Give Yourself Over To Jesus

22 Apr

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. 
You have faith in God; have faith also in me. 
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If there were not,
would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
so that where I am you also may be.
Where I am going you know the way.”
Thomas said to him, 
“Master, we do not know where you are going;
how can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. 
No one comes to the Father except through me.”  (Jn 14:1-6)

Thomas is the “master doubter” in the Gospels.  We hear his first true moment of doubt immediately after the resurrection.  He was not in the room with the other apostles when Jesus appeared to them.  He proclaimed that he would not believe unless he saw the Lord for himself and, even then, not until he could put his fingers into the nail marks and his hand in Jesus’ pierced side.

We all know what happened next.

Jesus appeared to the apostles again and, that time, Thomas was present.

Thomas became a true believer.

However, a true believer still encounters moments of doubt.

Thomas’ next big moment in the Gospels happens immediately prior to the ascension.  Jesus took his apostles to a mountain and told them He was leaving them again: this time, for good.  He told them not to worry, since they knew the way.

Thomas spoke up — and probably did so not just for himself but for other apostles as well:  “We do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?”

Here, we see Jesus patience and love.

Instead of berating Thomas, Jesus simply reminds Thomas that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

We may have problems manifest themselves in our lives, sometimes on a pretty regular basis.

We may wonder what life is all about.

We may get confused or frightened and begin to doubt.

All we need to remember is that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

Give yourself over to Him today.

FAITH ACTION:  In silence, consider the things that truly bother you, that may cause you much pain or grief.  With great deliberation, hand them over to the Lord.