It is not for you to know the times or seasons
that the Father has established by his own authority.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,
and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
throughout Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth.”
While the disciples keep asking Jesus , what his plans were next , he responds the above passage to them , it is indeed not for us to know the times or seasons! We are blessed by baptism and confirmation with the power of the holy spirit and every Sunday with the Holy Eucharist in our lives to be the witness of the Lord through our lives to our families and work place and maybe even here through the readings and reflections and responses.. ( I love reading all the concern and love I get from every one)
As Jesus ascends to heaven, it marks the last day of chemotherapy for my dad ( for now says my medical brain)! It has been a journey of enlightenment, sorrow, extreme doubt, worry and finally an end.. although like the eager disciples I want to know ” what next lord ?! Will I get through my exams? Will my patient conceive ? Will the doctor say my dad is cancer free? or the constant when will I ever lose the extra weight ?”
All of us have our set of queries with the Lord about our future, the past and ” why would it happen to me ?” for every unforseen turn of events! While I had plans to study and get a well paying job , I was sifted home in a hurry and suddenly watching surgeons open my fathers abdomen at 3 am! From just being confused about what went wrong with my dad who never even had any medical history, I stood in a sea of cancer survivors most children under 10 years absolutely blissful and enjoying the moments at hand!
You too must have your queries and dreams, and like I note them down at every visit to the oncologist so I dont skip any thing, we should just note down all our worries and issues and put it up to the Lord in prayer! I am trying to re establish my connection with Mother mary, one decade at a time. I do get distracted and seem to remember every thing on my to do list during those 3 to 5 minutes! But I am trying and I am sure like my own mother, she sees my efforts and waits patiently for me to accept my faults and come home to her !
Today as Jesus ascends , the disciples were left under guidance of the Holy Spirit for the future, the mere fisherman were preaching and telling strangers about the prowess of God, so what good is my education if I cannot explain to a woman how her abortion is equal to a murder?!?!?!?The moral dilemma constantly grips at my heart when I see the patient and what broke me was my nurse asking me why dont I prescribe medications for termination as abortion is surgical !
It is a daily duty for us to be witnesses of the ascended Lord with the power of prayer and sacraments! Most days its very hard and as I type I feel hypocritical for my own flaws as a catholic glare at me! I am trying, not hard enough though….
Let the holy spirit shine through us all this week and like my dad brave it all with 100% faith in the Lord! For every patient I ever saw, I never once saw a man with so much faith and zero doubt he would pull through!! I hope to learn the positivity comes from complete reliance on the Almighty and surrender to Him about what next !
PRAYER:
Dearest Jesus,
as you ascend today and bless us with your Holy spirit, awaken that spark in me to stand up for my christian values however hard it maybe and respect the sanctity of life! Guide me through life with complete reliance on you!
AMEN
