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Everything of mine is yours? Reflection for Married Couples. John 17:1-11a

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GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 17:1-11a

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said,

“Father, the hour has come.

Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,

just as you gave him authority over all people,

so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him.

Now this is eternal life,

that they should know you, the only true God,

and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.

I glorified you on earth

by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do.

Now glorify me, Father, with you,

with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

“I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world.

They belonged to you, and you gave them to me,

and they have kept your word.

Now they know that everything you gave me is from you,

because the words you gave to me I have given to them,

and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you,

and they have believed that you sent me.

I pray for them.

I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me,

because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours

and everything of yours is mine,

and I have been glorified in them.

And now I will no longer be in the world,

but they are in the world, while I am coming to you.”

The word of the Lord

 

Everything of mine is yours?

Jesus, lifting His eyes to heaven, says to the Father: “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine.” Jesus reveals to us, and draws us into, the mystery of His communion of love with the Father in the Holy Spirit. In God nothing is held back, nothing is reserved; everything is gift, communion, and total self‑giving. This is how God loves. And in His creative design, God instituted marriage so that it might be the visible sign of this invisible love.

This is why spouses are called, in the image of Trinitarian love, to say to one another truthfully and as Christ does: “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine.” Not only with words, but by making it life: my time is yours, my body is yours, my talents are yours, my money, my plans, my weariness, my joys, my future — even my wounds — because I no longer belong to myself. “I give myself to you…” May our words not be carried away by the wind. May we fulfil that promise in its fullness. For conjugal love is not simply a harmonious coexistence, but the total gift of oneself in the image of God.

Applied to married life

Martha and Jon share a joint account as well as personal ones. One day, Jon made some purchases using the joint account, and Martha reproached him, saying that those things should have been paid with his own money, not with the money belonging to both of them.

Martha: Jon, I don’t understand why the whole money thing upset you so much. You’ve been a bit sensitive about this lately.

Jon: It’s not just the money, Martha… It’s that I feel as though each of us still has “our own life”. Your things–my things, your decisions–my decisions, your car–my car… I don’t know, Martha. As we go through the catechesis, I see more clearly that we need to make some decisions. Don’t you think so too?

Martha: Well, Jon, I won’t deny that every time we hear the message about how to build a marriage, things come to mind that we need to change if we want to live what we experienced on the retreat. But to be honest, I end up looking the other way.

Jon: I’ve done that for a long time too, but this morning, during prayer, a phrase from Jesus came to me: “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine.” And I’m certain the Lord is calling us to that. We want a marriage in communion… but without giving everything. Not just money, of course — we don’t give our way of raising the children, or how we organise the house… so many things.

Martha: I think the devil really does tempt me a lot, Jon. He makes me think that if I give myself completely, I’ll end up losing out… and then I complain that we’re not fully united.

Jon: Exactly, Martha. We want communion, but without putting everything on the line. We give ourselves halfway, and with lots of conditions.

Martha: Oh Jon… we’ve got so much to do… it makes me feel dizzy.

Jon: To begin with, the first thing is to make the decision to do it. But Martha, even though I know it will be hard for me, I want to be able to look you in the eyes and say: “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine.”

Yet man, wounded by sin, tends to keep for himself treasures he is unwilling to share: his intimacy, his money, his time; at most he gives a part and keeps another back, thereby breaking the sacramental sign and weakening communion. Perhaps today the Holy Spirit is showing us precisely this: which part of ourselves we still refuse to give. For He can only unite what we offer.

Ask yourself with sincerity and courage: can I say to my spouse today, “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine”? If we have not yet reached that point, let us ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to give ourselves completely as Christ does — the whole of ourselves, in order to receive the whole — so that our marriage may glorify the Father, showing the world how God loves.

 

 

Mother,

Teach us to be a faithful reflection of God’s love, as you are. Blessed be the Lord!

We Have Already Overcome. Reflection for married couples. John 16:29-33

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GOSPEL OF THE DAY

From the Gospel according to John 16:29-33

The disciples said to Jesus,

“Now you are talking plainly, and not in any figure of speech.

Now we realize that you know everything

and that you do not need to have anyone question you.

Because of this we believe that you came from God.”

Jesus answered them, “Do you believe now?

Behold, the hour is coming and has arrived

when each of you will be scattered to his own home

and you will leave me alone.

But I am not alone, because the Father is with me.

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.”

The word of the Lord

 

We Have Already Overcome

We all know what it is to struggle in life; Jesus has already assured us of this, so let us not mistake who the real enemy is. This battle must be against the world, the devil, and the flesh — not against our spouse. Such situations place us in a state of alertness that even has a chemical effect on our bodies. What we must decide is where we turn in order to find peace.

Jesus tells us that we will only find Peace in Him, because He has already overcome the world. In our marriage, this “world” takes shape in selfishness, the desire to dominate… Yet with the grace of our sacrament, we can overcome everything that separates us from the Plan God has prepared for us. We are called to remain continually in Him, in His heart

Applied to Married Life

Peter: Laura, this morning I felt awful, because yesterday I really messed up — quite badly — in the management of a project… and I started getting overwhelmed thinking about the consequences. I began to fear losing my job, to feel ashamed about how I might look. I could feel all of this physically inside me, and I even had the temptation to blame you somehow.

Laura: Yes, I noticed. You were even distancing yourself from me and the girls. You seemed to be in another world — you couldn’t sit still or focus. But I can see you’re better now.

Peter: Well, it was such a blessing that this afternoon was the parish’s time of adoration. Before the Lord, I felt all the darkness fade away and a deep trust in God fill me.

Laura: How beautiful, Peter. Being before the monstrance is the best medicine for freeing our soul from everything that weighs it down.

Peter: Yes, but unfortunately we can’t always be in adoration.

Laura: Oh Peter, cheer up! We are temples of the Holy Spirit, and we can turn to His heart at every moment.

Mother,

May we, in the daily struggle we face, take refuge in the Heart of Jesus to find Peace. Blessed be God!

Home of Communion. Reflection for married couples. John 16:23b-28

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Gospel

‘The Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed.’
John 16:23b-28

At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.
  ‘I have said these things to you in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech but will tell you plainly about the Father. In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world, and now I am leaving the world and going to the Father.’

The Gospel of the Lord

Home of Communion

Today we are shown the communion between the Father and the Son, and we come to understand that true prayer made “in the name of Jesus” does not simply mean saying His name at the end of a request, but entering into a deep communion with Him, embodying His way of loving, giving Himself, and living for the other. In marriage, this reality takes on a special strength, because spouses are called to be a living reflection of Christ’s love for His Church. When we pray together, we gradually learn to leave aside selfishness, to listen to one another, to forgive one another, and to seek together God’s will for our marriage and our family. Then prayer ceases to be an individual request and becomes a supplication born from one single heart: “Lord, teach us to love as You love.” And it is there that the Father pours out His grace, making the marital covenant fruitful and transforming the home into a place of communion, peace, and new life.

Applied to Married Life:

Lucy: Honey… did you hear about Martha and Luke?
James: Yes… they say they’re separating because they feel their love has run out. It’s so sad to hear that…
Lucy: And to think that we once believed love depended only on our own strength…
James: Yes, Lucy… that’s how we lived. When difficulties, exhaustion, and routine came, we ran out of strength to keep loving each other.
Lucy: But everything started to change when, by God’s grace, we truly began to pray together.
James: Completely. Because we discovered that asking “in the name of Jesus” is not just saying His name, but allowing Him to live within our marriage.
Lucy: And when Christ enters the hearts of spouses, He changes the way we look at each other, speak to each other, and even forgive each other.
James: Exactly. Because then you understand that the source of love is not ourselves, but God Himself. Even if our human love grows tired and weakens, God’s love never ends.
James: That’s why, when we return to Christ in prayer, we always find the strength to begin again, and we become aware that a marriage united to the Lord never walks alone, because the Father sustains those who remain in His love.

Mother,

we want to remain in communion in your Son and always seek the will of the Father. Blessed and praised be the Lord forever.

Joy That Transcends. Reflection for married couples. John 16:20-23a

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Gospel

‘No one will take your joy from you.’
John 16:20-23a

At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy. When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. In that day you will ask nothing of me.’

The Gospel of the Lord

Joy That Transcends

There are moments in marriage when everything seems heavy: misunderstandings, exhaustion, wounds that do not fully heal, struggles with children, financial problems, or the feeling that the relationship between spouses has “grown cold.” Meanwhile, “the world will rejoice,” because the world offers quick solutions: run away, focus on yourself, stop suffering. But today Christ tells us something revolutionary: sorrow lived with Him will be transformed into joy!
Jesus gives the example of a woman giving birth. The pain does not disappear by magic, but it gains meaning because it is bringing forth life.
So it is in marriage: every sacrifice, every act of forgiveness, every difficult act of self-giving is like “giving birth” to true love. And afterward comes a deeper joy than passing emotion.
When spouses remain united in the midst of suffering, Christ becomes present among them once again. Then the heart is filled with a joy that no one can take away, because it does not depend on everything going well, but on knowing that we are loved by Him.
Today the Lord invites us not to despair in difficult moments. If we remain united to Christ and to one another, suffering can become new life.

Grounded in Married Life:

David: Lately I feel like everything is so hard for us… We talk and end up arguing, the kids exhaust us, and it feels like we never have a moment of peace.
Rachel: I feel the same way… And sometimes it makes me sad to think that things used to be easier between us. That’s my first reaction… but then I remember today’s Gospel… the part about the woman giving birth…
David: Yes… that pain has meaning because a new life is being born.
Rachel: Exactly. And I was thinking that maybe God is working in us even if we can’t see it right now. Maybe He’s teaching us how to truly love each other, not only when everything is easy.
David: Now that you mention it… you know what? When we pray together, even after a bad day, I feel peace. Like a special kind of joy.
Rachel: Yes, I feel the same way. What a joy it is to know that God is with us!

Mother,

Lead us always beneath your mantle to where your Son is. Praised be the Lord forever!

A Rocket To Heaven. Reflection for married couples. Matthew 28:16-20

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Gospel

‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.’
Matthew 28:16-20
At that time: The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshipped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’
The Gospel of the Lord

A Rocket to Heaven
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Today we celebrate that humanity has reached God, because Christ became man. If mankind’s arrival on the moon was celebrated with such grandeur, how much more should we celebrate this feast—the arrival of man in God? With the greatest rejoicing imaginable—and quite literally, to the highest heights.
Man reached the moon by rocket—but what has been the means of propulsion to reach Heaven? Our weakness.
That is why the Apostle Paul boasts precisely in his weakness, because it is there that he most deeply experiences the victory of God’s power: “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). It is our weakness—not our strength—that Christ uses, filling it with His power in order to save us. How astonishing are the works of God’s love!

Applied to Married Life

Once again, John has fallen into one of those perfectionist spirals that sometimes overtake him. He begins to think that nothing is working properly, and that it is up to him to put everything in order at home.
Those days become difficult. He starts correcting everyone, criticising every little thing. The joy seems to vanish from his face as though stolen away. He becomes tense, impatient, and demanding.
Until, at last, he becomes aware of it.
Who do I think I am? he asks himself. As though everything depended on me! Goodness me… (quite literally, God help me).
And so, with a humbled and contrite heart, he turns back to the Father.
There, in prayer, he discovers anew that he has a wonderful wife—far more than he deserves. He sees that he is not worthy of such a gift. He realises that his children, despite their struggles and imperfections, are gifts from God. He sees that his family is a treasure.
He discovers God present in his life—in the ordinary things, in the everyday moments. He encounters the God who became man: close, human, approachable—yet now seated at the right hand of the Father, possessing all power.
After going to confession, John returns home with joy in his heart—once more a weak man, but a weak man living with God.
And his wife rejoices, because once again the joy that only God can give is shining on John’s face.

Mother,

my Brother Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. From there, He cares for me, pours out His grace upon me, and intercedes for me. What an honour that is. Praised be the Lord, who makes of my weakness a witness to His power. To Him be glory and praise for ever and ever. Amen.