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Do you yet recognise the prompting of the Holy Spirit? The call to service? The sudden strong desire to share something with someone you may or may not know? To go somewhere and do something at the drawing pull of an unseen hand? A rush of ‘adrenaline’ to push you forward in excitement not of fear.

How sad when we do not respond to the call, do not recognise it, or shrug it off because we are simply too preoccupied with our worldly affairs. We would miss a wonderful opportunity to be a part of and to witness the Glory of God.

Unless we open our hearts to God we will not feel His embrace, His gentle hand drawing us close to Him, prompting us where we need to be or to go. We will not treasure the supreme gift of Jesus the resurrection, gateway to heaven. To cherish and partake of God Himself in the Eucharist.

Lord Jesus my life is not complete without You. Help me to overcome all that prevents me from remaining faithful to You. And let me guide others as You have guided me through Your faithful. In Your most precious name I pray. Amen

FIRST READING
Acts 8:26–40

GOSPEL
John 6:44–51

Jesus said to the crowds: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets:

They shall all be taught by God.

Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world.”

In times of turmoil or trauma the instinct for most of us is to flee. To look quickly for our safe havens, some even turning to vice or a quick fix. How many would instead turn to the Lord? How many can stand rooted in faith, peace and joy and still be a comfort to others even when they themselves face hardship and difficulty?

Having faith in our Lord Jesus Christ enables all ordinary people to perform extraordinary works! For His love and life giving grace is upon them.

Our loving Father wants each and everyone of us to spend an eternity with Him, our heavenly inheritance. And He has provided everything and all that we need to do so; the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end, the most precious gift we can ever hope to receive, our loving Saviour Jesus. Glory be to the Father and the Son and to the Holy Spirit. Amen

FIRST READING
Acts 8:1b–8

GOSPEL
John 6:35–40

Jesus said to the crowds,
“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. But I told you that although you have seen me, you do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.”