Monday of the Third Week of Advent (December 18, 2017): Guidance from angels of light

Today’s Readings:

Jeremiah 23:5-8
Ps 72:1-2, 12-13, 18-19
Matthew 1:18-25
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/121817.cfm

USCCB Podcast of the Readings:
ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/17_12_18.mp3

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew. 

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.
When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,
but before they lived together,
she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,
yet unwilling to expose her to shame,
decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
For it is through the Holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet:

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,

which means “God is with us.”
When Joseph awoke,
he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him
and took his wife into his home.
He had no relations with her until she bore

Good News Reflection: 

Sometimes, no matter how much we want to do God’s will, we make mistakes and interpret him wrongly. Saint Joseph, in our Gospel reading today, desired only to do what was holy and compassionate. He assumed that the right thing to do was to end his betrothal to Mary quietly, rather than subject her to the penalties of the law, which called for her to be stoned to death for having relations with a man outside of marriage.

If our desire truly is to do God’s will at all times, he won’t let us stray very long into the field of mistakes or the sea of our sins. He knows we’re trying to do what’s right, and that’s what enables us to be corrected, because a true desire to do God’s will automatically means we have the humility to accept correction.

One day, many years ago while I was driving faster than the speed limit because going slower was too boring for my fast-working mind, I told God that he would have to re-create me if he wanted me to obey this civil law. The highway was sparse enough of traffic and other dangers that speeding 20 miles an hour faster than the limit was actually quite safe. Anything slower seemed ridiculous.

Suddenly, I lost all desire to go that fast. God did indeed re-create me! In one single moment.

Have you given God permission to change you?

When humility is lacking, any desire that we claim to have for obeying God’s will is only a disguise. It’s a mask that hides a prideful attempt to seem important, or to seem respectable, or to seem superior to other sinners. This is the difference between legalism, like that of the Pharisees, and true obedience. The latter comes with a desire to be corrected and to stay in constant discernment, never trusting our assumptions about what seems obvious.

God’s will doesn’t always cooperate with civil law, or else he would have wanted Joseph to submit Mary to the law’s penalty. God could have healed her from death after she was stoned, but no, he had a more loving plan. And he revealed it through an angel.

Angels are messengers of light. Evil spirits can disguise themselves as angels of light, but every time we head in the wrong direction, God makes his will clearly visible. Mistakes are corrected when we notice where Christ’s light is shining and head toward it, i.e., we go where the glow of God’s inspiration takes us into a deeper, closer, more humble relationship with Christ.

Our guardian angels and other messengers of light help us find the right path; they reveal the right direction by giving it a shine that makes it brighter than any other decision. Our spirits are attracted to this light.

Think of a choice you need to make today. There’s an angel leading you to the correct path. Your spirit recognizes it by sensing the presence of holiness, the peace of Christ, and the courage of God. Get in touch with what your spirit knows and trust it.

Today’s Prayer:

My Lord and my God, empower me to listen to Your angels’ guidance, and help me to be willing to follow their advice. Amen.

© 2017 by Terry A. Modica

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