Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of the 4th Week of Advent: Year 2
Morning, Psalm 66 and 67; Evening, Psalm 116 and 117;
1st Samuel 2:1b to 10; Titus 2:1 to 10; Luke 1:26 to 38:
“Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38)
The angel Gabriel approaches Mary and shares with her God’s plan for humanity. Mary is of the lower middle class of her day and place. There are people around her who look down on her. The whole land of her home is occupied and dominated by a foreign army, Rome. What God is proposing is for her to be a co-creator with God to create a space in human history and the human heart for God to be made manifest with us, Emmanuel.
Here is yet another example of the true believer emptying themselves in order to be useful for God. Mary, the human Mother of God Incarnate literally gives her body into the service of the will of God. “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” We can, and should, learn from this young, yet very wise Israelite woman whom God partnered with for the benefit of the world.
As we listen to what the Spirit of God is saying to us, let us live to love and to serve, and to teach others to love and to serve, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John
Let us pray: A Prayer of Self-Dedication (BCP p. 832)
Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to thee, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly thine, utterly dedicated unto thee; and then use us, we pray thee, as thou wilt, and always to thy glory and the welfare of thy people; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
onewhoponders 