How can we make our celebrations a fruitful experience?

Our encounter with Christ, the Head of the Church, is by no means limited to mourning over our sins, but also to responding to the call of the Lord to serve with joy. “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). The Lord did not say to Peter, “Your sins are forgiven.” Rather, He asked him to work positively: “Feed my sheep” (John 21:17). Repentance and self-evaluation are the renunciation of evil and the embracing of the good: “Depart from evil, and do good” (Ps. 34:14). Sitting in the presence of the Lord means becoming attached to the One who forgives sins and works within us by His Holy Spirit. Our Lord Jesus girds us and carries us wherever He wills.