May 1, Ascension of the Lord

God mounts his throne to shouts of joy: a blare of trumpets for the Lord.--Psalm 47:6

Mass readings: Acts 1:1-11 / Ephesians 1:17-23 / Matthew 28:16-20

The Ends of My Neighborhood

Wide-eyed and gape-mouthed. That's how I picture the apostles in today's first reading. The obvious reason for their astonishment was the sight of Jesus being lifted heavenward. But after three years with Him, they surely expected the miraculous. So the source of their amazement lay elsewhere, perhaps in Jesus' final instruction to them: ''You will be my witnesses . . . to the ends of the earth.''

I find witnessing to Jesus even to the ends of my neighborhood difficult, so I can sympathize with the apostles. But Jesus' words apply to us all. And as often as we choose to say ''God bless you!'' instead of ''Good luck!'' or overcome our fear and invite a co-worker to our Bible study or offer to pray with someone, we, too, can witness to Jesus.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, empower me to be a faithful witness to my Lord Jesus Christ.