Daily Gospel Reflection – Friday, May 3

John 14:6-14
Jesus said to Thomas, “I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you know me, then you will also know my Father.
From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said to him,
“Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.
The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,
and will do greater ones than these,
because I am going to the Father.
And whatever you ask in my name, I will do,
so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it.”

I have to confess: I am a terrible gardener! Every year, my children would get the idea to start seedlings inside and have beautiful plants ready to put in the garden by spring. We would carefully plant our seeds in little peat cups, place them on the windowsill–and then forget about them. A few days later, we would notice our tiny plants growing in an ‘S’, straining towards the light. In spite of our haphazard care, they always managed to twist themselves towards the light they desperately needed. We’d turn them, forget about them again, find them growing in some odd shape–again, reaching for the light. This pattern would repeat itself until it was spring and somehow, the plants would manage to come out beautiful. I always thought that they made them better plants.
In many ways, we are like those plants spiritually. Our souls know what they need and are always reaching for the light of Christ. We feed that need in our daily lives to interfere with the care of our souls. But time and again, our souls nudge us remind us to nurture ourselves spiritually, until we fully grow into our lives in Christ.

By Mrs. Jean Benoit, Faculty