https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/040825.cfm
All I Want is to Please You, Father
We can learn a lot from children. They get excited when they open their bedroom door and run to the Christmas tree to see what Santa has brought them. It is exciting for them as we watch them tear open the wrappings to see what is inside the box. But they don’t love presents like they love Mom and Dad.
Think of the love in their hearts when they make something or draw a picture for Mom or Dad. They are always thinking about them, and all they want to do is please the people they love more than anyone else. But then they cry when they realize they have hurt Mom and Dad, who love them so much.
It brings us immense joy to please the people we love, and it’s heartbreaking to realize we’ve hurt them. God, too, experiences this. The key is this: Surrendering ourselves to God’s care each day pleases Him. In return, He blesses us with many good things that surpass the imagination of this world.
Have no fear when life’s challenges come along. Our Father gives us the strength He gave Jesus in the Garden when He prayed, “Father, take this chalice away from Me. But not let my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).
The chalice he wanted to be taken away wasn’t so much His physical suffering and Passionate death. His chalice, which we drink from at Mass every day, is what he experienced in the gospel we heard today: people won’t believe in Him and will die in their sins.
Gospel Challenge:
Where to start? It all begins with the right intention – Pleasing God – and welcoming Him to be with us through thick and thin.
Peace of heart is the sweet fruit of prioritizing God’s pleasure over our own. When we align our actions with His will, we find a deep sense of tranquility and contentment.
Love Your Neighbor!
Fr. Rick Pilger, IC
