† Quote of the Day "If you wish to go to extremes, let it be in sweetness, patience, humility and charity." — St. Philip Neri Today's Meditation "Advent is like the final hour before the breaking of the dawn. Our prayer...is simple: "Grant, we pray, that we may look forward in joy to the glorious Nativity of Christ." Constantly, the season reminds us to think about where we are directing our attention and invites us to lift our gaze toward those first streaks of light on the horizon. The coming birth of Christ is both the answer to our longing and the fulfillment of the promises of God woven throughout scripture." —Fr. John Burns, p.41
An excerpt from Adore: A Guided Advent Journal for Prayer and Meditation Daily Verse "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return not thither but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it." — Isaiah 55:9-11 | St. Dominic Of Silos St. Dominic of Silos (1000–1073 A.D.) was born in Navarre, Spain, to a peasant family. He grew up herding his father's sheep in the Pyrenees mountains. This work endeared in him a love of solitude, leading him to enter the local Benedictine monastery in Navarre. He eventually became its prior, but was driven out when the King of Navarre seized its lands. Dominic then fled to another monastery under the protection of King Ferdinand I of Leon. Though the monastery was dilapidated, he became abbot and restored it both materially and spiritually, turning it into a significant center of scholarship and charity to the poor. The funds of the monastery were used to ransom Christian captives who were enslaved by Muslims. St. Dominic of Silos was known during his life and after death as a miracle worker, making him a popular Spanish saint. The Spanish mother of St. Dominic de Guzmán, founder of the Dominican Order, prayed for a son at St. Dominic of Silos' shrine; when she conceived, she named her son after him. St. Dominic of Silos' special patronage became connected with pregnancy, and until 1931 his crozier was used to bless the queens of Spain, and was placed beside their beds when they were in labor. St. Dominic of Silos is also the patron of prisoners and shepherds. His feast day is December 20. | Friday of the Third Week of Advent Reading 1 Is 7:10-14 The LORD spoke to Ahaz:
Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered,
"I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!"
Then Isaiah said:
Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary men,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel. Responsorial Psalm Ps 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6 R. (see 7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
The LORD's are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory. Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
O Key of David,
opening the gates of God's eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 1:26-38 In the sixth month,
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.
| Daily Meditation: Isaiah 7:10-14 Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God. (Isaiah 7:11) When a prophet tells you that God wants to give you a sign, it's like receiving a special gift. Of course you'll accept it! But that's not how King Ahaz replied when Isaiah offered him a sign. "I will not tempt the Lord," he protested (Isaiah 7:12). What was Ahaz thinking? It's like Aladdin finding the magic lamp and then telling the genie he didn't have any wishes. Ahaz's country was on the brink of a devastating war he could not win, and his people were losing hope. This was a time for bold actions, not false humility! It's a good thing that God didn't let Ahaz's hesitation stop him. Despite the king's protests, he gave him the sign he had planned for him: a virgin would conceive a child who would be called "Emmanuel," God with us (Isaiah 7:14). God promised that through this child, he would continue to guard and protect Jerusalem from all her foes. Of course, God is not a genie! But he is a loving Father who wants to bless his children. Even when we hesitate to ask him for a sign, he still wants to help us. Even when we (mistakenly) believe that only the holiest of saints hear his voice, he wants to speak to each of us. God wants to intervene in our lives. He wants all of us to be able to say, "I know God spoke to me in this situation." What kind of sign do you want to ask God to give you? Maybe it's something downright miraculous, like a healing, or something more mundane, like a change in the weather that brightens your day. Maybe you want to ask him to send you a message through an innocent comment from one of your children. Or maybe you want him to surprise you—think of Balaam's talking donkey or Gideon's dew-drenched fleece or the sundial that turned back time for Hezekiah. God can do any of these things for you, and so many more! So ask for a sign! You don't have to measure up to a certain standard of holiness. You don't have to grit your teeth and suffer in order to earn it. Sometimes the Lord gives signs we don't even know we need! Just open your ears and eyes. Look for surprises. Let God be part of your life today! "Lord, I believe you want to speak to me. Let me see your signs!" Psalm 24:1-6
Luke 1:26-38 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Click to hear Audio | In the Holy Scripture we hear today: "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."....." end Gospel quote, word of the Lord. | From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, today's Gospel declares the significance of Mary's fiat. When Mary says, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word," she exhibits such faith and thereby undoes the refusal of Eve. And this fiat to the impossible made possible the Incarnation of God. In accepting the seduction of the alluring Mystery, she allowed God's love to become enfleshed for the transformation of the world.
In the Catholic faith, Mary is praised as the Mother of the Church, the matrix of all discipleship. What this means is that her fiat is the ground and model of every disciple's response to God's desire for incarnation. Meister Eckhart said that all believers become "mothers of Christ," bearers of the incarnate Word, in the measure that they acquiesce to the divine passion to push concretely into creation......." End quote from Bishop Barron.
From a Spanish Reflection today:
"This attitude of Mary teaches us a great lesson of faith and trust in God. Despite the difficulties or fears she may face, she fully trusted in God's will and let herself be guided by Him. Her humility and willingness to fulfill the divine plan are an example for all of us, inviting us to trust in the Lord and be willing to follow His designs, even if they are difficult to understand or accept.
In this time of Advent, let us remember Mary's courage and humility, and seek to imitate her attitude of faith and surrender to God in our own lives. May we open our hearts to God's will and be willing to follow His plans for us, trusting that He will always guide us and accompany us on our path.
" end quote from Roberto Juárez.
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word." Could it be said then, that our Mother Mary was brave?
Did she know what was about to happen to her for the rest of her life? What would it mean to bear the child of God?
Because if you think about it, it would involve all things, about Heaven and earth, and even the abyss of hell. She would stand as a mediator, a channel of God's grace.
This is EXACTLY why the Angel Gabriel said "Hail, Full of GRACE! The Lord is WITH You!".
That is a confounding statement.
He is with you. Not against you. He is going to do something with you. He is stating what has been, not only from that moment, but from what was designed from the beginning of time...her own creation, from the time of creation itself, we are all designed in God's purpose.
We are at our "station" in life. You station is your world you live in. And the Word of God has been planted in your soul. The talent, the seed, it is within, because of the Holy Spirit.
Then, we should strive to live full of grace, as our Mother.
To be brave now, in Christ, is to be humble to His Holy will. They say God loves to listen to prayers, of the pure, and humble, like Mother Mary. Wherefore, we find favor with God through Mary. If God is not listening, it is because it is us that are not listening. If God is not sending angels and signs, it is because we are not made ready, we are not readying ourselves for His signs and angels.
What if we lived in a world with greater prophets than yesterday? With prophets that commune daily with their guardian angels and are enlivened by the light of the Holy Spirit?
What if we lived in a world of brave souls like Mother Mary and Saint Joseph, instead of cowards that go straight to sin and death?
What a new and strange world that would be to us who are used to being in the dark!
Lord, I want to be ready, I want to be like Mother Mary, ready to advance the Kingdom of God, the true God, and the God Love that is Love itself! |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Psalm 103:2–5 [Psalm 103] 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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