Mary first received Jesus and then she goes out to give him away…..This is the model we must follow…..We can not give what we do not have….Its in this approach that we will “bear fruit” for the Kingdom of God….Those who have ears…Let them hear

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of St John how Jesus’s friends despite the miracles…Despite everything they have heard and seen…They do not understand who exactly Jesus really is…."Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip?…….Faith is a gift, it has little to do with “facts”…Even what we “see” can come into question as demonstrated by Phillip today in the Gospel…Our faith comes from our interior life - Which is developed through daily prayer, weekly fasting and living a Sacramental life…There are many today who “know all the facts”…Who can recite Scripture chapter and verse…..Who are “great” theologians and still like Phillip in todays’ gospel ask a similar question……"Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us”…Jesus is patient and never gives up on this friends - That includes us!….And because of that he addresses Phillip…..”The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father”….The “fruit” of a life dedicated to God again comes from our interior life and it will flow naturally…..Mother Teresa would say…”I am a pencil in the hand of God”….This is true for all souls who develop a deep interior life…..God will “write” a beautiful letter to the world through us but only if we empty our self and allow God to work within us…Strive to deepen your interior life…From it everything flows

“Not a word nor a discourse whose voice is not heard; Through all the earth their voice resounds, and to the ends of the world, their message”

The closer we get to God, the more God can use us…Abraham Lincoln wisely once said….”Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe”……Before we attempt to “do something for God” - We first must empty ourself…We must develop a daily prayer life….We must fast weekly….And we must live by and through the grace of the Sacraments…Then and only then will we “do something for God” that lasts……..Because just as Jesus today in the Gospel said…..”The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works”…..One of the most impressive sights I have ever seen was early morning in Kolkata before daily Mass….Mass would begin at 6:00am…Kolkata has a very large Muslim population and my “alarm clock” would go off at around 5:00am with the sound of the muezzin, who is the person who proclaims the call to the daily prayer five times a day at a mosque….Following my “alarm” I would walk through the dark streets of Kolkata to Mass as the city began to come to life once again…When you entered the Missionaries of Charity’s chapel on AJC Bose Road…Around 200 nuns would be siting on the floor praying in complete and utter silence before the tabernacle….You could hear a pin drop - The silence was deafening!….The sight was something to behold and frankly I have never seen it since anywhere….Why tell this with you?…In order for Mother Teresa’s sister to do what they do…They must pray…There is NO WAY they would be able to accomplish what they do without daily prayer and the Sacraments….This is what Mother Teresa once said about this reality…..”When the Sisters are exhausted, up to their eyes in work; when all seems to go awry, they spend an hour in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. This practice has never failed to bear fruit: they experience peace and strength”……Far too many people disregard the efficacy of daily prayer, weekly fasting and the Sacraments…They rely on their own gifts and not on God…This is a huge mistake!…No matter how gifted you may be…God is more gifted…We are limited and God is limitless!….Before we attempt to put our faith into action…We must be “filled” by God…We do this through prayer, fasting and the Sacraments…...We can not give what we do not have…At the root of the problem - We still are not convinced that God can do more with our life then we can….Be convinced - Because its true!

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork. Day pours out the word to day; and night to night imparts knowledge”

Today in the Gospel from Mass, Jesus reminds his friends and us as well that everything he does comes from God the Father…This should tell us all something…The closer we get to God, the more we will do through us…And what we do will flow naturally from our interior life….Are we convinced that God is real?…Do we believe that the Sacraments are instruments of divine grace?….Do we believe that without God we can do nothing that will last?…..These are the questions we must ask our self….Good old Abe Lincoln figured it out…..”Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe”…..Our Lady also shows us the way….At the Annunciation Mary said YES to God and therefore was filled literally with Jesus’s body within her womb…So what does Mary do next?….She “goes out” to greet Elizabeth her cousin who was in need…Mary first received Jesus and then she goes out to give him away…..This is the model we must follow…..We can not give what we do not have….Its in this approach that we will “bear fruit” for the Kingdom of God….Those who have ears…Let them hear