I am looking out my fifth floor window at the trees below - still brown and lacking any sign of life. Yet in a matter of weeks, buds will burst forth, proving that things aren't always as they appear. This reality of the earth bearing life from that which appears dead is an apt canvas upon which God paints the beautiful image of Crucifixion and Resurrection, a reality which brilliantly illustrates the virtue of hope.
This virtue - hope - is particularly handy when responding to those in need of God in a special way, those among our families and friends who have left the Church, are in the throes of sin, or who have never heard the Gospel message of Christ. It is with them in mind I return to the image of the winter trees, devoid of any sign of life. I invite you to participate in the springtime of their faith, bringing them Christ Himself to reawaken their souls, just as the passage of time, water, and sunlight brings forth the tree's new blossoms of spring.
Pray that God's season will be upon them. Pray that He will hasten their growth, and that His time for changing their hearts is now. Have a conversation with them; just as the water nourishes the roots of the tree, so too can your conversation lead people to drink of the that water that will quench every thirst. Finally, invite them. Invite them to spend time with you, to come to Mass, to join your family for dinner. Point them to the Son so they can stretch toward the warmth and vitality He provides.
