How to Make the Most of Your Life

This is a computer-generated transcription that has been included to make the homily searchable.  It has not been verified by the author.

But how can you make the most of the one life you have here on earth? That’s an important question, especially for young people when you have all of your life ahead of you, and you have to make those big decisions which will guide the rest of your life. But it’s also an important question for any of us at whatever stage we’re at in our life. All of us want to be happy. All of us desire happiness. And we also want a life that is fruitful, as some people say that to leave a legacy a life that also is good for others, that makes a difference. But the world is very difficult. There’s a lot of problems, a lot of challenges, and we struggle a lot we have faced a lot of difficulties, we can fall a lot. So how, given that, how can we make the best of our life? A lot of well-meaning people say to be effective; you have to clearly define the goals of your life. You have to clearly define the goals of your life. The first person who did that was Lucifer. He had a very clearly defined goal for his life. His goal was to be like God, basically, to be God. So, he had a very clear goal, he had decided that he was going to dedicate everything, because they say we need to be very dedicated to, he was very dedicated to his goal. He devoted everything he could to realize his goal. What he obtained was damnation for all eternity for himself and terrible suffering for so many other people. And he didn’t reach his goal. So, one option is to try to define my own goal by myself. As I said, like Lucifer, satan did. Another option is to ask God, what the goal of my life should be. So, it’s a very different approach. And each one of us has to make that decision. Do I try to do it by myself, and so many people trying to define their own goal, trying to be very independent of everything and everyone, end up without realizing it being very manipulated by satan. So, am I going to try to do that all by myself, which often means with the spirit of the world and with satan? Or am I going to entrust God to guide me? And I’m thinking of that today, because hidden in the Psalm, the Psalm we heard today was a very important passage, the letter to the Hebrews quotes, this Psalm, but it applies it to Jesus. It says, When Jesus came into the world, he said, so what did Jesus say when he came into the world? And that’s so that’s what that letter the Hebrews the way it introduces this passage from the Psalm. And then it quotes the Psalm, and it says, Do you remember that passage from the Psalm was this part I didn’t even notice, right that that passage in the Psalm, but it’s very important, it’s what Jesus Himself said, when He came into the world. So, what was that passage? So, I’ll read it. “Sacrifices and offerings, you have not desired, but a body, you have prepared for me. That’s important that today where there’s all this discussion about transgender, I’m in the wrong body. And this is saying a body you God have prepared for me. It goes on “in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, Behold, I have come to do your will oh God, as it is written of Me, and the role of the book.” When for me in the role of the book, the divine, eternal book, which already has my role written down, your role written down. Behold, I have come to do Your will, Oh, God. We often express that in another way. Here I am, Lord, I come to do Your will. Here I am, Lord, I come to do Your will. And Jesus, who was the strongest person, the most courageous person, the most independent, the most, the wisest, the most mature person? This is what He said. He didn’t say I come to do My will. I’m going to define my own goal. And I’m going to do my will, because I’m so great. And He could have said that. But He said, Here I am, Lord, I come to do Your will. And that’s why His life had an impact like no one else is. And so that’s the act that we can make today. If we’ve already made it, we can renew it, if we haven’t made it, we can make it during this Mass to say to God, here I am, I come to do Your will. And that decision is life changing. That’s the key decision in life. There’s two roads, satan’s road, I’m going to do my own will, which ends in tragedy, or I’m going to do your will, which is very challenging. But it ends in happiness, and union with God. So, what is God’s will for you? Before we sign the contract? Right? Before I say, Okay, I will do Your will first or what is your will? Lord? Can you give it to me in a very detailed contract, you know, not a blank check, I want over one very clear condition. So, there’s His general will for us. And then there’s the specific will for you personally. And His general will, we know, first of all, we know what is His motivation. That’s not to use you, He didn’t create you, because he needed to use you like, like, say, a CEO, or who needs a lot of people to work because he can’t do it all by himself, he doesn’t have the talent, he doesn’t have the time. But God doesn’t have those problems. He didn’t create you because he needed to use you. He created you because He wanted to share his happiness with you. And so, His will for you is love. He loves you, like no one loves you. And all He wants is what’s absolutely best for you. So, the best that you can hope for yourself. That’s what He wants for you. And the good thing is, He knows what it is. And He knows how to get it and He knows how to help you get it. So, the only way to achieve what is best for you, is through God’s will, because that’s what His will is. And now it’s our course we know it’s not enough to know it. We also need the help of being guided to it and being supported. And He’s the only one who can do that fully. So, what is His goal for you His goal, since it’s a goal of love, it’s for you to be united with Him to share His joy to share His happiness and glory. And what is the path to that? So, in general, we know because when they asked Jesus what was the greatest commandment, He said, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your will, all your soul, all your strength and love your neighbor as yourself. So that’s the essential that’s the key thing we need to know. And we already know it’s what we can’t say I don’t know what God’s will is for you. I mean, I don’t know what God’s will is for me. Yes, you do know you know the essential because He’s told it to us the essentials to love Him with all your heart and to love others because you know, that’s nice, but that’s not clear enough. I want more specific I need to know more specifically. But that is the most important if you try to do that, you’re on the right track you will end up in the right place but what about His specific because there is a specific role a specific will of God for each one of us. God doesn’t create any generic persons there is nobody just a basic person. Everybody God create specific persons unique persons. So, what is His will, His will for you is unique, you have a unique path and a unique purpose. And that’s not always clear. We only discover that little by little by stages sometimes day by day, kind of like the GPS when you’re listening to a GPS give you instructions. It can’t give you the whole thing because you couldn’t remember that, so it tells you it tells you Okay turn here and then says okay, now in a mile you’re gonna need to take this turn. And then so it just it’s just giving you stage by stage. Oftentimes that’s the way we discover God’s will for us. A lot of it is we only discover it little by little stage by stage. But if we are sincerely seeking to do His will, we’re trying to listen to Him if we’re trying to be open, we’re doing our part. It’s His responsibility to give us like I say, like kind of like that GPS give us the guidance we need when we need it. Now, that’s one thing, it’s important for the GPS, it needs to tell you when to make a turn before the road comes up, right? If it tells you five miles after you should have taken the turn you should have taken the turn  5 miles ago, well, you guys said, Well, what good is that, right doesn’t do me any good. And so, God, it’s God’s responsibility to give me the light I need when I need it. But it’s our responsibility to be listening. Okay, again, take that the example the GPS, your response, if you if you’re not listening to a GPS, if you have the radio so loud, that you can’t hear it, you’ve just, you’ve just turned the volume down on it, or you’re just not even paying attention. It’s your fault because you weren’t listening. But if you are listening, and the GPS doesn’t tell you, it’s the GPS is fault. So, our responsibility is to listen. And it’s His responsibility to give us the guidance that we need. And so, the specific path, that is your path, is what you were created for. That what you were created for personally, and that that’s been what’s guided us, this little Mission of Divine Mercy and what led me to begin this little Mission of Divine Mercy was it wasn’t that I had some great idea, I was just trying to be open to what God wanted. I felt like if it’s my idea, it’s gonna be a failure. What the best thing I could do is just try to listen to God, see where He guides me. And, and this is where He has guided me. And this is where He’s guided a little mission Divine Mercy. Because each one of us was made again, for a specific purpose. Think, for example, just to take a very human example, think of a custom part made for a very fine engine. If you saw that custom part by itself, you might think, well, I don’t know what that does, I have no idea it looks looks just useless. And it might be useless for almost anything that maybe it could be like a doorstop or something a paperweight. But that’s not very important. But so, it might be useless in a lot of ways, unless it’s where it needs to be unless it’s where  it was made for. And there it is better than anything else. It’s the piece that fits exactly in that place and does what no other piece could do. And so, God has created you for a specific purpose. And no one can do what you were created for, as well as you can. Or take the example of a body, that the parts of a body say like the eye, if the eye is very small and delicate. And if it could say if it was trying to describe what it was good for can say, you know, I’m no good for lifting, and not very strong. I can’t run anywhere. I can’t hear anything. I’m just no good. Yeah, it is no good at a lot of things. But at seeing, it’s the best, or say the heart thing. But I’m just a pump, I just pump, pump, pump all day long, pump, pump, pump, that’s not very glorious thing, pump, pump, pump, no change, pump, pump, pump, sometime fast. Sometimes though, pump, pump pump. And so, the heart can be discouraged. But that’s essential, that pumping is essential. Or say just to take another part, say the thyroid gland, he says nobody ever notices me unless something goes wrong. nobody even cares about me. Well, that’s true. But it’s still very important. It has a very important role. And it does something that nothing else can do. And so, the point is that we don’t need to try to be somebody else. We need to be the person that God created us for the specific person, a specific role specific mission that He created us for. Because for that mission, you have the grace, you are created for that and not just created for that. But He’s given you the grace for that. And so, as St. Paul says, God makes all things work to the good for those who love Him. That is all of us. Because there’s a lot of that the problem I’m trying to do my own will is so many things get in the way, right? I’m trying to do my will and everything. Always bad things are happening. All these obstacles are happening. The difference when I’m trying to do God’s will is no matter what happens, it can serve for His will. St. Paul says God makes all things work to the good for those who love Him. So, take the greatest example say an example of Jesus. People are trying to destroy His mission that He can’t realize His mission. They’re gonna kill Him. And so, they kill Him. They condemn Him and kill Him. Ha, we’ve destroyed him. We’ve destroyed His mission, and that ends up being His greatest triumph. When we’re seeking to do God’s will, even the attacks of the evil one, and that serving His will. Because we enter into the great flow, like the great river of God’s designs, we’re no longer fighting it. We’re flowing with that. But of course, it’s not always easy. Sometimes it’s easy, sometimes it’s joyful. But often it’s hard, even crucified, because it’s so great a call. So, God, God does call us to things which are very great, and very demanding, very challenging. And that involves sacrifices and involves suffering. But it’s never sacrifice or suffering because He wants to hurt us. Think of a very good surgeon, who might have to cut in ways that can be painful. But it’s very skillful, He only does the minimum necessary. So that can bring about the healing of the person. It was still painful, but just what was necessary for our greater good. So, God never wants to hurt us. But we have to accept sometimes that we suffer for the greater good, that He is preparing. And the suffering is only for a time. So, here our time on Earth, it can be a very challenging, difficult road, but it’s leading to joy forever. And satan, on the contrary, offers us a path which immediately feels great, feel so good. That’s why it’s so attractive. But then it’s     hell without end. So as I say this, this is that the deepest inspiration, the Mission of Divine Mercy, just trying to do God’s will to let God guide us. And so, to conclude, each one of us today, you today can make that act that Jesus made Himself. Here I am, Lord, I come to do Your will. making the best of your life both for yourself, and so that you can also be a blessing for others. And that’s not easy. But it’s not a risky decision. It’s the least risky thing you can do. Because it’s putting yourself in His hands. And knowing that the Holy Spirit has been given to you at your Baptism to help you. So, with our Blessed Mother’s example, she who followed this path also when she said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done according to Your will. And that’s why her life was so infinitely fruitful because she accepted God’s plan for her. So, I would invite you now if you’d like to close your eyes for a moment. And in your heart, you also can make that act that Jesus made. Here I am Lord, I come to do Your will. Amen.

KEYWORDS / PHRASES:
John 1:29-34
Psalms 40:2,4,7-8,8-9,10