HOMILY OF MONDAY OF THE OF THE SIXTH WEEK OF EASTER
Acts 16:11-15, John 15:26-16:4
THEME: THE BENEFITS OF HAVING THE RIGHT DISPOSITION.
Grace builds on nature. Heaven helps those who help themselves. It is crystal clear that our mind has a gate-keeping ability. It can dispose us to greater things. It can also block us from accessing treasures. The pure in heart, the Lord said, shall see God.
Today’s first reading singled out a certain woman from among the group of women who were at prayer in Philippi. Though Lydia was a businesswoman, her sense of devotion to God was undaunted. And God opened her up to enjoy the grace of baptism. Through her faith, her family was converted to the faith.
“One of these women was called Lydia, a devout woman from the town of Thyatira who was in the purple-dye trade. She listened to us, and the Lord opened her heart to accept what Paul was saying. After she and her household had been baptized she sent us an invitation: ‘If you really think me a true believer in the Lord,’ she said ‘come and stay with us’; and she would take no refusal.”
Lydia did not stop at accepting the faith. Out of her own volition, she began to serve Christ by showing hospitality to the apostles. God opened her heart because he knew that she had the readiness for service.
God wants us to dispose ourselves for the indwelling of his spirit. He wants to bless our family through us. He wants to use us to touch the lives of others. Charity demands that we make ourselves available at God’s disposal that he may use us for his greater glory.
May our heart be fertile grounds for God’s word, that through us he will work to bless those around us, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
