Meditation for the Day

Thursday of the First Week of Advent, December 2

God Invites Each of Us to Open Our Hearts and Place Our Trust in His Love and Mercy, for He Truly Is Our Rock Foundation in Life.

We hear the prophet Isaiah today extolling and praising God with the words, “Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock.”

What is it about the idea of trust which makes many people uncomfortable? Is it the notion of giving up control and placing our trust in someone else? Or is it pride which causes some people to hesitate in letting go, fearful to allow someone else to have an influencing factor over their lives, always feeling that they need to be in control, always feeling that they must be in charge?

Trust, oftentimes, is a very difficult concept for some people. Depending upon one’s life experiences, truly trusting in others, even family members, sometimes can become very difficult. It may very well depend upon how often we have been “burned” – how often we have been hurt.

So, in whom or what do we place our trust? That question can have as many answers as there are people. We can imagine the “cowpoke” in the old western cowboy movies answering, “I put my trust in this lil’ ol’ six-shooter here” – for those who are familiar with the American West. Or perhaps we might think of the athlete flexing his muscles in response, or the race car driver patting his car in reply, or maybe the homeowner taking pride in the material possessions he has acquired. One thing about these responses is that they are probably all honest, for they speak to the state of mind of each individual.

The unfortunate thing about each of them, however, is that they are entirely inadequate, for there is an emptiness in their replies, for they are based upon a secular way of thinking. And trusting in what this world can give us will ultimately, at some point in our lives, leave us with feelings of inadequacy and disappointment.

Far too often, there are those who treat life as if it were just a dress rehearsal and not the real thing, as if there were an infinite number of days still ahead of us, and we need not get serious. Of course, we know only too well that the opposite is true.

Our days are numbered, and this is the real and only chance at a life, on this side of the eternal, that we are going to have, and we had better decide upon Whom and What we can really place our dependence and trust in the long term!

The prophet Isaiah gives us the right answer in today’s First Reading. “Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock.”

And in today’s Gospel, our Lord is comparing our spiritual life to that of a house which is built on either a solid foundation or a weak one. He says to each of us today, to both you and me, “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.”

And then our Lord goes on to explain how the different ups and downs of life, to which each one of us can attest, will beat against this house, which represents our faith, and which is built on the rock foundation of Christ’s words. And our faith – this house – will weather the storms that life may toss against it.

On the flip side of this scenario, however, are those who do not take the teachings of Christ and make them a part of their lives, those who only pay lip service but have no real depth of faith, those who are not able to let go of their pride and their feelings of self-importance and ego, those who are not able to surrender themselves to the will of God and truly trust in His caring and Merciful Love. They are the ones who probably will not survive the tempests we oftentimes face in life.

For remember, Jesus says to us today, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”

To trust, and I mean to truly trust completely in the God who gives us life, in the God who gave us His Only-Begotten Son so that we may have life with Him and have it to the fullest – is to empty oneself completely of ego, to empty oneself completely of pride and self-importance!

To trust is to let go of what constrains us and what controls us, and to allow this God of ours – who truly is a God of Mercy, who truly is a God of Love and Compassion! – to truly and completely take hold of our lives, taking us by the hand and guiding us in our journey through this life.

Is it easy? No, of course not! What it does take is a deepening faith and a growing awareness, a growing desire to be ever closer to God – gifts which God wishes to share with each and every one of us, His children, through the workings of His Holy Spirit. It is up to each of us to make that decision to open our hearts to His gifts and embrace all that He offers.

During this time of our Advent journey, let each one of us open our hearts and our souls to fully trust in God’s Love and Mercy – for it is His desire that we empty ourselves completely; it is His desire that we show complete filial trust, knowing that He is and always will be our Rock Foundation! –

– so that He may fill our yearnings and our needs with His Loving Presence, not only during this Christmas season, but throughout all the days of our life. †

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Please Comment, Like and Share, and Suggest to your Facebook friends – to spread the message of God’s Merciful Love.

Por favor Comente, Le Gusta y Comparta, y Sugiera a tus amigos en Facebook – en difundir el mensaje del Misericordioso Amor de Dios.

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Scripture for the Day

• “Trust in the LORD forever! For the LORD is an eternal Rock.” (Isaiah 26:4)
• “The LORD lives! Blessed be my rock! Exalted be God, the rock of my salvation.” (2 Samuel 22:47)
• “It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.” (Psalm 118:8-9)
• “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven…Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” (Matthew 7:21, 24)
• “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, on your own intelligence rely not.” (Proverbs 3:5)
• “Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust…” (Psalm 40:4a)
• “My soul rests in God alone, from whom comes my salvation…My soul, be at rest in God alone, from whom comes my hope…Trust God at all times, my people! Pour out your hearts to God our refuge!” (Psalm 62:2, 6, 9)
• “Cast all your worries upon [God] because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7)
• “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” (John 14:1)
• “I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.” (Philippians 4:13)

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Prayer for the Day

“Lord, forgive us when we forget You
and, out of fear and lack of faith,
we fail to truly live our lives
embracing all that You have taught us.

“Lord, forgive us for failing to truly trust
in the indescribable Love which You have
for each of us – Your Children.

“Lord, teach us to let go of all that inhibits us,
so that we may begin to truly live
our relationship of love with You.
For it is only in You where we shall find
our greatest joy and fulfillment, both now and for all eternity.”

Anonymous