A Jesuit Catholic University
in Omaha, Nebraska, since 1878

[204] 1 John 2:18-21 Ps 96:1-2, 11-12, 13 John 1:1-18

Weekly Guide for Daily Prayer The Daily Reflections

And the Word became flesh…full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

For me, December 31st is a day of reflection.  It represents the transition from choices we made in the past year to trying to determine how those results affect our future.  Financial, academic, relational, etc. each aspect of our lives begs reflection at the end of the year.  Under what lens should we assess them?

Today’s readings serve to remind us of the importance of discerning truth.  It is the ultimate truth that helps us make decisions and later to assess them.  After all, isn’t that the crux of following God’s will in our lives: determining truth from lies?  We can know where God is leading us and what he’s telling us by delving into what is truth and what is deceit.  Obviously the deceptions originally stem from Satan’s worldly temptations and cultural untruths.  But how to tell what’s truth?

The timing for this discussion could not be more appropriate as we just celebrated the Word becoming Flesh at Christmas!  He was fully God, became fully man and was “full of grace and truth.”  In Christ’s birth we have the incarnation of truth.  Hence, in seeking that truth, we must look no further than Scripture, particularly the Gospels, and personal interaction with God through prayer and the Sacraments.  Without a context, however, these realizations sound more theological than practical.

In my own life, a recent struggle has led me to seek that deeper truth.  Lately I have found myself thinking more about my future wife and falling into a sense of loneliness without her in my life right now.  Perhaps it’s a product of all the shiny rings my friends are giving and receiving lately, maybe it’s the intrinsically romantic nature of Christmastime, or even possibly my mother’s reminders that she is excited about grandchildren.  Whatever factors are at play, I begin to wonder if I am somehow unloved or if I am doing something fundamentally wrong in my interactions with others.

In order to better assess the truth behind my concerns, I must start with what I know to be truth from God’s word to me.  He loves me.  He is always with me.  His army of angels surrounds me and his beloved saints are petitioning on my behalf before his throne.  I am not alone.  Therefore, my baseless worry can be debunked as a lie because, as our first reading says, it is “alien to the truth,” (1 John 2:21).

As we watch the clock mark the beginning of another year and inevitably turn our eyes back on the past year, remember the standard by which we should measure truth.  Family members, cultural norms, the media, etc. all have opinions which may or may not match the truth in God’s word.  Embracing one constant standard by which to gauge truth will undoubtedly bring greater peace and understanding into our lives.

May God bless you with a truth-filled new year.