Returning Our Gaze to Christ
“My children, I am writing this to you so that you may not commit sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one. He is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)
“My children, I am writing this to you so that you may not commit sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one. He is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)
A friend of mine would go around saying how much he desired to die a martyr. Our friends (me included) would question him because who actually wants to die a martyr? But the more he said it, I began to reflect on his desire. If we choose to live our lives for Christ, is that not a desire to also die for Him?
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Innocents and we hear about these martyrs in today’s Gospel. The thought of martyrdom can be hard to fathom but as we grow in our faith, our greatest desire should be for heaven. We know that we will one day die, but our hope is that we will be with our heavenly Father, the angels, and the Saints forever.
There are moments in our lives when we lose the gaze of heaven and turn to sin. In the first reading we hear a beautiful exhortation by John to not sin, but to remember that “if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one.” So, this Christmas season, let's return our gaze to heaven, to Jesus who came to save us– that we will have the courage to live for Him in all we do.
How am I called to live for Christ today?
Jesus, please give me the strength and courage to turn away from sin and return my gaze on you. Amen.
Jasmine Pujol is the Administrative Assistant for the Office of Vocations of the Diocese of St. Petersburg. Prior to joining the Office of Vocations, Jasmine served in our Diocese for nine years as a Youth Minister to middle and high school teens. The gifts and talents she has developed throughout those years have come to be utilized in a new way for the Office of Vocations. Jasmine loves Jesus, coffee, hammocking, visiting Florida rivers/springs, and spending time with her family.
