Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
By Beth DeCristofaro
Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary people, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us!” (Isaiah 7:13-14)
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me, To do your will, O my God, is my delight, and your law is within my heart!” (Psalm 40:8-9)
By this “will,” we have been consecrated through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Hebrews 10:10)
“…(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.” (Luke 1:37-38
Today, Lord Jesus, I long to do your will. I long to delight in your ways. I long to see your signs within my modern world which is far from your world yet also is your world. Nothing is impossible with you, Lord God. May my feet walk towards you today. May my mouth bless you with each word. May my mind rest easy that in the hustle, bustle and pressure of my world, all things are possible in you. May I act according to your word, Lord.
http://www.usccb.org/nab/readings/033108.shtml
Often I run busily from task to task – there is always more to do. That includes my time with God. As many of us, I have a lot of responsibilities, people who depend on me, places to go and heights to scale. Again, like most of us, much of this activity is positive and pointed toward good, attempting to accomplish God’s word. Sometimes I feel as if I struggle to fit in time for prayer, reading or meditation.
This day we remember the Annunciation. Consider: we think we are busy? We do not have to make food and bring water from a well – most likely several times a day in order to survive to the next day. In order to make food it had to be grown. In order to dress – in the one outfit she owned, Mary had to weave and sew. We could go on, but in reality Mary was no less busy than we are. The Christmas pageant staged by our parish when our children were young had Mary sweeping her floor when Gabriel arrived. Mary, special daughter of God that she is, was attentive and receptive enough to hear the incredible request which God made of her in spite of living to survive. Mary was open to hearing, open to agreeing.
This can only mean that she made God such a priority in her life that she walked in full awareness of her God. Just as we make our children and significant others priorities so that we know when they are in need of us, Mary knew that God was entering her life in a special way on that Annunciation morn. Mary did not fit in time with God. God permeated her being through her Jewish identity as well as through the grace of her immaculate incarnation. She was blessed; she walked willingly, naturally, in grace.
In my busy days do I lose the awareness of God so that I miss angels? Dorothy Day spoke of her mission with the homeless as “entertaining angels.” Do I miss God or heavenly messages by looking at surface appearance of those around me or racing too quickly onto the next important destination? Are my opinions, beliefs, fears, knowledge coming between me and God? Do I put God as much of a priority in my life as my first cup of coffee or the gravity holding my feet to the floor? Gravity is invisible until I make myself aware of its wonder. Prayer has been described as “talking with God”. Listening and coming to awareness of God are components of prayer with which I have difficulty. Perhaps I can use Mary as a model – practice her “yes” after the stillness in my heart has led me to hear God.
Start the day with prayer that God will help you be aware of God’s presence and blessings all day. From time to time, study your surroundings and what you are doing; find God in that moment. Pray in thanksgiving; ask God to continue helping your awareness. Take an unexpected action based on God-with-you. Slip cash or a sandwich into the hands of a panhandler on the corner. Visit the website of a political party or cause with which you do not agree and seek, with open mind and heart to find God in an opponent. Answer with mercy when put upon by another. Send thanks to the Women’s 126th Cursillo who are tired yet full of grace today. Welcome a babe chick. Look for a prospective cursillista among your colleagues at work. Say “yes” to God all day.
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