Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Scripture:
Micah 5:1-4a
Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23
Reflection:
We celebrate a Jubilee year dedicated to St. Paul the Apostle in our church. Today’s reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans is my favorite of all. First, God makes all things work to good. No matter what you are going through, God can turn it into good. God writes straight with crooked lines. Secondly, our call and destiny is to be "conformed to the image of his son Jesus." God is purifying us and changing us through our life experiences. God desires that we become Christ-like.
September 8th is the birthday of Mary in the Church’s calendar. God worked in the twists and turns of Mary’s life to bring about an amazing good. Mary’s destiny was to be shaped into the image of her own son. The genealogy in the Gospel points to Jesus’ birth, not Mary’s. Mary’s life was always pointing towards her son Jesus. She said "Yes" to God’s plan and God worked through her "fiat" to save the world.
On this day 23 years ago I, along with 7 others, publicly professed our vows as Passionists. We surrendered ourselves to God and the Church through our commitment. We said "Yes" to God’s plan for our lives. God works through our surrender. He transforms us into the image of Christ. He makes all things work to good. God uses us to impact and influence others.
Like Mary we are all invited to live our lives "according to God’s will." God has predestined you for glory. Surrender your life right now and watch how God will turn your "yes" into good.
Fr. Cedric Pisegna, C.P. is a missionary preacher, author of 12 books and creator of the TV program Live with Passion! airing in many cities. You can learn more about his ministry at: http://www.frcedric.org/