Greetings in Jesus’ Most Holy Name!
The following article was written by me last year and today, I dedicate it to a dear brother in Christ who went to be with our beloved Lord yesterday after a painful battle with cancer. Yes, death indeed brings painful separation from loved ones here on earth, yet at the same time death re-unites us with our Creator. We know this for a fact because of God’s Word – ‘For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ – Romans 8:38, 39.
“Because of our Lord Jesus' triumph of death and sin on the Cross, we should be living victorious lives daily. Is the Light of Easter still burning brightly or has it dimmed with trials, sufferings, sickness & problems all around us?
And in the midst of all this, if God decides that today will be your last day here on earth, how would you live this day? What would be included in the list of things that you would prepare to do? Whom would you call or meet to say your goodbye's, sorry's, love you's etc.
In reality, very few get opportunities to take care of these things & people before their final moment, but more important than all these things, is the ''attitude of the heart.''
What is the attitude of your heart, today? Is it still attached to things & people of this world? God gives us families, friends, loved ones to share, care and love each other but yet why are we still searching for love that's so much more deeper and true? Because God Himself has created in each of our hearts a void that can only be filled by His presence & love; No duplicates or substitutes can ever fill this space!
Would you recognize Jesus Christ here on Earth? Will you recognize Him in Heaven? Because death inevitably brings us face-to-face with the One true God who alone has power over life and death. Even His disciples doubted & failed to recognize Him after His resurrection. Only the ones who knew His voice & words, who sat at His feet daily & spent time in His presence recognized that it is the Lord.
When we place Jesus first in our lives & love Him, He reciprocates this love by revealing Himself to us in different ways. His ways and thoughts are always higher than ours. He is always true to His words in ways we cannot perceive.
Even thru' her tears, Mary Magdalene bent down to look inside the tomb – Refer to John 20:11. When we are broken-hearted & afflicted, even thru' our tears, we must humble ourselves and look with expectant faith towards our Lord.
When we feel lost and sad, even though we may receive divine inspirations and comforting messages from people, our hearts will still search for our beloved Lord - Even though Mary Magdalene may have been comforted or further confused with the angel's words at the tomb, she answers them but still turns around to look for Jesus as her heart was still searching for Him. She would only believe until she saw Him with her own eyes & touched Him – Reference: John 20:12-18
In today's times, we too need evidence and tangible proof in order to believe. Yet our Lord tells us that we are blessed because we believe even though we haven't seen Him yet - John 20:29. True Faith is recognizing God in action in our day-to-day lives as we place all our trust in Him and in His promises to us.
All our cries & broken feelings only tell us one thing - that our hearts are still longing & searching for Someone, that Someone who alone can wipe away our tears, soothe & comfort our hurts and pain; one who can understand us like no one else does. Only Jesus can do all this for us!
At the tomb, Jesus called Mary by her name – John 20:16. Why did He call her by name? Because in doing so, there was an intimacy and familiarity between them. We call people by their names only when we know them closely. And Jesus knew the heart of Mary just as He knows each of us.
God tells us that He already ''knows'' us even before we were born – Jeremiah 1:5. Do you ''know'' Him or do you ''know about'' Him?
When Mary heard her name thru' Jesus' lips, only then did she recognize Him. Truly His words are sweet promises to us - ''My sheep know Me and recognize My voice,'' and ''I have called You by name. You are Mine.''
When we recognize our Lord and His voice, we must cling to Him, but cling in such a way so as to take Him along with us to others who are still searching to recognize Him. We cannot keep Jesus to ourselves once we recognize His working in our day-to-day lives.
Did Mary go alone to tell the other disciples about the risen Lord? No! Surely, our Lord was with her, in her heart, because He has promised that He will never leave us and is always with us. That is why Mary ran with joy to tell the others the good news of her risen Lord! And this is what we too are called to do as devoted disciples of Jesus.
Since we are destined to spend eternity in the loving presence of God our Father, Jesus our brother & the Holy Spirit, we must spend maximum time daily in getting to know and love Him intimately. He loved us first, a love soo deep that He died on the Cross to prove His love for you and me!
My Beloved Jesus, like the lyrics in the song, “If tomorrow never comes” for me - Will You know how much I really love You, Lord? Did I try in every way to show You every day, that You are my only One.
And when my time on earth is through, and I will face You in Heaven, will the love I received from You and shared with others be enough to last?
'Cause I know Lord, You have lost loved ones here on earth, who do not know how much You love them. Some live with the regret, that their true feelings for You & others never were revealed.
So I make a promise to myself, to say each day how much You really mean to me, and avoid every circumstance, where there's no second chance to tell You how I feel. I love You, Lord. Amen.”
Spiritual Exercise: During your personal prayer, be still and allow the Lord to fill you with His presence and His love. Then, tell him how much you really love Him. And believe in your heart that NOTHING can separate you from the love of Christ, not even death!
In union of prayers,
God bless you!
Monisha Rebello
You may submit your prayer requests, which will be treated with absolute confidence. Remember to glorify our Lord as soon as He blesses you. You can email your testimonies with permission to publish them online at www.heavensmission.witnesstoday.org
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