Scripture:
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
Luke 4:16-30
Reflection:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor.” Luke 4:18 (Gospel Acclamation Verse)
Each of us can be a witness for Jesus just by sharing what He has done for us. In my twenties I had a habit of arguing about our faith, especially when I felt that someone was criticizing the Catholic Church. I felt that I had to defend my beliefs and I would try really hard to help the other person come to my way of thinking.
All that changed after I began to experience the Lord working in my life. Instead of just knowing about God, I began to know the Lord as a person. I didn’t need to defend my faith anymore because I knew what was happening to me was real and no one could take that away from me. We share the Good News with confidence because we have experienced God’s love first-hand. We pray God will use our witness to help another open up to His Presence, or to go deeper in their faith walk.
In our gospel today we hear again how a prophet is not accepted in his own place; how sad that Jesus couldn’t work miracles among his own people. And yet, am I open to miracles? Do I miss Jesus working because I think I know how a thing will turn out? Do I limit His power in my life?
We can’t give someone the gift of faith, but we can pray for them to receive it and we can share what God is doing in our life with others. May we all invite the Holy Spirit to use us to spread the Good News whenever and wherever we can and to help us be open to God working miracles in our own lives.
Janice Carleton and her husband Jim live in Bainbridge Island, Washington, and partner with Passionist Fr. Cedric Pisegna in Fr. Cedric Ministries. She is the mother of 4 grown children and grandmother of 6. Janice also leads women’s retreats and recently published her second book: God IS with Us. Visit Janice’s website at http://www.janicecarleton.com/ or email her at [email protected].