“I will pray to the Father and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever…. I will not leave you orphans, I will come to you.” John 14:15-18

“I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me, together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with you before the world was.”  John 17: 4-5

“Father I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which you have given Me: for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” John 17: 24

It’s Easter, the greatest celebration of the Christian year and a time for new beginnings in many spiritual traditions. We all have favorite passages from the Bible and other holy texts. The ones quoted above are three that are close to my own heart because they address what I think of as the ‘separation’ we often feel between ourselves and the Divine.

When we are caught up in the drama of life it is easy to forget who we are and where we came from. In our distress we may feel God is very distant from us and uncaring; we can feel lost and alone. As a child I remember wondering what would happen if my parents died and I was left alone; and other time the terror I felt when I was temporarily lost in a crowd. The Holy Spirit provides an unbreakable connection and is our guarantee that we will never be spiritual orphans.

In the second quote, I respond to the phrase, “I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” We all ask ourselves why we are here, what is our purpose. Perhaps we feel overwhelmed by the task or doubt our resources to accomplish it. When the time comes to leave this life wouldn’t it be wonderful to know we have fulfilled God’s wish for us; to leave this life without sorrow or regret.

In the final quotation, Christ says “For You have loved Me before the foundation of the world.” I think about that literally and figuratively – millions, billions, trillions of years – and all of that time we are held in God’s heart. How could we not feel that infinite love. I like that we have been ‘given’ to Christ and that it is His wish that we be there to share in His glory.

No matter what your spiritual background or tradition is, it is the same God who calls to us. Although we may be traveling different paths we are climbing the same mountain. May this Easter bring you closer to your fellow travelers.