The Here and Now!

This title is very appropriate because there are people who try to predict when the world is going to end. Only God knows the day and the hour, so there is no need to try and figure it out ourselves. Instead, we need to make the most of the time that God has given us in the here and now. Several things from this past weekend that I used in my homily: 1) "Christian life is to focus on the here and now and that will require strength and faith. The teaching of Jesus does not offer us a way to predict the end of the world. Instead, the teaching of Jesus provides his followers with the spiritual resources needed to cope with the adversity and hardship that is part of life in the here and now." 2) "According to Jesus, a successful follower is not one who can predict the future. The authentic follower of Jesus is the one who lives out Jesus' call for love and obedience in the here and now and who perseveres until the end" (St. Anthony Messenger Press, Homily Helps). This is the key, to live in the present moment and to continue to do what we can in building up the Kingdom of God in our midst, as we await the full reality of the kingdom to be revealed in God's time. Have a blessed day!