Sometimes we feel like God is so far away because we do not
see Him but today’s 1st reading tells us that it is like peeping
through the lattices. We don’t see God but by faith we see Him in the midst of
the difficulties of life that seem to be like lattices. God invites us like a
lover to His beloved. This is God’s
relation to our souls. God’s love for us knows no boundaries. We may acquire
for ourselves everything that the world offers but it can not satisfy the immortal
soul. It is set on God and we are made to love God. There is this story of a
father travelling across the water with his children. They were playing too
close to the edge so their father warned them to stay away from the edge. The
children ignored him and continued playing until they were knocked over to the
side and fell in the water. As any loving father would do, he dived into the
water and rescued them despite of their disobedience. This is what Christmas is
all about. God dived into this world to save us in the midst of the disobedience.
It was totally God’s initiative when a virgin conceived and Jesus became man.
This is how great God’s love is for us and He waits for our love and response.
Another inspiring story in relation to this season of advent is George
Gabriel's sharing in Didache. Here it is, entitled: IT’S All GooD
“… you have no further misfortune to fear.” – Zephaniah 3:15
“I’m sorry, the last shuttle left three minutes ago.” These
were the shocking words of the ground crew explaining to me that I had just
missed my ride to the terminal where my connecting flight was. Because of the
two-hour delay of my previous flight, for the first time ever I missed my
plane.
I was quite disturbed at first. Later on, I realized it
wasn’t as bad as it seemed. Instead of having to endure a four-hour layover in
a stiff chair in the next airport, I was checked in overnight for free at a
beautiful London
hotel with a bed all to myself.
Instead of spending a fortune for an airport snack, I had
free dinner and breakfast the next day — eat-all-you-can buffet.
Instead of being in transit for 24 hours straight, I got to
take a 10-hour break with a nice, hot shower.
And now, I have the added experience of missing a flight —
and the knowledge that it’s not such a bad thing after all. Just because a situation
seems unfortunate doesn’t necessarily mean it really is. If we step back and
look from a different perspective, we’ll see that God will never leave us
without a blessing. George Gabriel
Amen. Hallelujah!
Song of Songs 2:8-14
Hark! my lover — here he comes springing across the
mountains, leaping across the hills. 9 My lover is like a gazelle or a young
stag. Here he stands behind our wall, gazing through the windows, peering
through the lattices. 10 My lover speaks; he says to me, “Arise, my beloved, my
beautiful one, and come!...
Nothing is hidden from God and everything is known to Him.
It pays to always consult our plans to God in prayers and everything we intend
to do we should lay before Him and seek His approval. He will never deprive us
nor withhold from us the answers that we seek. If we sometimes forget these and
tend to stray away from the right path then we should always be aware that
everything that we say, think and do must always have reference to God our
Creator. It may have happened to most of us when we get disappointed at how we
still miss something so quickly despite our close watch. We sometimes end up
confused and discouraged when things don’t happen the way we expect it despite
our accurate and strict monitoring. We even ask ourselves how it could have
happened. We may have heard and seen some terrible and frightening things in
our life but we should always hold on to the truth that no matter how horrible
the things that are happening around us they don't change the fact that our
Lord is God and always in charge and in control. It doesn't matter that much
how we think and feel but what matters most is how to feel and think just like
God. For we can always rely and depend on it, 100%, fail proof and success
guaranteed. We should place our trust not in men or in things but in God alone.
The Lord did not promise us to be totally problem free but He gave His
assurance that He will always be our Savior and Redeemer. God's power is beyond
our full comprehension. He is Holy, Mighty, Immortal and Infinitely Great. Did
it ever occur to you how all these things that surround us, from the skies, to
the mountains, plains, the seas, the wind, all the heavenly bodies above, the
things down below, all the creatures of the earth especially us, human beings
came to be. Not a single theory about creation could suffice and would ever
satisfy the wonders and marvelous things that God has done. Just thinking about
all these things should make us always put our hope in Him, feel confident and
assured that we are safe under His care, to help us from all our problems and
shield us from all harm. It is a consolation to know that we are constantly
assured by God especially in today's psalm to never doubt His power and
goodness. His loving eyes is always upon us not leaving us for a single moment
nor removing his stare even with a wink of an eye. It feels good to know that
someone's eyes are upon us and looking after us. When we come to a point of
despair and feel like things are not getting better, we ought to remember
always that we are God's people and we are His own. We have to realize this one
most important truth that we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly
align ourselves and conform to the will and plan of God in our lives. Let us ask
the Lord to lead us to the right path and decisions that we may work toward the
building of God’s kingdom here on earth. We should
not give room to any doubt, fear, anxiety, impatience, irritability, hatred,
sadness, iniquity, unfaithfulness, disloyalty, pride and loss of self control.
Let us not choose to give in to these. They are all characteristics that should
not be found in a people the Lord has chosen to be His own. Our present
situation may not be a perfect picture yet but we should all rejoice and be glad
knowing that God was the one who chose us first and He will carry us through. All
we have to do is just trust that the Lord will carry out with perfection all
His plans for us no matter what situations or circumstances may arise in our
midst. When God created this world and everything in it including us, He did
not ask permission from anybody. It means that He has chosen us to be His own
and not the other way around. This is the reason why the fallen angels/demons
are so jealous of men. We are indeed special in the eyes of God for it is
written in Gen 1:26, "Then God said: "Let us make man in our image,
after our likeness. Let them have dominion..." We are not just chosen by
God to be His own even before everything came to be but we are on top of His
creation. Let us never lose sight of this wonderful
plan that God has for all of us. We may not be seeing it right now, having
doubts about it, not paying attention to it or unable to commit to it. Whatever
it may be, these are all hindrances that prevent us from gaining access to the
goodness of the Lord. Never allow ourselves to miss out on this privilege that
is accorded to all of us as the children of God. God chose us first and it is
only right and fitting that we choose Him too. If we always focus on the Lord
and put His words in our presence at all times then we can be assured that we
have a lamp unto our feet that is lighting our path. We have to entrust all our
cares and worries to the Lord for He can do better things for our lives than
all our works combined. No matter how hard we try to succeed in what we do if
it's not in accordance to God's plan then nothing will ever come out of it. We
may succeed in one aspect but we will never be totally at peace for in the end
it will always be the will and plan of God that will prevail. We just have to
acknowledge that we are sparing ourselves of all the trouble and heartaches if
we will just be obedient and completely trust in the Lord's plan. Let us
truly be wise in the real sense of the word rather than of the world and not
forfeit all our benefits from the Lord. We all have
our personal plans and designs and we may not be able to fully understand what
is going on at the present time. It is not easy for the wisdom in the eyes of
God is foolishness to the world but what's most important is that we should
always consult everything to God first, just believe and surrender everything
to Him or He knows best. We have to realize this one most important truth that
we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly align ourselves and conform
to the will and plan of God in our lives. The power of God knows no limits and
we can always rely on Him for anything that we are in need. Let us rely on
God's power and completely trust Him to bring to fulfillment everything that He
has promised. Just like the Blessed Mother Mary, who is Queen of heaven
and earth, we too are destined for victory and royalty. If only we live out the
example of her obedient life and carry Jesus in our hearts. Let us not lose
hope and have faith in the Master Plan and Grand Design that God has for all of
us. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21
R: Exult, you just, in the Lord! Sing to him a new song.
2 Give thanks to the Lord on the harp; with the ten-stringed
lyre chant his praises. 3 Sing to him a new song; pluck the strings skillfully,
with shouts of gladness. (R) 11 But the plan of the Lord stands forever; the
design of his heart, through all generations. 12 Blessed the nation whose God
is the Lord, the people he has chosen for his own inheritance. (R) 20 Our soul
waits for the Lord, who is our help and our shield, 21 for in him our hearts
rejoice; in his holy name we trust. (R)
Mary's privilege and honor as the Mother of God is no doubt
a singular grace given to her alone. She has been greatly blessed by God for
being chosen to carry Jesus in her womb and nurse her. It has been written and
foretold from generations past. There is no question about this as it is
written in today’s gospel, "For he has looked upon his lowly servant; from
this day all generation will call me blessed." Though, Jesus in Luke 11:28 tells us that we
are called to follow what Mary did when He said, “Rather, blessed are those who
hear the word of God and observe it.” Predestination is one thing but to hear
the word of God and observe it is another thing. We have all been given this
option of being blessed as Mary is. All we have to do is to listen and obey.
Though, we can not physically give birth to Jesus we can spiritually give birth
to Him in our hearts. During the time when I haven't given birth to Allan yet
and Jude was the only son I had back then. He used to wait at our doorstep at
exactly the time he expected me to come home. I used to hide behind our gate
but my son Jude would become very excited to the point of like a panic state,
this may sound a bit exaggerated, but what he did was grind his teeth while his
body started to stiffen while extending both arms in a gesture that he wanted
me to carry him. But things changed for Jude the moment I gave birth to Allan,
he was happier and more secure being left at home knowing that he has a brother
with him. I guess, the joy that Jude felt when his baby brother Allan came can
be compared to the joy that St. Elizabeth and the baby St. John still in her womb, felt. Mary is
sharing the joy of having Jesus to all of us. We like Mary, who is Mother of
God, full of grace, blessed among women, and bore Jesus in her womb can also be
blessed if we listen and observe the word of God. God chose Mary to be the
mother of Jesus and I am sure that God did the right thing in choosing her for
she responded to God in a perfect way that none of us her children would be in
want or in trouble if we only come to her then we can be sure to also be with
Jesus and be the happiest and most secure. Jesus has given her to us at the
foot of the cross on that day He saved the world. We should not neglect this
important truth that all of us are called to bless ourselves with. Having a
loving and caring mother is one of the things every human being should be
thankful to God for but more than this is the fact that we have a heavenly
mother standing before God and pleading for all her children at all times. She
is now in heaven with God and that gives her a place that is close enough to
God to whisper in His ears whatever she asks for the sake of her children. One
of the biggest mistakes we could ever do is to turn our backs and abandon our
devotion to our Mother Mary. Mary is our guard because she is our blue mantle
of protection, if we abandon Mary we abandon ourselves to the enemy, we make
ourselves vulnerable to the attacks of the enemy. Why? Because God deemed it
so, God himself when He became man sought the protection of the womb of the
Blessed Mother for 9 months as He silently grew in secret and was finally born
to our world. She is the one whom God speaks about who crushed the head of the
serpent in Genesis 3:15. If there's one thing we should not be forgetful of and
always think about then this is it. The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
to St. Elizabeth shows us a number of wonderful things about God. In the womb
of their mothers, John the Voice and Jesus the Word met, the women raised their
own voices in praise. Elizabeth
praised Mary and her child; Mary turned the joy of them both into a hymn of
praise to God. In this scene of the Visitation we are made aware of Jesus
acting here from the very start. This also calls our attention to the unborn
children. He was barely a week old in Mary’s womb and John was only 6 months in
Elizabeth ’s
womb. Mary takes Him to his first missionary work. Jesus is already pouring out
grace and John received the grace as he leaped in her mother’s womb. Mary is
the instrument in bringing Jesus to Elizabeth and John. We must realize this
and not fear that she will distract us from being with Jesus. We should respond
like Elizabeth
and say something that we always say when we pray the rosary. No way should we
think that it will get in the way rather it would lead us to praising God even
more. The Son of God was still invisible at the time of the Visitation but the
sound of Mary’s voice made it visible for Elizabeth .
This is why it is also worth mentioning this meditation from Magnificat
entitled: The Graces of the Visitation.
The events of today’s mystery bring
before the faithful in a peculiar manner the fact that our God is a hidden God,
and that his power works in the soul in a secret and impenetrable manner. Four
people are concerned in the occurrence we are celebrating: Jesus and Mary; St. John , and his mother
St. Elizabeth. Now, it is most remarkable that of all thee sacred personages
the only one who seems to perform no particular action is the Son of God
himself. Elizabeth ,
enlightened from on high, acknowledges the Blessed Virgin’s dignity and humbles
herself deeply before her: “Whence is this to me?” (Lk. 1:43) John even within Elizabeth ’s womb, feels
his Divine Master’s presence, and shows his joy in a wonderful way: he “leaped
for joy.” Mary, marveling at the great effects of divine omnipotence in
herself, exalts the holy name of God and declares his munificence in her
behalf, with her whole heart. But all this time Jesus Himself, hidden beneath
his Mother’s breast, gives no sensible sign of his presence. He, who is the
cause of the whole mystery, takes no active part in it.
Strange as
this may seem, it is not really surprising. Our Lord here hides his power
intentionally, to show us how he is the invisible force that moves all things
without moving himself, and directs all things without showing his hand. Hence,
we shall find that though he may seem to be passive on this occasion his
influence is fully apparent in the actions of the rest, whose movements are
really all inspired by him alone. One of the greatest mysteries of Christianity
is the holy union that the Son of God forms with us, and his secret way of
visiting us… When God deigns to look upon us, we can but learn from Elizabeth how to reverence
his supreme greatness by fully recognizing our own nothingness, and to
acknowledge his benefits by confessing our unworthiness. - Bishop Jacques
Benigne Bossuet (1704) French Bishop and Theologian.
Pope John Paul II said that the Visitation and the Eucharist
is related. Also St. Francis addressed Mary in
this way, “Hail His tabernacle.” When Elizabeth
said, “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.” Mary also anticipated the mystery of the Incarnation. She
has become the 1st tabernacle in history. The Son of God became man
in Mary’s womb. God entered human history. Every time we receive Holy Communion
we do not see God, He is hidden from our gaze but we can radiate God’s
presence. We can do this by beating the heart of Mary and reliving the
experience at the foot of the cross especially the part when He said, “Behold your
mother.” We should recognize her divine motherhood. Mary carried Jesus with
such devotion and love. We should relate Mary’s fiat with our amen as we
receive the body and blood of Christ during Mass. The word became flesh within her and
dwelt among us. In the Eucharist the flesh, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus
come within us. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 1:39-45
39 Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to
a town of Judah , 40 where she entered the house
of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth .
41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and
Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43
And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44 For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in
my womb leaped for joy. 45 Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to
you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
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