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Gospel: John 14: 21-26
Jesus said to his disciples:
“”Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.””
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him,
“”Master, then what happened that you will reveal yourself to us
and not to the world?””
Jesus answered and said to him,
“”Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.
“”I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit
whom the Father will send in my name–
he will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.””
The Gospel of the Lord.
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This is one of the greatest promises Jesus makes in the Gospels: “Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
I will reveal myself to him.
Don’t we all want to see Jesus? To know him? To know his plans for our lives?
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At the end of Mass yesterday, we had a guest speaker, whose name is Lauren. She’s the founder of Hearts of Joy International. As I listened to her speak, it was clear to me that she not only loves the Lord, but that he’s also revealed himself to her.
You may remember her story.
In 2017, she met a six-month old child in Uganda born with Down Syndrome. Nearly 50% of all children born with Down Syndrome are born with a small hole in their heart, which requires life-saving surgery.
Because of poverty, among other causes, these children are often neglected by society. So, Lauren prayed a novena to Mother Teresa, asking for help – for a way to save this child’s life.
Some months later, Lauren received an email from a doctor in India who started a hospital where these surgeries can be performed. Providentially, he was also Mother Teresa’s cardiologist until the day she died.
Since then, Lauren’s NGO, Hearts of Joy International, has saved the lives of 56 children. Now she’s determined to save 50… 500… 5,000 more.
She knows without a doubt this is God’s will for her life.
And she discovered it through prayer.
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God has great things in store for all of us. I’m sure we’re all anxious to find out what each day holds.
If we want Jesus to reveal himself to us, then each day should begin and end in prayer.
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If you’d like more information on Hearts of Joy International, please visit their website: www.heartsofjoyinternational.com
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Image credits: (1) House Mix (2) Unsplash (3) Bible.com