God loves us more than we can ever imagine, and He wants us to be in a relationship with Him. He wants us to return His love; in fact, that is the first commandment. It is not optional. But God’s love is radical; Jesus showed us the depth of God’s love by willingly suffering a horrible death and then breaking the bonds of death for our salvation. Today’s Gospel passage spells out what it means to love as God loves: denying oneself for the sake of doing God’s work and being willing to accept the suffering that this life brings. It’s not easy, as we see in the first reading. Jeremiah did not want to be a prophet, and he was ridiculed and persecuted for his message to the point that he told God he felt duped by God. Yet, God left him no choice. It isn’t always easy for us either. It’s easy to place our wants and desires ahead of what God wants for us or what He is calling us to do/be. Obsessions with certain activities or possessions, all sorts of things, can get in the way. Reducing or eliminating these things from our lives is not easy; it is one type of cross that we’re called to bear…along with all the other hardships we encounter such as broken relationships, job loss, sickness, and death. The list goes on and on; how we deal with these crosses reflects whether God is first in our lives. Do we turn to Him in our sorrow and loss, or do we lash out at others or fall back on habits that only bring more sorrow? God is there to help, and He wants to help. Are you willing to let Him? Reflection by parishioner, John Ceglarek