Thursday of the 3rd week of Advent
Song of Solomon 2: 8-14 Luke 1:39-45
Theme: A selfless life
In the gospel reading of today from St. Luke, we are presented with the message of how Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, after receiving the message from the Angel that she was in her 6th month. It was a journey of love and selflessness that was embarked upon by our mother Mary. Ordinarily, one would have expected that after the message of the Angel, she would be more concerned about what was about to happen to her. But she was more concerned with the wonderful news about her cousin and could not wait to go and congratulate her, for what God has done for her. She was not bothered about herself, rather she was more concerned about the good news she received about her sister Elizabeth.
Selflessness is priceless and it is a virtue that we all must make effort to imbibe in our lives as children of God, just like our mother Mary. Taking into consideration the increase in self-centeredness that we see all around us today in our world. At a time when so many of us are not ready to discomfort ourselves for the good and well being of other people. There is no better time for us to reflect about how we practice selflessness in our individual lives. The season of Advent invites all of us to make honest effort to begin to live a selfless life, just like our mother Mary have shown us in the gospel reading of today.
The action of Mary also encourages us to celebrate with those who celebrate and be joyful and thankful to God for the blessings they have received. This is not the time for envy and jealousy, it is rather the time to appreciate the blessings of God in their life. All you need to do is to be patient, your own time will also come, and others will celebrate with you. Remember, Mary also received her message from the Angel, but she left her own and travelled quite some distance, just to celebrate with her cousin Elizabeth. The more we accept the good in other people’s lives, the more we attract the good and blessings of God to ourselves.
The season of Advent presents us the wonderful opportunity to embrace the lessons from our gospel reading of today and begin to live them in our daily lives. May the Lord bless his words in our hearts in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit, Amen. Peace be with you.