5th Sunday of Easter
(Sunday 29th April 2018)
Spiritual Habits in our lives – (John 15:1-8)
Today we will reflect on the Gospel readings from John where Jesus gives us the encouraging news that we will bear much fruit in our lives, provided that we abide in Him. He is the vine and we are the branches. So we should ask ourselves what does it mean to abide in the vine? And what is the fruit that will result?
On April 10th 1963, the nuclear submarine, the USS Thresher, the most advanced attack submarine of its time, was doing deep diving tests 220 miles east of Boston in the US in the North Atlantic. Water leaking from a broken pipe in the engine room led to a shut-down of the reactor causing the submarine to lose propulsion as it descended and was crushed by enormous pressure, sinking to a depth of 8400 feet. It was a great tragedy as 129 men perished. Ironically, however, the probe that was sent down to search and photograph the submarine revealed thinly scaled fish living at this great depth. They had what the USS Thresher had not – counter-pressure. All of their lives they had built counter-pressure so as to be able to survive at that depth. Well we face pressures every day. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the whole of man’s history has been the story of a dour combat with the powers of evil, stretching, so Our Lord tells us, from the very dawn of history until the last day. Finding himself in the midst of the battlefield, man has to struggle to do what is right and it is at great cost to himself. And aided by God’s grace he can succeed in achieving his own inner integrity. It is the aide of God’s grace that gives us inner integrity or ‘counter-pressure’.
I would like to offer you a game-plan in abiding in the vine. It is the acronym H.A.B.I.T.S. Think of it as habits that you grow in to be a devoted disciple of Jesus and to be a saint. It goes as follows:
Holy Hour – Start with 10 minutes of daily prayer and watch it grow over time to an hour.
Accountability – Be transparent with at least one friend who will hold you accountable to be a disciple of Jesus.
Bible reading – Let God’s Word transform your mind and connect you to Jesus in prayer.
Invest in your parish – Tithe and serve by sharing your talents and time in the mission of the parish.
Tell – Boldly tell others about your faith and invite them to faith in Jesus.
Sacraments – Participate as frequently as you can in reconciliation and Eucharist.
The first fruit in building these habits into our lives is peace. When you have peace, you can withstand the pressures that the day brings because you are secure in God’s love for you and confident in His providence. When you have peace, you will find that you are more docile to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and can be present and available to the needs of others. And peace is just one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The others; charity, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity – These are the fruits that bring glory to the Father. These are the fruits that transform the world because people are drawn to those who have the fruits of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
May we faithfully abide in the vine so that we can bear much fruit in our lives and prove to be His disciples. So the question for you today – Will you begin to develop spiritual habits in your life?