March 11 -- Fourth Sunday of Lent

Reading 1, Second Chronicles 36:14-17, 19-23
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Gospel, John 3:14-21
Reading 2, Ephesians 2:4-10

Today is REJOICE Sunday, right in the middle of Lent. Yes, we can rejoice in that God so loved the world that he gave us his Son. No matter how troubled we are we can be assured of and depend upon that deep down joy that God has placed in the core of our being. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). Picture the stained glass image of St. Teresa of Avila dancing! She had been turned into the inquisitors by a young novice in one of the seventeen convents she founded; she was interrogated five times by the Inquisition! She meditated on the crucifix and found inner strength after years of illness and dryness in prayer. She found her inner joy and danced.

In today’s second reading St. Paul says that we are God’s work of art created in Christ, Jesus to live the good life. Isaiah says “You are precious in my sight, and I love you.”

We may find that hard to believe. When we allow God to be our strength, nothing defeats us. Not even the worst cross can destroy God’s love. When we are convinced that we can’t handle things by ourselves and call upon God for help, we are at our strongest