[00:00] In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the first reading, we hear the account of St. Paul being dragged out of the city and stoned, and those who had done this supposed that he was dead, but he seems to have been miraculously restored, and Paul wastes no time.

[00:31] He continues to proclaim the good news. He goes on to other cities and towns to preach the gospel and exhort the faithful with the words, "It's necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God." One must marvel at St. Paul's zeal. Here he had just been stoned and left for dead, and he wastes no time in continuing

[01:02] his mission of proclaiming the gospel, reminding us that even in trials and sufferings, we are not to be disheartened or discouraged in our walking with Christ in our ministry of proclaiming the gospel, that we should not allow ourselves in any way to be disheartened when we face troubles or trials, but to continue to proclaim that gospel with joy, and one must just marvel at St. Paul's zeal, how he underwent this suffering, and yet it did not

[01:37] stop him. He was not stopped or fearful to continue his mission. He was courageous and would continue to fulfill his call that God had given him of proclaiming the gospel to the Gentiles, and so it's just to instill in us not to have fear. Sometimes, perhaps, we become afraid of what people will think of us or say of us when we give witness to our love and faith in Jesus and His Church, the Catholic Church.

[02:13] It's just to instill in us that we can ask St. Paul today to inspire us and to pray for us that we may have the same zeal and courage he had in living the gospel and proclaiming the gospel and being witness to the gospel, and not to be deterred by trials or sufferings that we face. Our Lord reminds us in the gospel that the peace He gives us is not the peace of this world, but the peace that comes from above, and it is a peace above the world because it is the peace of Christ Himself, true God and true man.

[02:46] And our Lord, once again, reminds us not to let our hearts be troubled or afraid, troubled or afraid in all things, to trust Him above all, and it's just to renew in us in this Easter season our faith in Christ and to allow ourselves to rest in His peace. One of the great deceptions of the devil is to use things to agitate us and to make us lose the peace of Christ, and we have to stop him in his tracks and not allow him to

[03:22] steal away God's peace from us, that God's, the peace that Christ gives us is His gift to us, that we truly have peace in heart, mind, body, and soul. So we don't let the enemy steal that away from us by agitating us with thoughts or worries or cares of this world. May our Blessed Mother help us in this Easter season to continue to be renewed in our faith and to be renewed in our witness in loving and following Jesus Christ. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

[03:53] Amen.