Reflection: On earth as it is in heaven...

There is a snowstorm, with blizzard warnings, in the Northeast. Schools, stores and businesses are closed.

The day before the storm, the stores were jammed with crowds, all preparing for the storm by buying food. At Mass, my pastor spoke about his experience of going to the store before the storm. He went to one store and it was, as though he walked into Iraq, with shelves stripped bare of food, bread and milk. He left and went to another store. It was even worse, like Armageddon. The dairy shelves had only one gallon of milk left.

He reflected on this experience that if only all Christians prepared for eternal life, the way we prepare for snowstorms, how different the world would be!

How can we prepare for eternal life?
Pray, pray, pray and stay close to Jesus by receiving the Sacraments frequently. The Sacraments keep us in the state of grace. When we pray, we develop a relationship with the Lord. Prayer opens the heart of God.

In the Lord's Prayer, Jesus taught us how to pray and how to live. The Kingdom of God is on earth as it is in heaven. We are on earth but we want to make our way to heaven. Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and listen to His teachings, always remembering that He made us for eternal life with Him.

The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  Amen.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church CCC 2827:
It would not be inconsistent with the truth to understand the words, "Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven," to mean: "in the Church as in our Lord Jesus Christ Himself"; or "in the Bride who has been betrothed, just as in the Bridegroom who has accomplished the Will of the Father."

Jesus is Heaven. It is not a place in the clouds. To see how God's Will is fulfilled in heaven, we can imitate Him here on earth. Jesus is heaven on earth and we imitate Him through prayer and by being obedient to His commandments. Jesus does God's Will on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus prepares the way for us.  When heaven and earth are free from war and strife, we will be joined with the Blessed Trinity. Let us ask Jesus to help us prepare our hearts for Him...

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a Bride adorned for her husband. Revelation 21:1-2