Stewardship Reflection – May 16, 2021

May 16, 2021 — Seventh Sunday of Easter

ACTS 1:15-17, 20a, 20c-26; PS 103:1-2, 11-12, 19-20; 1 JN 4:11-16; JN 17:11b-19

Our readings today remind us that we are called to be set apart as disciples of Christ.

In our Gospel, Jesus makes it clear that as Christian disciples, we do not belong to the world.

We must stop and ask ourselves, "Who do we belong to?" We belong to our Loving and Gracious God. How we spend our time, what we do with our talents and how we spend our treasures are a good reflection of who or what we belong to.

Being a disciple of Christ will not always be easy. As our early disciples experienced, “I gave them your word, and the world hated them.” But it is because we were not made for the world. We were made to be saints, truly a calling that is out of this world.

Although we do not belong to the world, Jesus clearly prayed, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the evil one.” We are called to live in this world and to not become consumed by it. We need to keep our minds and hearts fixed on our goal — eternal life.

Jesus’ ascension is a good reminder for us that we, too, are called to heaven. Let us strive to live our lives as a reflection of this goal in mind.

— Stewardship Reflections by Catholic Stewardship Consultants