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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