Throughout the Easter Season we hear from the Acts of the Apostles, the great book that illustrates the powerful workings of the Holy Spirit in the early days of the Church. The word of the Lord is like a fire spreading quickly over the land, gaining many new converts for Christ. The Apostles, enflamed by the love of the Holy Spirit, set out to spread the Good News to all peoples, Jews and Gentiles alike. Their mission, however, is not without its challenges and struggles. There are some who have rejected the message of the Apostles, and even seek to have their voices snuffed out; but the flame of the Holy Spirit can never be extinguished. Even in the midst of terrible persecution the Apostles continued to spread the Gospel of salvation, and by God\u2019s grace the Church continued to grow.<\/p>\n
In our own lives, we should also expect to face persecution for our faith and the truth we uphold. Like the Apostles and martyrs of the early church, we should not despair when hardships come our way, but we should rejoice in the Lord who has granted us the opportunity to glorify his name, to defend the truth, and to uphold justice and love. If we persevere, Christ the Good Shepherd will give us eternal life and never allow us to be lost (cf. John 10:28), \u201che will guide us to springs of living water; and God will wipe away every tear from our eyes\u201d (Rev 7:14).<\/p>\n
The same Holy Spirit that guided the early Church now guides us, and the same Christ who shepherds his flock is calling his sheep to himself. There are many voices competing to be heard, and many wolves who are trying to lead Christ\u2019s flock astray. We must focus our attention on the Good Shepherd and follow his voice alone.\u00a0 He will lead us through the trials and tribulations that befall us. He will never abandon us or lead us astray. In this life we will face hardship, as the Apostles did, but Christ gives us the same message: \u201cFear not, I have overcome the world\u201d (John 16:33).<\/p>\n
Kevin Ponte<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 St. Joseph Seminary, Edmonton, Alberta<\/p>\n Fot. Jaka Skrlep\/Unsplash.com<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" IV Sunday in Easter<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2037,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,17,18],"tags":[61,142,166],"class_list":["post-2036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-strona-glowna-najnowsze","category-strona-glowna-slider","tag-edmonton","tag-kevin_ponte","tag-st-joseph-seminary"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n