Discerning God’s Plan – 4th Sunday of Advent
A young mother came to the parish crying. She revealed a sad news that she had a miscarriage! With her husband, they were carrying their two-months old baby in a glass container inside a box. They requested to have their child blessed before bringing “little Angelo” for burial. The young mother was teary-eyed during the short funeral rite. It is traumatic to loose such a little angel. It is like losing an important treasure. The joy of the Christmas season suddenly faded. There was just mourning and great distress.
The gospel reading of this Fourth Sunday of Advent narrates about the birth of Jesus. This baby had been expected for 400 years. All the oracles of the prophets foretold of his coming. Now we are introduced into the drama of Christmas. Life itself is full of dramatic moments. There is a constant cycle of joys and sorrows. The reading ushers us into the secret drama of Joseph. Having loved Mary, he relished the day when she becomes his wife. But things turned out differently. She is with child and he does not understand. He struggles with his confusion. But sweet sleep refreshed him when God, through a dream, explained his divine plan. Moreover, he was part of it.
Like Joseph, God is inviting us to realize that struggles and storms are part of life. When things happen unexpectedly, we are shaken up and shocked. Just man as he is, Joseph shows us the right thing to do, though life throws us off balance. We need to stay on the right course seeking for light and discerning God’s will. Soon we will realize that the shadows and darkness are part of God’s beautiful plan. Like a beautiful painting with light and shadows, God is also doing a work of art in our life. He mixes the different colors of our life to make it beautiful. We simply have to trust the Great Artist and His Divine Plan. He is working at it for our own good.
Prayer:Lord, give me your light so that I may understand that the struggles I go through are part of your beautiful plan. Amen.
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