The Feast of Annunciation

Today, as we close in on the business end of this season of Lent, the Church celebrates the feast of Annunciation, the day when angel Gabriel announced the plan of salvation to our Blessed Mother Mary ......that God will take the form of man by being born of her.Mary's humble and brave 'yes' allowed God to proceed with His plan of salvation and she conceived the Saviour in her womb.

All that mattered to her the Will of God. Everything else was just incidental. The church rightly recognising her role in the plan of salvation celebrates this feast since the early part of first Millenium. For a moment, the timing of the feast almost looks improper. I mean, aren't we in Lent. But take a closer look and we see 9 months on we celebrate the feast the Birth of our Lord, also known as Christmas. So the feast of annunciation has to be celebrated now ie 9 months before the birth of Christ.

Let us not forget that each feast that we celebrate is backed by thorough reason and logic which in turn is  based upon Sacred Scripture and early christian tradition.

Happy feast to one and all......:)

Don't Sweat The Small Stuff

Yesterday , I had the opportunity to lead adoration at our parish...and something funny happened. Actually, it would not have been so funny had it not been for God's grace at work in me. As I began leading , the priest who was visiting, intervened in between and sort of took over and started leading  it. After that , he allowed me to continue and then after sometime he again took over. We were all a bit surprised and I was wondering how to go about it when, In between the choir mistress came and told me to tell the priest to stop it. I wondered stop it .."stop what??" I thought. How can I, nay, who am I to tell an ordained priest to stop adoring the Lord. Besides, if He is leading everyone to adoring the Lord, then who am I to stop him. May be he did not like my way of doing it, which is very understandable as I am, by no means an expert or even highly experienced in this area. So I was glad that I just let it go , glad that God has done some work within me in the last 8-10 years  that now its  not as difficult to let go of small things as it used to be.I remember how I wouldn't talk to anyone who offended me even in a minute way, not for a few days, weeks, or even months, sometimes, I wouldn't talk to them for years....oh man !! I wonder what was the stuff I was made of back then...what ever it was , I am God has started remoulding into a different 'stuff'.

 'Don't sweat the small stuff' as they say, applies to all christians  who desire to grow and then of course it should lead us to a place where we do not sweat anything, not even the big stuff. Well , that is still a long way off....There is still a lot of pruning remaining and only the Lord knows how best and when best to do it.

I leave it to you, Lord.........

On Fasting....

Just came back from our couples meeting.The talk was given by an old friend of the mission on fasting.Personally, I feel enriched.This area of fasting has always created doubts in my mind.Why at times I was not receiving the graces which I was seeking.And today , if not all, a lot became clear.He turned the word 'fast' into an acronym...F-A-S-T and here below is my reflections inspired by this acronym.Of course, some of the reflections are directly from his talk.

F- Forgiveness : There is no point in fasting, if I do not have complete forgiveness for everyone.I was reminded of our mission director who is constantly trying to drill it into our hearts in almost every gathering and sure enough it is the crux of our faith. In fact I would go on to say it is the hinge on which our faith balances.You take away mandatory forgiveness out of it and the theology surrounding our faith starts crumbling down, almost as if  power is taken out it. I remember how up until recently, if we had had a bad day, Anna and I would seek each others pardon and reconcile before the close of day.And this good habit was somehow lost somewhere in the last 3-4 months. By God's grace, today I was immediately reminded of my sin of anger which I had let out against Anna just before we were leaving for the prayer meeting for the simple reason that we were getting late and I just hate to get late for a prayer meeting or Mass.No sooner did we reach home,I went straight to her and apologised. Thank you Lord for the Grace.

There is one very very important point that he mentioned which is in Matt 5:23-24 (if your brother has something against you then leave the gift at the alter............) The verse says if my brother has something against me and not if I have something against my brother.Which means, even if I am not at fault, I still have the responsibility to make the first move and go and reconcile with him.This can be very painful indeed and a very humbling experience.But the problem it's not optional and very much mandatory.The play of words in these verses never struck me before.

A- Acknowledge : Next thing to practice constantly while fasting is to acknowledge what all God has done for me.Count all the blessings that I have received from HIM and name them and remember how my life changed after that blessing/grace. I will not only be amazed but also humbled no end.The thought of all those graces and blessings keep me grounded and also remind me of his unflinching faithfulness.I should never stop being mindful of His ways in my life.

S - Serve : Fasting without selfless service is of not much use.The act of service must be totally gratuitous and not be done with any intention to get something in return. Often times we give with an ulterior motive.Even if there is no sinful motive, the thought that that act of service should / may get me something in return should be shunned with all my might. If at all any loss / inconvenience is borne out of that act of service, in good faith I should only expect God alone to come and make good that loss / inconvenience (in his time and according to His holy will and purpose).

T - Thank : Finally, fasting should be accompanied with constant thanks giving.Thanking not just God but also the people who have been a blessing in my life.This like the above should be a continuously practiced along with fasting and the fasting starts bringing in appropriate 'results' in my life.

Here We Go......

If I am not being purified by the Lord, then there is something wrong with me not Him. The main reason is that I have not allowed him to do it. It's as simple as that. If the soul co-operates with her Saviour then purification is not only mandatory and constant but it's going to be ............life long .