Beads of Joy Blog II (2025 - 2026)

Fourth Sunday of Easter April 26, 2026 I Am The Gate Acts 2:14a, 36-41  |  1 Peter 2:20b-25 John 10:1-10 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 2:14a, 36-41 Peter proclaimed: God has made Jesus both Lord and Christ. The crowd asked what they must do. Peter said: Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the Holy Spirit. That day, three thousand were added. 1 Peter 2:20b-25 Christ suffered for you and left you an example. He committed no sin. He bore our sins in His body. By His wounds you have been healed. You had gone astray like sheep; you have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. John 10:1-10 Jesus said: I am the gate for the sheep. Whoever enters through me will be saved. The thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy. I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly. Today's Thread: Life in abundance, not in moderation. Good Sh...

Feast of St. Mark, Evangelist April 25, 2026 Go Into the Whole World 1 Peter 5:5b-14 | Mark 16:15-20 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings 1 Peter 5:5b-14 Peter writes: humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God. Cast all your worries upon Him because He cares for you. Your opponent, the devil is prowling like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith. The God of all grace will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. Mark 16:15-20 Jesus said: go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. They went forth and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through the signs that accompanied it. Today's Thread: He works with you, not through you alone. Mark ends his Gospel with a beautiful phrase: the Lord worked with them. They went, and he went with them. This is the pattern of the Great Commission, not ...

Friday of the 3rd Week of Easter -  April 24, 2026 Saul’s Conversion Story Acts 9:1-20  |  John 6:52-59 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 9:1-20 Saul was breathing murderous threats against the disciples when a light from the sky struck him down. A voice said: Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Saul asked who was speaking and was told: I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. He was led blind to Damascus. Ananias was sent to him: this man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. John 6:52-59 Jesus told them: "My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. Today's Thread: No one is beyond the reach of the light. Saul was the most unlikely candidate for sainthood in the history...

  Thursday of the 3rd Week of Easter - April 23, 2026 The Company We Keep Matters Acts 8:26-40  |  John 6:44-51 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 8:26-40 An angel told Philip to go south on the desert road. He went. He saw an Ethiopian official reading Isaiah in his chariot. The Spirit said: Go and join that chariot. Philip ran, explained the Scripture, baptized the man, and was immediately taken away by the Spirit. The official went on his way, rejoicing. John 6:44-51 Jesus said: no one can come to me unless the Father draws them. Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from Him comes to me. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever; the bread I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. Today's Thread: When the Spirit says go, run. Philip did not question the angel. He did not ask for a detailed plan. He went. And when the Spirit said, "Go and join that chariot, Philip ...

Wednesday of the 3rd Week of Easter - April 22, 2026 I Will Not Reject Anyone Acts 8:1b-8  |  John 6:35-40 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 8:1b-8 A great persecution broke out after Stephen's death. The disciples scattered throughout Judea and Samaria, but they preached the word wherever they went. Philip went to Samaria, proclaimed Christ, and the crowds paid attention. There was great joy in that city. John 6:35-40 Jesus said: "Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will not reject. This is the will of the One who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what He gave me, but raise it on the last day. Today's Thread: Scattered to be scattered on purpose. Persecution drove the disciples out of Jerusalem, and the Gospel went with them. What looked like destruction was actually dispersal. God used the very thing meant to silence the Church to spread it further and faster. And Jesus promises...

  Tuesday of the 3rd Week of Easter - April 21, 2026 I Am the Bread of Life Acts 7:51-8:1a  |  John 6:30-35 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 7:51 - 8:1a Stephen addressed the Sanhedrin: "You stiff-necked people, you always oppose the Holy Spirit. They gnashed their teeth at him. He saw the glory of God and Jesus at the right hand of the Father and declared it. They dragged him out and stoned him. He prayed: Lord, do not hold this sin against them. And Saul approved. John 6:30-35 The crowd asked Jesus for a sign. Moses gave manna in the desert. What will you do? Jesus said: it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven. My Father gives you the true bread from heaven, which comes down and gives life to the world. I am the Bread of Life. Whoever comes to me will never hunger; whoever believes in me will never thirst. Today's Thread: The Bread of Life does not run out. Stephen is being killed. His final words are not a cry for ...

  Monday of the 3rd Week of Easter - April 20, 2026 Stephens Face Shines Acts 6:8-15  |  John 6:22-29 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 6:8-15 Stephen, filled with grace and power, worked great wonders among the people. His opponents could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. They stirred up the people against him, but his face was like the face of an angel. John 6:22-29 The crowd followed Jesus, looking for more bread. He said: Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. When they asked what work God requires, He replied: "This is the work of God, believe in the one He sent." Today's Thread: The only work that lasts. The crowd wanted more bread. They had seen the miracle of the loaves and wanted a repeat. Jesus redirects them completely; you are chasing the wrong thing. There is a food that endures, and it comes from Me. Stephen ...

  Third Sunday of Easter April 19, 2026 Were Not Our Hearts Burning? Acts 2:14, 22-33  |  1 Peter 1:17-21  |  Luke 24:13-35 Photo created by Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 2:14, 22-33 Peter stood up at Pentecost and declared: "This Jesus, whom you crucified, God raised up. David had foretold it. We are all witnesses. God has made Him both Lord and Christ. 1 Peter 1:17-21 You were ransomed not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ. Your faith and hope are in God, who raised Him from the dead. Luke 24:13-35 On the road to Emmaus, the Risen Jesus walked with two disciples who did not recognize Him. He opened the Scriptures to them. When He broke the bread, their eyes were opened. They said: Were not our hearts burning within us while He spoke? Today's Thread: Our Burning Hearts. They walked seven miles with Jesus and did not know it was Him. But something was happening inside them the whole t...

  Saturday of Easter Week April 18, 2026 We Cannot Stop Speaking Acts 4:13-21  |  Mark 16:9-15 Photo created using Google AI Image Creator. Today's Readings Acts 4:13-21 The Sanhedrin saw the boldness of Peter and John and were astonished; they were uneducated, ordinary men. They commanded them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus. Peter and John replied: "Whether it is right in the sight of God to obey you rather than God, you be the judge. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard." Mark 16:9-15 Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, then to two disciples, then to the Eleven. He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart. Then He said: Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Today's Thread: Impossible not to speak. Peter and John were not trained theologians. They were fishermen who had walked with Jesus. The authorities could see that something had happened to them, something that could not be ex...