How can I make the Lord known to others?
Last week we celebrated the Baptism of the Lord. It is an important time when Jesus begins his ministry. Salvation has come! This week continues with John the Baptist’s testimony of the Lord. What is important is our reflection on our own baptism, since we are charged to continue on giving testimony to others. Jesus wants us to share in his mission to spread the good news of salvation to the ends of the Earth. This mission, which we are called upon by our baptism, is one of harmony with his word, persistence under resistance, and manifestation of his love through our actions.
Isaiah, in the first reading, tells us the Lord will make us into a light to all people so his message will reach everywhere. We are given his grace and light at our Baptism. A light that he urges to continue to burn bright! We come to know the Lord through our prayer, scripture reading, devotions, community gatherings, but how can we make the Lord known to others?
In my homily last week, I used the word witness. We can be the Lord’s witnesses to the truth. We can live his word and show others by example whether it be in person or over social media. Whether you are on Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, or Skype you have a powerful tool to reach out to others as witnesses of Christ. There are many websites to fuel us like EWTN.com, Pope2you.net or my favorite Catholic.com. The power of the internet to inform us and help testify to others Christ’s love for us is a wonderful tool.
We can make the Lord known to others by seizing the opportunities that come to us. Don’t be afraid of what others may think! Be mindful of opportunities that repeat themselves. They are the promptings of the Holy Spirit to seize the opportunity to be a witness of the Lord. Jesus knew the proper time to seize the opportunity for John to baptize him, so that he may begin his journey of salvation. John also seized his opportunity to testify about Jesus. Let us be attentive to our own journey to make the Lord known to others through personal examples or through social media by faith, hope, and love.
– Deacon Jeff Loeb