peace

Good News ReflectionTuesday of the Fifth Week of EasterApril 22, 2008Today's Readings:Acts 14:19-28Ps 145:10-13ab, 21John 14:27-31ahttp://www.usccb.org/nab/readings/042208.shtmlAudio: http://ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/08_04_22.mp3Peace for the troubled heartIn today's Gospel passage, Jesus assures us that in him there is no reasonto be afraid nor for our hearts to feel troubled. The opposite of a troubledheart is peace, but very often we head for the wrong kind of peace, he says.When a spouse or friend argues with us, we try to regain peace by provingthat we're right or by making the other person agree with us. And when thisdoesn't work? How then can we find peace? Maybe we punish the person byusing "the silent treatment" or by refusing to have a good timetogetheruntil we get an apology. And when this doesn't produce peace, then what?For every troubling situation, we try a multitude of worldly ways to feelpeaceful again: We anesthetize ourselves with alcohol or drugs or foodaddition or burying ourselves in work. We insist on our own way, or we poutand withdraw, or we dump the problem into someone else's lap and run away.We blame others to appease our own guilt. And when this fails to calm ourfears or soothe our troubled hearts? Then what?Even when our troublesome trials end, our troubled hearts are never fullysatisfied. Burnt once, we shy away from all flickering flames, wary that oneof them will explode and burn us again. Cynicism and self-protective wallsthat shut others out are a sure sign that we're not turning to Jesus for thepeace that only he can give.Jesus says, "Not as the world gives peace do I give you peace." Hispeace isa gift that we discover only by uniting ourselves to his life and to hisHoly Spirit. A broken heart is never fully mended by those who broke it; itcan only be healed by Jesus.Because no one overcomes evil completely except Jesus, and because hedefeated the "ruler of the world" by his sacrifice and resurrection,onlyHIS love can satisfy us completely. But to receive his perfect love and thepeace that comes with it, we have to quit insisting that we get it fromthose who hurt us. Yes, they should love us more; yes, they should want toreconcile with us and make amends, but even if they do, they can never giveus the fullness of love that Jesus provides. So why look to them for whatthey cannot give? We must keep our eyes on Jesus at all times!When in our troubles and fears Jesus seems far away, remember what he said:"You heard me tell you, 'I am going away and I will come back toyou.'" Whenhe seems to be gone, we have not been abandoned. He has given us his ownHoly Spirit to guide us and comfort us. He most assuredly will do theFather's will for you, for you are God's beloved child.For a prayer meditation called "Be Satisfied with Me" (attributed toSt.Anthony of Padua) go to Catholic Digital Resources athttp://catholicdr.com/faithbuilders/besatisfied.htm.© 2008 by Terry A. ModicaFor PERMISSION to copy this reflection, go to:http://gogoodnews.net/DailyReflections/copyrights-DR.htm