Friday, December 15, 2017

Reflection for Sunday, December 24, Fourth Sunday of Advent; Luke 1:26-38

Gospel: Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever and of his Kingdom there will be no end.

But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man? And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative has also conceived a son in her old age and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren for nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word. Then the angel departed from her.
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Reflection:
How deep is your love for God or how profound is your love for God? Are you willing to sacrifice something of yourself for God? For example, if somehow through your conscience you hear the voice of the Holy Spirit telling you to do something good and worthy, would you be willing to do it?

Christmas is just around the bend one more day to be exact, what does the Holy Spirit telling you to do this Christmas? Surely it’s not to buy things for yourself! Surely it’s not actions that will make you personally happy! For there’s no real happiness in doing something for oneself, real and profound happiness comes out from our hearts when we do something for others. Most especially to those who cannot give back the good that we do for them.

When the Blessed Mother obeyed the will of God for her to be the mother of Jesus she sacrificed her own happiness for the will of God. The Blessed Mother put aside her own safety and honor so that she could honor the will of God for her. So that she could help bring joy and salvation to all of humanity.    

When the Blessed Mother said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word (Luke 1:38). There was already profound happiness in her heart for she knew that she would be doing something not for herself but for God and humanity.

For this Christmas why not try doing something different? Instead of doing it all for yourself why not do something for the people that He loved dearly? The poor and the unwanted those people who cannot give back the goodness that you will be doing for them. – Marino J. Dasmarinas

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