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God’s children

Feast of Pentecost, Year C – 2022

3 juin 2022
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: absence of fear, Acts 19:1-3, confidence, faith, God's children, Holy Spirit, Luke 24:49, Romans 8:8-17, trust

In the Acts of the Apostles, we read that when Paul visited a community of Christians in Ephesus, he asked them:
“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?”
They replied: “We were never even told there was such a thing as a Holy Spirit” (Acts 19:1-3).

So, as we see in the 2nd reading of today, Paul reminds the Christians of Rome of what is at the heart of our faith (Romans 8:8-17):
 
“The Spirit of God has made his home in you…
Everyone moved by the Spirit is a child of God.
The spirit you received is not the spirit of slaves bringing fear into your lives again;
it is the spirit of children, and it makes us cry out ‘Abba, Father!’ ”
 
An amazing reality!
We are people ‘inhabited’ by God himself.
We are his own children, sharing in his nature.
We can truly call him in a familiar way: “Father!”.

Trust, confidence, absence of fear – this should be the ‘atmosphere’ of our Christian life.
Spontaneity, security, serenity – this is the normal ‘ambience’ of a life lived of faith.

This does not mean that no problem or difficulty will be part of our ‘landscape’.
But it means that Someone is with us with God’s power to enable us to overcome whatever comes our way.

Jesus himself has said so to the apostles:

“I am sending down to you what the Father has promised…
You will be clothed with the power from on high” (Luke 24:49).

Someone is with us… Someone to rely upon…
The Feast of Pentecost is meant to remind us of this.

 

Note: Another reflection, on a different theme, is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/fete-de-la-pentecote-annee-c-2022/

 

Source: Image: Facebook

Feast of Pentecost, Year B – 2021

28 mai 2021
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: Christians, followers of Christ, God's children, God's Spirit, identity, Rom.8:14-17

There are things and situations which somehow leave us… uncertain.
We look at the different angles of a reality and we are perplexed…
We wonder whether we are right in our appraisal of a given situation.

Our identity could be one of them, who we really are.
Of course, we know who we are as human beings –
our personality, our qualities, our past experiences, our strengths and weaknesses,
our desires and hopes, our successes and failures, etc.

But what about our identity as… Christians?
Are we truly aware of what this means?
Are we conscious of what it entails, all the richness of this condition?
We recognize ourselves as followers of Christ, yes, members of the Church, yes.
And?…

Todays’ celebration, the feast of the Holy Trinity, tells us of the identity of… God.
But it also the reminds us of a wonderful aspect of our own identity as Christians.

Writing to the first Christians of Rome, the apostle Paul tells them (2nd reading: Rom.8:14-17):

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.”
 
Not only does our spirit tells us but God’s Spirit himself confirms this truth.
This text removes any doubt which we may have about who we are –
nothing less than God’s own children.

We have been “adopted” says Paul et he adds that we are:

“heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.”
 
It is truly wonderful, it is absolutely astonishing!
Why do we not dare to believe in this God
and in the divinely transformed people that he has made us to be?!
 
Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/fete-de-la-sainte-trinite-annee-b-2021/

 

Source: Image: pinterest.com

4th Sunday of Easter, Year B – 2021

23 avril 2021
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 1 John 3:1-2, awareness, baptism, expérience, God's children, message

It happens that, all of a sudden, two children start quarreling while each one claims:
“My father is stronger than yours.”
Or, “My father is more clever than yours, he can do this and that…”

We smile at such a behavior and we understand clearly that what is at stake is
the child’s pride at being the son, or the daughter, of that father who is so strong, so clever!

The 2nd reading of this Sunday (4th Easter Sunday, year B) is very short (1 John 3:1-2).
Yes, the text of John’s first epistle given to us has only two verses but they express an amazing message.
They invite us to become aware of who we are.

“Beloved, now are we the children of God.”
 
Probably, most of you reading these lines have been baptized long ago.
Has it ever happened to you, even only once, that you said to yourself:
I AM the child of God?
Have you ever had this experience of a sudden flash of awareness prompting you to exclaim:
“But it is true, I AM God’s son, God’s daughter!”?

If you have, I would venture to think that you still remember that occasion as a blessed experience.
This Sunday may be a good moment to recapture this graced happening and… repeat it with renewed thanksgiving to HIM – your Father…

 

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/4e-dimanche-de-paques-annee-b-2021/

 

 Source: Image: Inspirational Bible Verse Images – Knowing Jesus

Feast of the Holy Family, Year C

28 décembre 2018
Nicole Gregoire
Aucun commentaire
Catégories: Anglophones et anglophiles
Mots-clés: 1 Jn.3:1-2, 1 Jn.3:21-24, God-one-of-us, God's children, Jn.1:14, Lk.2:10-11

This may have happened to you: waking up in the morning and saying to yourself: “I hope that, today, some good news will come my way…”

Well, this is what we have been celebrating on Christmas day. The gospel text gave us the angel’s words: “Today, I bring you news of great joy…” (Lk.2:10-11).

That good news is that God has become one of us.

And today, the second part of this great news unfolds for us: We have become… one of his!

It is said, it is written, it is proclaimed, in the second reading of the 1st epistle

of John: “We are called God’s children and so we are!” (1 Jn.3:1-2,21-24).

We are indeed and in truth ‘God’s family’.

It may not take all the problems away, it may not remove all pain and sorrow, but it provides strength to carry the problems and comfort in facing the painful situations.

GOOD NEWS indeed!

Note: Another reflection on a different theme is available in French at: https://image-i-nations.com/fete-de-la-sainte-famille-annee-c/

Source: Image: YouTube