Our readings today are about choices and their consequences. But they focus on the one choice that is more important than any other choice we make in life—will we choose to be in the love relationship that God has already committed to with us?

In our first reading for today from the Book of Deuteronomy, we are begged by Moses to “choose life… by loving the Lord your God, heeding his voice, and holding fast to him.” Doesn’t that perfectly describe a love relationship? Our responsorial psalm gives a beautiful image of the fruits of our love relationship with the Lord: we become “like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade.” In our gospel today, Jesus reminds us of what his commitment to this love relationship meant for him: he would suffer greatly, be killed, and on the third day, be raised.

Jesus tells us what we must do to enter into this love relationship: we must deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow him. The paradox of choosing to enter into this love relationship with the Lord is that we forget ourselves and instead focus on Jesus! Our Lord exhibits all the virtues needed to reach the goal. He still exhibits them all in the Eucharist, so we can learn from him and, as his mystical body, “complete and perpetuate him.” (Eymard, The Real Presence, page 194)

What virtues must I demonstrate today to express my love relationship with the Lord fully?

Let Us Pray:

Heavenly Father, as we meditate today on the Paschal Mystery of your beloved son, show us the virtues we need to carry our own cross and grant us the grace to grow in those virtues. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.