Wednesday of the 7th Week of Eastertide
Acts 20:28-38
Jn 17:11-19
“They do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world. Consecrate them in the truth; your word is truth.”
Belonging — that is what we all desire, isn’t it? Belonging — where we feel safe, protected, loved.
From the time we are born, belonging is wired within our being. Belonging to a family is at the core of our earthly needs. Not only does our heart, mind and body seek to belong to a family, but our very soul begs to belong to a family. Needs to belong to a family. Needs to belong to HIS family first and foremost. God made us that way – God has so much love that He created a bigger family out of this love – created me and you to share in this family. A simple, yet accurate, description of the Good News. All human beings are created out of – because of – His love. We are created by love to love and be loved.
Beautiful. Perfect. Holy.
And yet, since the beginning, we continue to act in a manner that rejects the perfect family and perfect love for what? For falseness. We run so fast to win a prize that is far less than a shadow. Why? Why does this world continue to turn from perfect love? We hear Paul in today’s first reading, and Jesus in the gospel sharing their relationship with God; sharing the fullness, the depth, the purity, the goodness, the holiness – sharing a relationship that we, too, are STARVING for and can have with the Creator. And still many people, and oftentimes even you and I, turn from that relationship.
We turn from belonging to God to belonging to man-made groups. We all want to feel like we belong – we want to find ‘our group’, the group that makes us feel like we belong – makes us feel important. Whether it be a gang, a cult, a political party or the cool group, the successful group, the educated group, the famous group. Sometimes even to a church group that is more like the Pharisee mindset of knowing about God, but not knowing God, ‘working’ for God instead of doing God’s work.
The need to belong is great – and it is a human need that the enemy uses against us. I live in America and the need people have to belong is overwhelming – so much so that daily, we have protests against numerous things. Protestors often come from miles and miles (sometimes even by plane) to join one of these protesting groups – funny (???) thing is when asked what they are protesting and why, many (and I mean many) have no clear answers. They don’t know the facts, or if they do, many only know one or two facts, but certainly not enough to merit their joining a protest. Yet still they come and protest, because they WANT TO BELONG.
As stated in today’s scripture, ‘we do not belong to the world anymore than Jesus belonged to the world’. We are not made to ‘fit in’ we are made to stand out – like Jesus did. We are created to belong to the family of God on earth and it is our mission to follow Christ and His ways, to calmly, with love, speak and walk out BOLD TRUTH. In front of our brothers and sisters in Christ. In front of our family and close circle of friends. In front of our co-workers, our acquaintances, our peers at school, at the gym, at the game, at the movies, at the store, at the restaurant, at the airport, in our car, in our neighborhood, in our community… in our world. In the whole world, wherever we walk and whenever we talk, we are to proclaim WHO we belong to.
When we are searching for our group, we are really searching for our very self so that we FEEL good about ourselves. In this searching for self, we often stay lost, even if we find a group or two to belong to. It is when we are searching for GOD that we find not only God, but ourselves and the perfect group – the Holy group that He is inviting us to join. The Holy group that you belong to.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Gina Ulicny)
Prayer: Father God, help us to know that we belong to You and You alone, that You are our ALL. That only You can and will satisfy to overflowing all our needs.
Thanksgiving: Lord God Almighty, how grateful we are for your GREAT LOVE. For the family You created for us – the family of saints.
OXYGEN 
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