Friday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

This is the will of God, your holiness! 1 Thessalonians 4:3a

“What does God want me to do in this situation?”
“What does God want from me?”
“What is or was God’s will for my life?”

God wants us to be holy. Period.

Whenever you wonder what God wants you to do, say to yourself: “God wants me to do what is holy, because God wants me to be holy.”

Whenever you feel like all your striving to please God goes for nothing, and you ask yourself, “What does God want from me?” Remember what God wants: a heart made holy by trusting in God.

Whenever you are at a crossroads, or when you take a big step back and look at the big picture of your life and question, “What is or was God’s will for my life?” Take comfort in knowing that God willed you into existence, and God wills you to be holy.

But this begs the question: what is holiness?

Perhaps the remainder of the scripture verse gives an answer:

“This is the will of God, your holiness: that you refrain from immorality….”

If you read it carefully, my preceding commentary may not be exactly what St. Paul meant here. It is true, yes, that God wants us to be holy. But the living word of God might be read a different way and mean something more profound:

“This is the will of God, [who is] your holiness: that you refrain from immorality….”

In this reading of Sacred Scripture, St. Paul is stating a deeper truth, namely, God is your holiness. It is not our holiness. I am not holy because I made myself holy. I am holy because God is holy. And if God is in me, God makes me holy.

And how do we know if God is in us? “Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him and he in God.” (1 John 4:15)

For Today:
Pray the Jesus Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Reflection by Br. Luke Kral, OSB