Fifth Saturday of Lent

I will make with them a covenant of peace; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, and I will multiply them, and put my sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling shall be with them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD, who make Israel holy, when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever.

God wants to make a covenant of peace with all of us. This is not necessarily a covenant of outward calm, but rather inner peace. It is the tranquility that comes from being in harmony with the Will of God. When we align ourselves with God’s Divine Plan and live holy lives, then it doesn’t matter what problems we are facing. Trials and tribulations can swirl around us, but in our hearts will be a serenity untouched by doubts, worries, or temptations. When our inmost being is made into a sacred sanctuary to God, then He can dwell within us and make us into His people. He will rule over us, teach us, and guide us so that we might prosper and be at peace even in the midst of all our troubles.

Are we open to making the sacrifices we need to in order to enter into a covenant of peace with God? How can we make our hearts and minds into sanctuaries where God can live and make us holy? What can we do to align ourselves more perfectly with God’s Will?

O Lord, we ask you to make a covenant of peace with us.

Amen.