In today's gospel, our Lord wants us to be attentive to the gift of time that we have here on earth, and to see how precious that gift is. We have this time, above all, to have the privilege to love, serve, and honor God. Our Lord reminds us of the importance of always being ready for His return, that we must always be prepared for that one moment when we will be called to stand before the judgment seat of God. This is meant, above all, to inspire us with confidence, but also to help us see each day as a gift from God, so that we may do the best we can to love and serve Him.
This gospel beautifully applies to the life of Pope St. John Paul II, whose great labors during his pontificate were an act of love for the Church and continue to inspire so many. When we think of Pope John Paul II, there are so many things we can comment on. Of course, his beautiful motto, Totus Tuus—I'm all yours, Mary. He was a Pope who inspired us with love for the Blessed Mother and had great confidence in her through his own consecration to Mary.
We see his labors for the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which he promulgated, and in which he reinforced and gave Catholic doctrine and teaching clarity. We see his love for the youth, starting World Youth Day, which continues as a great legacy of his. He's one of the patrons of youth, but his great love for Catholic youth to inspire them with love and confidence in Jesus, and to follow Jesus. And again, there are so many encyclicals, so many things we could reflect upon.
And, of course, in his own life, showing us by his example, the call to forgiveness when he forgave the man who had attempted to assassinate him, teaching us firsthand that we are all called to give forgiveness no matter what anyone has done to us. So for many of us, and I think everyone here and this morning, we were so privileged to be alive, to experience his pontificate, and to be inspired by him.
I know that he was, for me, a personal hero on my journey, and someone who inspired me. I had the privilege to see him twice—once when he came to the United States, I think it was at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York. The friars at that time traveled down to New York to see him at a Papal Mass. And once in St. Peter's, at one of his events in St. Peter's Square—twice, actually, in St. Peter's Square.

Nonetheless, it's something to admire—that here's a man we were able to see and hear, who was our Vicar of Christ, and now he's honored as a saint and to inspire us. That's what I'd like to leave you with today. One of his words that I always remember and reflect upon is, "Be not afraid." He always stressed, Be not afraid. Do not be afraid to open our hearts to Jesus, to trust Jesus. 
And, of course, he had a very strong connection to Divine Mercy—the Divine Mercy devotion—having authorized the devotion and overseeing the beatification and canonization process of St. Faustina.
So, we can ask St. John Paul II today to pray for the Church, to pray for our nation. Again, his great defense of the unborn, just another aspect of his pontificate is his courageous, always defending the unborn and sacredness of human life. 
We ask him to pray for the Church, for our nation, and for ourselves—that, like him, we may always have courage in following Christ and use the time that has been given to us to give God the best honor and glory that we can.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit.