What on earth am I doing?

Easter allows us the time for a deeper reflection on what and who is central to our life. This is reflected in each of the readings this weekend. The truth that we are presented with is knowing Jesus as he really is. This is more than just a historical understanding which seeks to trace the events of his life but rather an encounter which seeks a knowledge of who he is for us and how this affects our lives. The key theme is to stop us from falling into a life of sin which focuses just on ourselves and our abilities to make sense of the world. To shape God's creation in our own image and likeness. We need to encounter the person of Jesus as he truly is and not some phantom of our own imaginings. The question is where do we start and how do I seek the person of Jesus in my daily life.

I think the first place is by becoming prayerful aware of how Jesus encounters us each day in ways which can surprise, delight and challenge us. There can often be a sense in which we believe that Jesus only reached out to people of his age when the truth is that he reaches out to people of every age and in every nation. Each person will encounter the person of Jesus in the place where they need to be met. Often this can be in our own fears and in the situations which seem to overwhelm us. This is why it is good to reflect each day on what has enlivened us and what has frightened us. These two moments can say what draws our hearts and what binds us tight. It is in these two moments where Jesus can stand in our midst and say, "Peace be with you". Jesus will always speak in a language and in a situation in which we can understand his presence and encounter his life.

Yet this is not just about experiencing graced moments but rather seeing how this can call us to reflect on what they mean to our life. We need to be people who can ponder what is happening in our lives and how we meet Jesus the living Word who reveals to us a God who abides with us through scriptures. This is not just about studying scriptures as though they were a textbook to be learnt but rather as a way of life to be lived. They are called to become a living fire which burns deep inside us and which finds a seed that can be planted in our hearts. The word is called to leap off the page and into our lives. It calls us to respond in a way which allows it to nourish our life.

By this ability to reflect and embed the scripture in our own world we can live that Good News for others we encounter. Not by becoming lexicons of the word but by becoming witnesses to the Word. By loving who we meet and living what we seek. In all things, we seek to become one with the Word in all that we are and in all that we hope to do.