A tree doesn’t make a sound. In fact it barely even moves. And yet God provides even for it. Be still and silent like the branches we read about in today’s Gospel, and fathom the great love God has for us. His grace is enough. Sometimes we need to be silent to recognize that.
There is no passion greater than the love of the one willing to lay down his life for the ones he loves. The world may claim that romantic love is the strongest, and it could be if it’s sacrificial like Christ’s love for us. But let’s not forget the way God loves us. Take some time to think of the ways God has loved you like a good shepherd in your life. It’s easy to remember how he sacrificed himself on the Cross for our sins, but there are probably other ways he has laid down particular things just for you and me in our own lives. Think of how the Church, his Body, has been there for you and me. What about the faithful loved ones in our lives? What have they sacrificed to bring us closer to Christ? All of these ways, great or small, are ways the good shepherd seeks out and protects his lost or endangered sheep.
