“My spirit rejoices in God
my savior, for he has looked upon his lowly servant.” – Luke 1:47-48
There is such a
beautiful weaving through the readings today, drawing on parallels between the
lives of Hannah and Mary. Hannah dedicates Samuel for the Lord's service. Mary
similarly offers herself to the Lord, ultimately leading to her becoming the
mother of Jesus.
Both
Hannah and Mary through their proclamations in the responsorial psalm and
Gospel also echo similar sentiments. Hannah begins, “My heart exults in the
Lord,” and Mary, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.” These words
provide a glimpse into what a life of dedication entails – it’s always about
God, His word, His works. For Hannah and Mary, it was never about themselves.
Yet
how often do I say that I’ve dedicated my own life to God, to follow Him, to
serve Him… and end up making it about myself? Since things are not panning out
the way that I thought dedicating myself to God would look like - whether by
way of timing, circumstance, or otherwise. I belabor not getting enough credit
for my work, not feeling valued or acknowledged, not being far along enough in
my life, and so forth. It begins to dawn on me that it just never feels like
enough. That I don’t believe I’m enough.
Then
a gentle voice asks, what am I defining myself by, and really how much credit,
value, and acknowledgement have I been giving to God? For all that He has and continues to do in
this life He has given me, I only look at what seem to be holes. How often am I
despairing or complaining, versus giving thanks and magnifying God’s invitation
to greater trust and love?
Lord, please help me to
proclaim your greatness in my own life, to be a witness and bearer of your deep
presence in each person I meet today.
Reflected
by Quyen (Nhi) Ngo
No comments:
Post a Comment