Hope in the Lord

4th Sunday of Advent

December 20 2015

First reading                                                                                           Micah 5:1-4

The Lord says this:

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

the least of the clans of Judah,

out of you will be born for me

the one who is to rule over Israel;

his origin goes back to the distant past,

to the days of old.

The Lord is therefore going to abandon them

till the time when she who is to give birth gives birth.

Then the remnant of his brothers will come back

to the sons of Israel.

He will stand and feed his flock

with the power of the Lord,

with the majesty of the name of his God.

They will live secure, for from then on he will extend his power

to the ends of the land.

He himself will be peace.

Psalm	Psalm 79:2-3,15-16,18, 19

Second reading                                                                           Hebrews 10:5-10                   This is what Christ said, on coming into the world: You who wanted no sacrifice or oblation, prepared a body for me. You took no pleasure in holocausts or sacrifices for sin; then I said, just as I was commanded in the scroll of the book, ‘God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will.’ Notice that he says first: You did not want what the Law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the oblations, the holocausts and the sacrifices for sin, and you took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to obey your will. He is abolishing the first sort to replace it with the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.

Gospel                                                                           Luke 1:39-44

Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’

Reflection

By Pam Manzano

“Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”

My mother used to provide everything for me and our family. Since she was gone, I often times wonder whether I will be able to make ends meet and spare some for my wants at least. I would mostly devote my strength worrying about paying bills on time, how will I be able to put food on the table, etc. I even suffered from mild clinical depression – because I thought all hope is lost.

I know at the back of my mind that when all human efforts are futile, God does His work. But when the mind is clouded, even the most basic facts become difficult to believe. I made myself believe that I can do all things, that there is always a rainbow after the rain. It was only after talking to someone and acknowledging I cannot solve all my problems that I started to gather myself and started to pick up the pieces I lost somewhere along the way. I fought so hard to bounce back.

I started going back to the Feast, a prayer meeting of the Catholic charismatic group Light of Jesus Family. I started praying again. Not the usual lip service I am accustomed to but earnest praying where my knees hit the floor. Slowly, I surrendered everything at the foot of the cross. I even got angry at God for letting me experience all the hardships and difficulties. Tears flowed uncontrollably. Questions were thrown in the hope that light will be shed some time soon.

I have not gotten over all my problems yet. They are still there. They are still problems. The only difference is that now, I am not afraid of what tomorrow might bring. I am reminded of His redeeming love once again. I am reminded of the promise He made thousands of years ago at the cross of Calvary that He will never leave me nor forsake me.

It might be difficult for some of us to swim in the tides of life. But as Christians, may we be reminded that all these are temporary. Hope does not guarantee all our prayers and wishes will be answered. It is completely trusting in God’s will and being comforted by the fact that He is on top of everything that is happening in our lives. Let us not waiver in our hope that the best is yet to come for us, our country, and our world. Trust me, it makes all the difference. 

Prayer

Lord, thank You for reminding us that our trust and hope is in You alone. May You always uphold us with Your righteous hand whenever we feel like we are down. Thank You for always embracing us when we feel alone. Thank You for Your promises for it is what keeps us going every day. Amen.