Sunday, May 3rd, 2020
The Fourth Sunday of Easter
This Sunday’s readings on the fourth Sunday of Easter offer us a glimpse into the heart of Jesus, our loving Savior. He is the Good Shepherd who invites us to confidently place our trust in Him.
The image of Jesus as a shepherd, and His personal love for each one of us, is described in Sunday’s Gospel passage from John, through the words of Jesus Himself who said, “I am the Good Shepherd.” He continues, “The sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of them and they follow him, because his sheep recognize his voice.”
This aspect of our Lord’s tender and personal love for each one of us compels to offer our time, talent and treasure in service to Him. Our gratitude is an appropriate response for His abundant love for us.
Embracing generosity certainly requires trust on our part. But Christ has proven Himself worthy of our trust. He “bore our sins in His body.” He calls Himself our shepherd and He offers Himself as the guardian of our souls. Generously, He has withheld nothing of Himself and His goodness from us. He would never ask anything of us that would bring us harm. He tells us “I came so that [you] might have life and have it more abundantly.”
This Easter season let us resolve to entrust ourselves and our lives generously to Him. One possible way is using our gift of treasure. Tuesday, May 5th, 2020,
is a global day of giving and unity as a special emergency response resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Generosity can be a virtue that around the world and across our community bring people together. This Tuesday, and everyday let us reflect on how we may stand together and generously give of our time, talent and treasure, no matter what we have and who or where we are.