CHRISTMAS GIFT
4th SUNDAY OF ADVENT

We are a few days away from celebrating Christmas। Many of us are ready with our Christmas presents. God is ready with his gift too. God is giving us presence in human form. “A virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel”. Emmanuel means God with us. God’s presence is the richest treasure one can have in one’s life. Presence of God is the foundation of our hope and absence of God is the beginning of crises (Rf: Tower of Babel; Jesus stilling the storm).

Receiving God in our life is the richest blessing that we can have. It is, however, a challenge. The reason is that God comes to our life the way He wanted not the way we wanted। The first receivers of Emmanuel had struggles to cope up with this reality. John had to send his disciple to clarify the identity of Jesus. Mary had to question the wisdom of the Angel. Joseph had to face the ethical and religious challenges.

In order to let God in their lives, John, Joseph and Mary had to go beyond the conventional wisdom। All three had to enter into the divine milieu. They had to break their self-wisdom in perfect obedience leading to complete surrender. Mary said, “Thy will be done according to your will”.

We oftentimes struggle with our faith. At times, it is difficult to see God with us. Like Martha and Mary, we also complain: Where were you when I was in most need of you? Jesus did not answer them in words. Instead, he wept with them. He identified with their pain. Jesus is with us in our sadness, our struggles and joys. Like Joseph and Mary let us ponder on the word of God in our hearts. God will reveal His plan for us and strengthen us to peruse that plan.