Since life is lived in the present, it is a blessing to utilize it the best we can.  The present moment is a field waiting each day to be harvested. We can imagine it as a meadow imbued in good deeds. Subsequently if we can never measure the fallout of one good deed imagine what an entire pasture can yield.

Recently a note dropped out of a vintage Christmas card stuffed in my desk drawer. It read “Thanks for the box of mints. I was really depressed.”  My friend’s wife had died prior to the Christmas season, and I wanted to cheer him up.

No matter how often we try to be autonomous and self-reliant, none of us are. Losing a loved one is just such a life moment. Jesus understood this. His public life began with the unassuming invitation for disciples to follow him. Why? It was his modest teaching that none of us can go it alone. If we try to go it on are own, we will perish.

The Easter season speaks to this phenomenon. No matter our skills, intelligence, or wealth, a box of mints to a distraught friend can still bring healing.  Sometimes the best gifts arrive in small packages, but only when untied can it produce a joyous healing. The tiny box of mints says to the grieving individual he is not alone, that a friend sees him, and that this friend is thinking of him. 

Through our baptism we are called in Jesus’ name to bring hope, love, and life to others.  In baptism Jesus asks our help assisting our brothers and sisters to live life. It helps us realize that everything we have is God’s gift.  

Like the example of the Good Samaritan, we reach out to those different from us to those on the margins, those discarded or forgotten. The array of good deeds awaiting harvesting is boundless.

I was recently asked to visit a seriously ill alumnus of Salesianum High School. The difficulty was I live in Wilmington, Delaware and he lives in Omaha, Nebraska. Although living such a distance, he held a rich connection to Salesianum and was entering hospice. Quite early in the morning my fellow traveler and I sent out for Omaha. Flying through Charlotte, changing planes  we landed hours later in Omaha.

Here we met a delighted Michael, enthusiastic that his beloved school, which was never far from his heart, responded to his call. Over the next three hours, Michael named every teacher, talked high school sports, and named his fellow students who walked the school halls with him. He loved every minute of our visit. His demeanor telegraphed his enjoyment. We blessed him, shared Eucharist, and anointed him.  His wife said it all, “Father, your visit today validated everything my husband has said about Salesianum. Thanks for coming.” Again, I repeat one can never measure the limitless giving of a good act.  It never stops giving!

With God’s grace active in our lives, we gaze over the shiny, gleaming crop of present moments. We engage this special moment by reaching out to share God’s love through acts of service as the whole field comes alive with new life.

Indeed, as we acknowledge that God continues to create us and our world, we easily participate in God’s design and commitment. Believing the Spirit moves where it wills, we remain still before this great mystery ready to receive its endless source of gifts.