I will praise you, Lord, in the assembly of your people. — Psalm 22:26

Mass readings: Acts 9:26-31 / 1 John 3:18-24 / John 15:1-8 

Not by Ourselves 

In today’s beautiful Gospel from John, the Lord Jesus gives us the picturesque image of himself as the vine and ourselves as the branches. He promises that whoever remains in Him will bear much fruit. 

Whenever I look at my life my desire is to be able to see what I have accomplished: what good I have done and what lives I have touched for the better. Each of us is called to bear good fruit — both to grow in the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace and so on, listed in Galatians 5:22) and to accomplish good works that will last. Jesus reminds us that we can’t do this by ourselves. The key is to remain in Him and allow His Holy Spirit to work in and through us to bear much fruit. 

Prayer: Lord, help us to remain closely united to You. Together let us bear great fruit!