We are called to carry on Jesus’ mission; He is with us

Gospel: Mark 16: 15–20
Go into the whole world and proclaim the good news

Did you ever wonder why the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus—albeit three notable events in his life—get so much attention and yet his ascension hardly ever seems to merit honorable mention?

What it means to love Jesus

Gospel: John 15: 9–17
Remain in my love

Today’s gospel presents us with a vision for the church. Jesus has just told his disciples, “I am the vine; you are the branches” (15:1ff). Now he describes the relationship between his disciples and himself. It is not merely a gathering of friends, or like-minded individuals.

I was watching a special program on the Weather Channel the other evening. It was a look-back over the past year, when we had a more-than-usual number of tornadoes across the country. A commentator referred to those devastating weather events as “Acts of God.” In effect God was blamed, once again, for killing innocent people and destroying millions of dollars of property!