Friday, October 31, 2014

Everything Is Nothing

Like Saint Paul and all the saints, we very often long to depart to be with Christ. Daily we try to set our minds and hearts on things that are above where Christ is. For truly we have died, our lives are hidden now with Christ in God. Don’t we consider everything to be nothing at all compared with knowing Christ Jesus, our Lord? Isn’t knowing him the best thing of all? Isn’t it because of him that we set everything else aside? Don’t we consider everything else a pile of rubbish, so that we can get to know him even more? Don’t we want to know only Christ and the power of his resurrection? Aren't all of us sharing in his sufferings even now and so becoming like him in his death? And isn’t it worth it, if somehow we may attain the resurrection from the dead? True, we haven’t yet reached the goal; but we are pressing on to make it our own, because Christ Jesus has made me each of us his own. And so each morning we go up to the altar of God, the God of our joy, and receive his risen flesh and blood, our promise of everlasting life and peace and joy.

Photo by Charles O'Connor. Reflection on Saint Paul's Letter to the Philippians 3.