Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Acts 16:1-10, Jn 15:18-21

In Acts 16:1-10, Paul continues his mission to spread the gospels over all the earth. By dint of his dedication and zeal while working with Timothy, we hear that "day after day the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number".

This reading also reveals that the Holy Spirit was very much guiding their journeys, preventing them from entering some places in Asia and leading them to others. By way of a dream, the Spirit also led them to Macedonia where they would ultimately meet Lydia and have a jail experience that would result in even more dramatic conversions.

The gospel from John 15:18-21, Jesus reminds us that as children of God, we do not belong to this world, but rather to God who has chosen us. But this belonging to God forbodes difficulty for us, as Jesus says, because the world will hate us and persecute us. He says that "they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me."

As believers and children of God, we are on our own journeys to glorify Him and to do His will. Fortunately, the Spirit is a gift to us, too, to help us find our way and to fathom God's plan for us. Sometimes we just have to quiet the static in our lives and turn away from the attractions of this world so that we can hear and be guided by the Spirit, just as Paul and Timothy were.

Our journeys will not be easy, however, because of the world's hatred, and we can be persecuted in smaller ways for the witness we give to God's glory. But if we ask for it, we will be strengthened by the Spirit and we can show love for those who hate us. In so doing, we will be united with Jesus and our focus on the life He has in store for us beyond this world will be renewed.

Ellen Maughan