05/30/21 Secret Identity

Homily from the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.

What is God's deepest secret? What is yours?
What we are is shaped and revealed by what we choose. Who we are is established by relationships.

Mass Readings from May 30, 2021:
Deuteronomy 4:32-34, 39-40
Psalm 33:4-6, 9, 18-19, 20, 22
Romans 8:14-17
Matthew 28:16-20

05/23/21 Kingdom Gifts

Homily from Pentecost Sunday.

Am I willing to use the gifts that God has already given?
At Pentecost, the disciples received the Holy Spirit and the subsequent gifts of the Holy Spirit. These gifts glorify the Father and have changed the world. If we were given these gifts, we could also glorify the Father and change the world…but would we?

Mass Readings from May 23, 2021:
Acts 2:1-11
Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34
1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13
John 20:19-23

05/16/21 You Will Be Martyrs

Homily from the Mass of the Ascension of the Lord.

Nice is different than good.
Jesus doesn't call us to simply be "nice people." Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit so that we can be more than we are now...so that we can do more than we can do now. Jesus sends His Holy Spirit so that we can have the strength to be the kind of people who can bear witness to Him and His love in this world. He gives His Spirit so that people can be saved and God can be glorified.

Mass Readings from May 16, 2021:
Acts 1:1-11
Psalm 47:2-3, 6-9
Ephesians 1:17-23
Mark 16:15-20

05/09/21 Spark Joy

Homily from the Sith Sunday of Easter.

Joy is rooted in confidence and comes as a consequence.
We can choose joy only insofar as we can choose the source of our joy. Joy comes as a consequence; it is a fruit. And the depth and permanence of our joy is only going to be as deep and long lasting as what we place our confidence in. Only when we surrender to the love of God can we have a joy that is deeper and more permanent than any amount of suffering that comes from life.

Mass Readings from May 9, 2021:
Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
Psalm 98:1-4
1 John 4:7-10
John 15:9-17

05/02/21 Love Limits You

Homily from the Fifth Sunday of Easter.

Practice making the promise.
We find ourselves always moving and never done. We have so many options that we experience decision paralysis and subsequent decision dissatisfaction. But we are made for a full life. A full life is only possible when we intentionally limit ourselves by making the decision to love this person or to root ourselves in this place. Ultimately, unless we truly decide to remain in Christ, we will never experience the life we have been made for.

Mass Readings from May 2, 2021:
Acts 4:8-12
Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29
1 John 3:1-2
John 10:11-18