Anyone who has offered his heart to God belongs to God, and God is the Lord of his life! This is particularly clear in the giving of offerings. We offer to God, in acknowledgment and gratitude, the bread and the wine which are in fact the symbol of our suffering and efforts, our hope and our love, and of our working together with Him. These gifts are representative of us because, like all gifts, they are the symbol of those who offer them. They express our willingness to please and our friendliness and readiness to offer what we have to Him who has showered us with all good things. We do not offer gifts because they are necessary, but because they are an acknowledgment of the other and express our gratitude.

And God rewards us in His divine way! Our gifts, which are simple but true expressions of our lives, become for us divine marvels. By the strength of God's Word, they are transformed from bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. What a miraculous transformation! God is unequaled in His gifts. We bring a little bread and wine, the fruits of our labors and of our working together with God, and He, in these very offerings, offers Himself and becomes our food!

It is, therefore, important to note this transformation and to take part in it with our hearts and our love. This tribute, in the form of gifts offered, is complete when we put into the bread and wine our own lives, our suffering, sickness, hardships, our families and the world itself. This is also the moment of our sacrifice, and of our understanding with Christ who offers His life for us in every Mass.

Celebrate Mass With Your Heart
Fr. Slavko Barbaric, O.F.M.

Reprinted from Witness Ministries, a lay apostolate dedicated to renewing appreciation for the Mass as the greatest gift which God has given to His beloved spouse, the Church. Their mission is to show how, in the Eucharistic Liturgy, Jesus renews and transforms us–and the world–in His life and love.