3rd Sunday of Easter
Acts 2:14,22-33
1 Pet 1:17-21
Lk 24:13-35
“Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained to the scriptures to us?”
I was told, when I was in my first years of working, that passion would drive my will to work. Yet, I realised that burnout at work is real and until I am clear about my purpose of why I am working, I will not be able to move out of the feeling of always being tired and cynical. The readings of today remind us that only when we have encountered Jesus in our lives can we then share the joy of being a Christian, in a manner which draws people to God.
The disciples journeying to Emmaus were disappointed with the events that they saw unfold in Jerusalem. Perhaps they were experiencing a bit of ‘burnout’ as they saw the divergence between what they were expecting of Jesus, and the events of the Passion and Resurrection. The purpose of them following Christ suddenly seemed meaningless, and they were returning to their old way of life.
Having Jesus walk with them and catechise them on the purpose of His death was so important and, more importantly, invigorated their lives. They managed to discover that the purpose of Christ coming to earth is to save all mankind. In that process, the fire within their hearts to love Jesus was kindled again, so much so that they were prepared to walk back to Jerusalem to share with the apostles what they saw.
This same revival was seen in St Peter after the descent of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gave him the speech of eloquence to proclaim fearlessly the love of Christ which he had received. The Holy Spirit gave St Peter the much needed discovery of the purpose of his role. In the same way, I believe all of us are in need of a constant renewal of our faith. It is easy to slip into mediocrity and just have a lukewarm faith because we lose our purpose of why we are Christian.
Our hurts from interacting with fellow Christians, or even a hurtful remark made to us by somebody whom we hold in esteem in church, could have hurt us. Nonetheless, I pray that you discover the first love you had with the faith and how you can manifest that with the people in your life. May you continue to share this joy of Easter around you through word and deed.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)
Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your spirit O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.
Thanksgiving: We give thanks for all who love us despite our failings.
OXYGEN 
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