God Willing

I have the tremendous honor of being among those in their final days here on earth. It is a time of great grace, beautiful acceptance, and every moment counts. Often when I say something like, “See you tomorrow,” they will respond with a sincere, “I hope so” or “God willing.” They are not in denial about death and they have taught me to appreciate every word, every moment, and every encounter for it may be our last. Today’s gospel is part of Jesus’ prayer before he ascends to the Father. I often think of hospice workers and the beautiful gift they have in hearing people’s last words. What an amazing book those words would make? I feel like deathbeds are the tabernacles of God’s purest peace, reconciliation, and wisdom. I know that not all deathbeds are like this, but there is something about knowing that the end is near that ushers in a clarity that is unique to that time. I know that today’s gospel is not Jesus’ deathbed, for duh, he rose from the dead, however, they are steeped in that clarity of it being his last words to impart on his beloveds before he leaves. 

I’d like to bullet point some of Jesus’ prayer from The Passion Translation to highlight them in a fresh way: 

• “Father, the time has come. Unveil the glorious splendor of your Son so that I will magnify your glory!” (May you also unveil the glory of God magnifying his presence.)
• “Eternal life means to know and experience you as the only true God, and to know and experience Jesus Christ, as the Son whom you have sent.” “So my Father, restore me back to the glory that we shared together when we were face-to-face before the universe was created.” (May you spend eternity nose-to-nose with God.)  
• “They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have fastened your Word firmly to their hearts. And now at last they know that everything I have is a gift from you.” “They have received your words and carry them in their hearts.” (May His Word become the treasure of your heart.)
• “For all who belong to me now belong to you. And all who belong to you now belong to me as well, and my glory is revealed through their surrendered lives.” (May your life be a living sign of your belonging to Love.)
• “So I ask that by the power of your name, protect each one that you have given me, and watch over them so that they will be united as one, even as we are one.” (May the unity of the Trinity remind you that you are covered in power and protection always.)

Unveil. Magnify. Nose-to-nose. Treasure. Belonging. Power. Protection. Trinity. Oneness. How about those for some last words? How about those tabernacles of God’s purest peace, reconciliation, and wisdom? I pray that today you will have the kind of clarity that comes from knowing that the time is at hand. Make every moment count and I will see you tomorrow, God willing. It is well with my soul.  

Reading 1 ACTS 20:17-27

From Miletus Paul had the presbyters
of the Church at Ephesus summoned. 
When they came to him, he addressed them,
"You know how I lived among you
the whole time from the day I first came to the province of Asia.
I served the Lord with all humility
and with the tears and trials that came to me
because of the plots of the Jews,
and I did not at all shrink from telling you
what was for your benefit,
or from teaching you in public or in your homes.
I earnestly bore witness for both Jews and Greeks
to repentance before God and to faith in our Lord Jesus.
But now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem.
What will happen to me there I do not know,
except that in one city after another
the Holy Spirit has been warning me
that imprisonment and hardships await me.
Yet I consider life of no importance to me,
if only I may finish my course
and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus,
to bear witness to the Gospel of God's grace.

"But now I know that none of you
to whom I preached the kingdom during my travels
will ever see my face again.
And so I solemnly declare to you this day
that I am not responsible for the blood of any of you,
for I did not shrink from proclaiming to you the entire plan of God."

Responsorial Psalm PS 68:10-11, 20-21

R.(33a) Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
A bountiful rain you showered down, O God, upon your inheritance;
you restored the land when it languished;
Your flock settled in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided it for the needy.
R. Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Blessed day by day be the Lord,
who bears our burdens; God, who is our salvation.
God is a saving God for us;
the LORD, my Lord, controls the passageways of death. 
R. Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia JN 14:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I will ask the father
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you always.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel JN 17:1-11A

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said,
"Father, the hour has come.
Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
just as you gave him authority over all people,
so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him.
Now this is eternal life,
that they should know you, the only true God,
and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
I glorified you on earth
by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do.
Now glorify me, Father, with you,
with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

"I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world.
They belonged to you, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word.
Now they know that everything you gave me is from you,
because the words you gave to me I have given to them,
and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you,
and they have believed that you sent me.
I pray for them.
I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me,
because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours
and everything of yours is mine,
and I have been glorified in them.
And now I will no longer be in the world,
but they are in the world, while I am coming to you."