Daily Gospel Reflection
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May 23, 2020
Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
“I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but will tell you plainly of the Father. On that day you will ask in my name. I do not say to you that I will ask the Father for you; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world; now, I am leaving the world and am going to the Father.”
“Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete”
I recall a story of my younger brother that my family and I laugh about all the time. One day, we had a dinner that my younger brother was not too pleased with. He asked for something else, and yet received food that did not suit his liking. Storming off into his room, he vowed that he would not eat dinner that night, taking a solemn fast. Of course, a little while later, he gave in to his hunger and marched back into the kitchen sitting down at the table with an air of contempt. He then proclaimed the now-famous line in our family: “I’m gonna eat it, but I’m NOT gonna like it!”
While my family and I often laugh about this story, it makes me wonder how often I ask for something from God and receive something that I don’t like. How often do I pray to God only to find that the answer to my prayer is not what I hoped for? Many times, I march off into the recesses of my heart angry with God’s loving response to my prayer giving Him the silent treatment to show my anger. But, God always seeks me and finds me. God desires to comfort me in my suffering and knows what is best for me in all things. God only desires to give me the grace necessary to bear the suffering in my life knowing that one day my joy will be made complete by divine grace. I turn to God and say “I’m gonna accept this grace, but I’m NOT gonna like it!” We both laugh, and then I return to that path that I am not so excited to walk, on towards heaven. May we always look to God for the grace to bear our sufferings in this difficult time, and may we trust in the promise of joy that Jesus Christ gives us in this gospel passage. Amen.
Prayer
In your gentleness, O Lord Jesus, you never give us more than we can bear. You never ask us to do something without at the same time giving us the needed grace. We thank you for your presence in our life through the Spirit, and pray that we may be a blessing and a life-giver to all whom we meet this day. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Julia is a fifth-century saint who is revered as a martyr in the Italian church. Julia was born as a wealthy young heiress or princess in Carthage, but was captured as a slave by Vandals who invaded Carthage.
Her master appreciated her hard work, and Julia became invaluable to him, so he allowed her to continue practicing her Christianity and forego worshiping their native gods. Her master took Julia with him on a trip to Gaul. He landed in Corsica, at a village that was holding a pagan festival, and the ruler of the village asked Julia's master why he had a slave who would not join in their worship of the gods. Julia's master responded that he could not dissuade her from her Christianity, no matter how hard he tried. Because she was such a skillful, hard worker, he could not do without her and needed her as a part of his household. The pagan ruler said he would trade four of his best slaves for Julia, but Julia's master refused. "Even if you gave me all you own, I would not part with her," he claimed.
The village ruler waited until Julia's master fell asleep, then he abducted Julia from where she was resting on the ship and tried to force her to offer a sacrifice to pagan gods. Julia refused. He offered her her freedom if she would just make a sacrifice. "Serving Christ is my true and only freedom," retorted Julia.
The ruler had Julia tortured and crucified. When her master awoke, he ran outside to see his beloved Julia breathing her last. Legend has it that when Julia breathed her last, a dove left her lips and flew into the sky. Her body has remained in Corsica ever since, and she has been the patron saint of the island.
St. Julia, brave martyr of Corsica—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Julia is in the public domain. Last accessed March 11, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
