John 3:31-36 Whoever Believes Has Life

John 3:31-36 Whoever Believes Has Life
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How true, Lord, how true it is. Whoever believes begins to live. I want to live. Only you Lord have the words of everlasting life. Those who believe, your faithful few, engage the giants, kill the giants, and move on to the next giant. Your faithful can move mountains, climb over mountains, and endure the pain and agony of conquering the mountains. You invite us to overcome our fears, to share the Good News and give the gift of the Holy Spirit. You, Lord, came from above and you are above all things. There is nothing, absolutely nothing that cannot be defeated, overwhelmed, not even death. How I dread the fact that I shall have lived my life at fifty-percent. Is that good enough? Yes, some for you, some for me. Would you still love me? Yes, but I love you more.
If you think the Navy SEALs are tough you are right. But as one former Navy SEAL, Marcus Luttrell, put it, “John Paul II would have made a great Navy SEAL!” (- Lone Survivor) Why?

The Church is not in the business of eliminating their enemy but converting them. And if we think that was a tough mission - to capture or kill Usama Bin Laden, then imagine a team of highly skilled priests and nuns like John Paul II and Mother Teresa sent in with the impossible mission to convert him? Mission impossible? Not with God. Who knows, this guy may have preferred execution over exorcism, but as the title of this meditation suggests, “Whoever believes has life!”

The conversion of sinners is still a source of scandal, even in our “tolerant” psyche. “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:27-33). These words should ring in our hearts and minds at all times. But we know better. We know the reality of our battles. Our feet are firmly planted on what is below rather than what is above. We love to ration the gift of the Holy Spirit. We have all heard it loud and clear: Do what is logical. Do what is sound. Take the safe and sure path. But the Gospel is far too clear to ignore. “The one who comes from above is above all. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things.” What are the earthly things? Take it easy. Relax. Don’t rush into anything. Accommodate. Negotiate. Be flexible. Think practical. Think of yourself first. Don’t burn any bridges. Don’t take life so seriously.

I recently had breakfast with a wonderful mom who is currently going through some very rough times. She is experiencing spiritual purification. She told me all her troubles. They are many and they are serious. But what frightened me more than anything else was her question to me. “Is God upset with me? Am I doing something wrong?” I told her with all my heart and with total confidence in my words, “Absolutely not!” In fact, while all of this is happening she is reading a book entitled, Total abandonment. How providential! You see, ask and you shall receive! The Lord is providing, like always!

Today’s psalm highlights my point: “Many are the troubles of the just man, but out of them all the LORD delivers him.” Amen! Am I allowing the Lord to deliver? Am I taking a leap of faith?

Let us place our trust in none other but the Lord. Let us not live the end of our lives regretting what we could have done or what we could have been. Life is too precious for regrets. It is a scarce reality in our Universe. Before we could see, we existed. Seeing is not believing; rather, believing is seeing. And we shall see the face of God at the end of our lives if we place him above all earthly things, for HE IS before it all was.