At our School Mass today, Fr. Mark shared with us that he has a favorite kind of candy: M&Ms! Here are three reasons why M&Ms are so good:
First, they are marked with an “m” and Fr. Mark’s Baptismal name starts with an M! But, even better, Christians believers are marked [or sealed] with the Holy Spirit of God. God has marked us in order to give us a purpose and a focus. We are marked for ministry (another M-word)! “Ministry” means serving God by serving other people. All believers are “called” to do this. Some might say, “What if we turn the M&M upside down?” Now we have a “w,” which stands for Witness. Witnesses tell others what they have seen and heard about God. Ministry or Witness: we win either way! And the Bible says “we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, so let us take our place among them and let us throw off everything that hinders us from giving witness.”
Second, Fr, Mark likes M&Ms and they are good because they come in a variety of colors. This reminds us that “God has created each of us uniquely and in many ways.” Although we are all called to ministry and witness, each of us is uniquely gifted, we have different backgrounds, and different personalities. St. Paul says, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all people.” God has His way of blending our backgrounds, personalities, and spiritual gifts into unique, individual ministries and chances to give witness to His Kingdom!
Here is reason #3: because they are filled with chocolate – the best part! Well, we, too, are filled … with God’s love! Like an M&M, although we all may look different, we are all created to be filled. M&Ms are filled with chocolate – yum! We are made to be filled with God’s love – even better!
Fr. Mark shared with us one last thought: without the chocolate, an M&M is just a fragile shell, with no real taste. And we, without God’s love, are fragile and empty too. Let’s let Him fill us with His love, fill us with His hope, fill us with His life, and His peace. Then, much like with M&Ms, what we have received can be easily shared with others, by our ministry and witness, in order to give glory to God.
