort to value what is around or within us.

So look around… Maybe, the sweetness you are looking is much closer than you think!”

How often is our spiritual life also lived similarly…

We go through the rigours of spiritual practices…
… but they sometimes become mere routines

We perform many chores of religious exercises…
… but they sometimes turn out to be ritualistic.

Spiritual life becomes tasteless…
Spiritual life loses its fascination…

But Jesus, in the Gospel of the Day invites us to have a deeper excitement and happiness in life, by abiding in His love.

He tells us, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy maybe in you, and that your joy may be full” (Jn 15: 11)

The Lord wishes each of His follower to live a life of immense joy and happiness.

Jesus, Himself lived a very joyful life.

What was the recipe of His happiness?

A life that was lived in perfect communion with His Heavenly Father…
… seeking union with the Father through moments of solitude in prayer
… raising His Heart to the Father in gratitude and thanksgiving at every situation of life.

A life that was lived in absolute obedience to the Will of His Father…
… willing to shed any personal comforts or desires to be faithful to the mission entrusted
… readiness to undergo any amount of pain and suffering, even death, to be totally committed

Jesus hands over this same recipe to us, to discover true joy and happiness in life.

When we live in Communion with the Heavenly Father…
… in intense moments of prayer
… with a heart of thanksgiving
And we obey God’s Will…
… even at the cost of some personal comforts
… ready to bear sufferings to be faithful to Him

It is then…
… that we will experience real joy and happiness
… that we will treasure heavenly experiences in our hearts

Life grinds us through many tasteless moments and situations…

We get upset easily…
We tend to get defensive…
We get into a mode of being lethargic…

But the Lord says… “Stir up your lives!”

“Stir up your lives” to savour the sweetness of joy, peace and serenity…
… to taste the joy that is guaranteed by obeying God’s commandments
… to taste the peace that is assured by letting our lives be symphony of service to others
… to taste the serenity that is promised by always abiding in the loving presence of the Lord

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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📖 Discovering the beauty of the Catholic Church through the Catechism
THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY – THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY – Virginity for the sake of the Kingdom

Virginity for the sake of the kingdom of heaven is an unfolding of baptismal grace, a powerful sign of the supremacy of the bond with Christ and of the ardent expectation of his return…

… a sign which also recalls that marriage is a reality of this present age which is passing away. (CCC # 1619)