Approach the Blessed Sacrament, the overflowing source of love for you
By Alejandra Bravo Director of Evangelization for the Archdiocese of Denver “My sweetest joy is to be in the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. I pray that when I am obliged to withdraw in body, I may leave my heart before the Blessed Sacrament. How I would miss Our Lord if he were far from me in his presence in the Blessed Sacrament!” – St. Katharine Drexel St. Katharine speaks of Jesus in the Eucharist in such a beautiful way that when I read her words, my heart longs to experience what she herself experienced. Her words transport me to that moment, even though I was never with her. Her words echo the deepest desires of my heart because, indeed, only the Lord can bring forth what the heart most yearns for: to be in his presence and remain in it. How many times have we been moved by the great conversion stories we hear from others? How many times have we been inspired by saints, friends, priests or anyone else who loves God? How many times have our hearts remained restless and eager upon hearing such beautiful encounters with the Lord? We cannot fail to mention that young man who deeply loved the Eucharist, Blessed Carlo Acutis, one of the patrons of the National Eucharistic Revival, who wisely told us: “By being before Jesus in the Eucharist, we become saints.” How right he was! Only a heart that has spent time before the Eucharistic Lord can speak of him in such a way. What a unique privilege the saints had! There are so many saints we may not even know, and they all agree on the same thing: being in the real presence of Jesus is the best thing that can be done on earth, as St. Teresa of Calcutta said. However, we can no longer continue just listening to and dreaming about the stories and experiences of others. It is not enough to long for the same experiences. It is not enough to feel inspired or moved by moments. It will never be enough to hear from others. The heart of Jesus longs for more. He desires that you and I experience his loving presence firsthand, that we do not just hear about it but live and experience it ourselves. He wants each encounter with him in the Eucharist to be tangible and permeate our lives. His desire is that our hearts be transformed, and only he can do that. He longs for that transformed heart in his real presence in the Eucharist to reflect in our mission. He desires the encounter to be personal, that is, between him and you. My wish and plea is that you and I, at this moment, run to him and give him permission to transform us before his real presence. Where? Precisely, in the Eucharist. Why wait any longer? Why make excuses? Why leave Him waiting? Let us visit him; let us allow his gaze to penetrate the depths of our being, let us remain in his presence and allow him to remain in ours. Let us rest our hearts close to his. Let us be vulnerable before him and love him as we are, and let him love us so that his love can transform and free us. As St. Teresa of Jesus said: “Do you realize that Jesus is there expressly for you, only for you? He burns with desire to enter your heart… go without fear to receive the Jesus of peace and love.” My other wish is that we receive Jesus with an open heart, that we unite intimately with him when we receive him in the Eucharist. Only then can we be his collaborators. Let us be Eucharistic leaders who carry his love to the ends of the earth. Let us allow his presence in us to propel us, and let his love radiate through us to others, to those who do not yet know him, to those who suffer because they do not know Him. May his love radiate through us to those who need to be loved by Him. Let it be evident that we have been in the presence of a king and that we have received him! Let others ask us about our change; let it be noticeable that we know him so well that others also want to know him. Let them know that we love him so much, so much that others will desire to love him too. Now, it is up to us to be another Carlo Acutis or another St. Katharine Drexel, but with our own name. Now it is our turn, because if it is not us, then who? It is our responsibility to bring Jesus in the Eucharist from within our being to the whole world. It is our task to share the great news that he is just around the corner and is tangible! Let us not rely on stories of others' conversions and sanctity; instead, let us be witnesses firsthand, let us be the saints we so often speak of! Let us become what we experience! Go with him; He will show you how to live!
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