The Shepherd and Guardian of My Soul

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, April 30th, 2023:
​The Fourth Sunday of Easter

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1 Peter
2.20b-25

​Beloved: If you endure when you do right and suffer for it, you have God’s approval. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly.

Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the Cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

We have heard of people being influencers and role models. Could you ever imagine that there would be a role model for suffering? Our Lord Jesus is the prototype of the suffering servant. He is the example of endurance in the face of hardship. 

At this point in time, my suffering encompasses ambiguity about my future. I love my job, my friends, my students, my apartment, and I love living by myself. I love having the freedom to travel whenever I want to and to meet up with family in different parts of the world. But, every so often, the evil of uncertainty raises its head. Questions – such as, why am I single, will I ever be married and have a family of my own, am I meant to have a family of my own - they torment me and cause me anguish. It’s at moments like these that I need God’s grace in order to recognize that I cannot say that I trust God and still want to control everything that is happening in my life. I have to let go and let God. I have to trust that His plan for my life is most beautiful, even if I have no sweet clue what it is.

I had the blessing of visiting St. Joseph’s Oratory this March on the Feast of St. Joseph. St. Joseph has always been very dear to my heart, and being at the Oratory and witnessing the crutches left behind in the crypt there made me realize that I am privileged to be a Catholic and to descend from a long line of saints, especially St. Joseph, who are constantly interceding for me in the midst of my earthly trials. Whenever I go astray or get confused, I can always turn to the example of the saints who constantly had Jesus before their eyes and minds, as their role model. If they can endure their suffering, so can I, because I too am called to be a saint. 

Jesus, I need Your help to be patient and to surrender all of the timelines that exist in my head. You know me the best. Time and again I stray away from You, like a stubborn sheep. Do not let go of me as I return to You, “the shepherd and guardian” of my soul. Amen.  


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Rebecca Dmello

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