Today’s Gospel invites us not to be afraid and receive His peace: “I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).
When I came into the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous over twenty years ago I was not financially poor. I was well established in my career and had money in the bank. But I was living in a shell. I was emotionally and spiritually empty and about to file for spiritual and emotional bankruptcy. My family was still intact, but just barely. I was living in a house of cards, and those cards were about to come down and it was going to hurt. I knew I needed to stop drinking. After many arguments with my wife over my drinking and waking up most mornings with a feeling of dread, I had certainly become brokenhearted. I was emotionally and spiritually crushed.
I prayed. I asked God for help. I acknowledged I couldn’t do it myself. My road to recovery began with a prayer. God heard my cry, as He does for all of us who cry out to Him from our poverty of spirit. And when we do cry out to Him, we soon experience His closeness, healing, and the richness of His peace on our recovery journey.
Reflection Questions
- What were your emotional and spiritual states in the final moments before you entered recovery?
- How have you experienced God’s peace since entering recovery? What can you hand over to God to better receive His peace?
Daily Mass Readings
First Reading: Acts 19:1-8
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 68:2-3ab, 4-5acd, 6-7ab
Gospel: John 16:29-33
Reflection by Kevin S.