At Mass today, you may be celebrating the Ascension of the Lord. Since I reflected on those readings Thursday, we’ll reflect on the readings for the Seventh Sunday of Easter today. In the Gospel reading today from John 17, Jesus raises his eyes to heaven and prays to the Father. He says, “I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me…because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been glorified in them.”
I think in life we all long for a sense of belonging. We join clubs and organizations to accomplish this. “I belong to the Knights of Columbus.” “I belong to the Women’s Bible Study Group.” We belong to a family. We belong to a certain community. And while these things all may be fine and good, in the grand scheme of things, we must always remember that we belong to God.
There may be times in our lives when we don’t feel a sense of belonging. Have you ever felt that way? That nobody cares? That you’re all alone in the world? Feel like nobody even knows you exist? Those are especially the times when we need to remember that we truly do belong. We belong to God. And the great thing is that there are no dues to pay, no questions to answer, no meetings to attend. You belong because you are His. God loves you, and you belong to Him.
Father, help us to know that we belong to you. May we feel your loving arms around us always. Amen.
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