A Jesuit Catholic University
in Omaha, Nebraska, since 1878

Ascension Thursday (in some archdioceses in the US) [294] Acts 18:1-8;  Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4;  John 16:16-20.

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer The Daily Reflections

We have been given many gifts, many of which we take for granted.  I do, all the time.  We have become so accustomed to them that we hardly realize how precious they are.   Until they are taken away, that is.  The gratitude for the gifts we have is difficult to come by sometimes, but it is something we owe to God every minute of every day.  Personally, I know I go to God more with complaints and requests than I do with praise and gratitude.  Sometimes we need to be plowed over with something completely unexpected that makes us realize how truly blessed we are.

Jesus did many extraordinary things for us, and asks little in return.  Today is the day we celebrate his return to the Father, and we wait for his return to earth.  So today, instead of jumping straight into what we think we need, why don’t we just take a minute to praise and say thank you to the God that has given us so much.  It’s amazing what taking a minute to pause and think about all we have been given can do to help us appreciate our gifts.

“God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today.  Have you used one to say ‘thank you’?”
                                                                                                                             ~William Arthur Ward