My May 10 reflection for Give Us This Day:
“Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope.” — 1Pt 3:15
This line from today’s second reading stopped me up short. What, if asked, would be my explanation, my reason for my hope? Often the answer to that question is ephemeral, something we know and believe in our hearts without being able to articulate it in words, because mystery and faith are hard to describe, like catching a breeze or nailing down a cloud.
But when we get to today’s Gospel reading from John, it feels as though it answers the question for us. “I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you,” we hear Jesus speak. Is there anything more hopeful than that? God lives in us. We are never separated from God, even on those dark days when we believe ourselves to be alone in this challenge called life. Jesus promises to send the disciples—and all of us, by extension—“Advocates” to remain with us always. He will not leave us orphans, he says.
When we start to lose hope, it is often because we forget that promise. We convince ourselves that we are in charge, and we put on fear and anxiety as our battle armor, forgetting that the Spirit of God dwells at our core and walks beside us every step of the way. God is our source and our shield. And that is my reason for hope. What’s yours?
Mary DeTurris Poust, “A Reason to Hope” from the May 2026 issue of Give Us This Day, www.giveusthisday.org (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2026). Used with permission.
