Different and Wonderful

 

“How can this be?” – Luke 1:34

They say that stress is caused when reality doesn’t line up with our expectations.

The loss of a loved one, an illness, any other hardship, or even the weather might be affecting your preparations and plans for Christmas this year. Maybe this Christmas feels different; it’s different from how you imagined it, and you don’t like it. You want the hurt to go away, you want to feel better, and you want things to go back to ‘normal.’

Mary was making plans to start her life with Joseph when the angel Gabriel came to her and everything changed. Giving her fiat to Gabriel meant letting go of her own plans and trusting God and His love for her. The reality of what her future held was different from what her expectations had been. She had to trust that God’s plan was still going to let them experience His love, joy, and peace.

God’s plan for you is to experience His love, joy, and peace, too.

“’For I know well the plans I have in mind for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for your welfare and not for woe, to give you a future of hope.’” –Jeremiah 29:11

What does this look like?

Christ shows His love for you in the kindness and comforting words of the people around you. If you didn’t get around to your usual baking, His joy will reach you when you appreciate simple Christmas chocolates or store-bought cookies. Whether they’re humble or elaborate, you can experience His joy through decorations, gifts exchanged, and meals shared. His peace will touch your heart when you cherish the time together with your loved ones, even if you’re missing someone.

Letting go of our expectations and adjusting our thinking to embrace what we have frees us to find Christ’s peace and even His joy in the new circumstances. This Christmas can be different and still be wonderful.

Jesus was born in a humble stall, shared with smelly animals. He slept in a manger – a food trough. No plush hotel, no clean medical facility, no crib with a soft mattress. He wanted to show us that none of those externals matter. What matters is that Christ is here with you and His love never changes.

Let go of your external expectations. Welcome Christ – welcome Love – into your heart. His Love is all around you.

Merry Christmas!

“Lord, let me seek out Your love, joy, and peace this Christmas.”

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome!

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 p.s.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

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God Has a Plan

 

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.” –Luke 1:47-48

(This verse is taken from Luke 1:39-56, which was read at Mass on Tuesday this week for the Church’s celebration of the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.)

Listen to the awe and excitement in those words, spoken by Mary to Elizabeth. Mary, young and unmarried, had just consented to become the Mother of God (see Luke 1:26-38). Elizabeth, past child-bearing age, and childless at a time when that was thought to be punishment by God, was pregnant with John the Baptist. These humble, devout women were marveling that God had chosen them and were blessing them beyond anything they could have imagined or prayed for.

Mary didn’t know exactly what was in store for her; she knew only what the angel Gabriel had told her. She didn’t know the magnitude of what God’s plan was for her and, through her, for all of humanity. And because God gives us free will, He gave her the chance to say ‘no.’ But Mary trusted God, and trusted that He would use her for His good purposes. Her fiat allowed His plan of salvation to unfold; because of her fiat, we’ve been promised eternal life.

In her younger years, Elizabeth may have wondered if God heard her prayers for a child. She discovered that God’s plan was to use her late-in-life pregnancy as part of a greater miracle.

We, too, can trust God and His plan for us, even though we don’t understand fully what that plan involves, and even when our prayers seem to go unheard. If we use the free will He’s given us to look for Him and say ‘yes’ to the promptings of His Spirit, we will allow Him to bless us as well as the people around us. When we say ‘yes’ to God, we say ‘yes’ to His promise of eternal life.

God has a plan for us, and He hears our prayers. He offers us eternal life with Him. That’s why we have hope. That’s why we, with Mary, are able to proclaim the greatness of the Lord and rejoice in God, our Savior.

“Lord, my soul rejoices because of Your immense goodness to us. Help me say ‘yes’ to You and Your plan.”

 

Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2022 Gina Bedell     Comments are always welcome! Feel free to share it with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Thanks!

 p.s.

We continue to pray for an end to the war. If you’d like to help the people of Ukraine through the Cleveland Maidan Association, you may use either PayPal or a credit/debit card here:

https://www.paypal.com/donate/...