How often do we encourage our children to take up a certain sport because we want them to “follow in our footsteps”? Or we cook our mother’s recipe for a special meal, trying our best to replicate the flavor and comfort we experienced when at her table. Perhaps we encourage our grandchild to enroll at a particular college because that is a family tradition. All of these are legacies – positive or enjoyable experiences – that we hope to extend to others. We are stewards of these legacies – taking good care of something we consider precious by reliving it, uniting with others in a shared experience, bestowing it to another person. Even more personal than any family memory or experience is our legacy with Jesus Christ. At the Ascension, we become the mystical body of Christ, stewarding His legacy of love. It is not a time of departure, but one of arrival, if we consider how this legacy, through the Holy Spirit, is expressed then in our own lives. We experience the Holy Spirit at work in our lives when… • someone speaks or thinks well of someone else • another person puts someone else first, instead of themselves • forgiveness is sought…or forgiveness is given • hope emerges out of deepest despair • one is surprised by their capabilities, or opportunities they receive beyond their imagination …and a multitude of other times. We extend this legacy when we ourselves: • speak well of others, even someone who has wronged us • put someone else’s needs ahead of our own needs or desires • forgive a family member or coworker Or when we recognize that it is at the prompting of the Holy Spirit that we find encouragement in dark times and even discover a strength or capacity beyond our own thoughts or ideas. Let us pray for wisdom – for the gift of the Holy Spirit – to fill our hearts with Christ’s legacy of love, and to be the true stewards of His work here on earth. |