Fifth Sunday of Easter

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.”

Jesus’ message to us today is simple. He is calling us to bear fruit and in order for us to do this we must listen to the message of the Gospel and carry out the works it asks us to perform. Our calling to do good and accept the sacrifices God has prepared for us is one Jesus makes clear not only through his words, but also his Life, Passion, Death, and Resurrection. Sometimes we will need to undergo our own passions and deaths in order to be resurrected into the life of Christ. The next time we suffer, we should try to remember Jesus suffered, died, and was buried for our sins so that one day we might look at his example and say, “Yes, I am ready to bear fruit.”

What are the things in our lives which distract or keep us from bearing fruit? What do we need pruned from our lives so that they might be more fruitful? How do we accept and live out our calling to be spiritual abundant people?

O Lord, you are the vine and we are the branches. Cultivate our souls so that we might bear much fruit.

Amen.