{Fifth Sunday of Easter} A Great Opportunity

I had an incredibly difficult time focusing during Mass last night. Of course, most of it had to do with the fact that I drove into the parking lot 10 minutes before Mass started. (Since I play the flute in 1 of the choirs, we are usually there 45 minutes prior to the beginning of Mass.) I thought I was only 5 minutes late...until I drove into the parking lot and saw all of the cars and realized that Mass begins at 5:00 on Saturday evenings, not 5:30. Fortunately, the other flutist was there, and we make a great team. There was a song I didn't feel comfortable playing the intro, so she did it. There was a song she didn't like the flute parts, so I did it. That's the great thing about having someone to partner with.

We walk by faith, not by sight.

The disciples had each other to fall back on. Heck, for a time, they had Jesus with them. It amazes me that, even though he was with them, they still had trouble with completely believing. I think we have a much harder task believing than the disciples did. They saw him perform the miracles. They heard his teaching. We don't have that luxury. 

We  have the opportunity to perform great works.
This message is true for us today. Just as the disciples no longer had Jesus physically there in order to gain believers, we can share his word and gain believers through our actions. 
For some reason, in the past few months, I've had a few conversations with people who have had questions about the Catholic faith, and I was honored to be the one whom they asked. One person asked me questions while in the school office, and out of the corner of my eye I could see someone else paying attention. I live in the south, where the protestants greatly outnumber the Catholics. If I can pique the curiosity of just one person, I've done something great. They may not ever convert to Catholicism, but I can dispel some myths and I can help ease some of the ignorance (for lack of a better word) that some people have about the Catholic Church. 

It's okay to not have all the answers.
Even the saints didn't claim to have all the answers. The disciples certainly didn't have all the answers, so we can't be expected to know everything either. Sometimes I think we're asked questions so that we can grow in our faith. Think about it: when someone asks you a question, don't you want to find out the answer so you can reliably give the person the information? It's okay to say, "I don't know, but I will get back to you with the answer." 
You would think that the disciples would have the answers after walking with Jesus and having discussions with him.There were times when even they lacked faith. Jesus had to be exasperated with them. I wonder if he questioned how these people could be the ones who would spread the Gospels. I wonder if he thought, "What knuckleheads! I'm right here, performing miracles and feeding them all the information they need to know, yet they still have questions!" Did he ask God if he was sure these were the right ones?

Does he look at me and ask if I'm the  right one?
I question myself, I question my knowledge, I question my faith. We are called to be people of faith. We are called to do everything for his glory. We are called to remember this in all areas of our lives, in all of our daily activities. We don't know all of the answers, but we have to believe that when we are called home, we will find out.