It’s a new day! It’s a new year! And as we start this year, we are reminded that it is going to be another great year of the Lord! The first reading and psalm gives us a very beautiful blessing and prayer. And I believe that just as God asked Moses to bless the Israelites with this, he is also reminding us that this blessing is for us as well. As we start the year, it is good to be reminded of this blessing from God:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!
What a very beautiful and powerful blessing!
God has concretized this blessing in the second reading. The reason for this season. God sent his only Son to save us from our sins, because he loves us. Because of this, we too can call God our loving and almighty father.
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son,
and if a son then also an heir, through God
Just as we start the year, we also celebrate the Solemnity of Mama Mary, Mother of God. This is one of the three Holy Days of Obligation in our country (Aside from Dec 8 Immaculate Conception and Dec 25 Christmas). It is fitting that as we start the year, we remember Mama Mary, a loyal and humble servant of God. We again see a glimpse of her in the gospel. After saying Yes to God, she bore a Son and named him Jesus. At this point, she did not understand yet God’s plans as she kept all things in her heart, but still she continued to be faithful to God and did her part as the earthly mother of Christ. It is a good reminder for us, that as we start the year, even if we do not know and understand yet God’s plans, we just have to be like Mary and submit to God and do what he asks us to do. God has great plans for us, and we should just wait and cooperate, even if we do not understand and things are looking different from what we expected. (See related story)
2021 was still a very challenging year. And we just have faith that this year will be better. We pray for a better year. However, whatever happens, we trust in God and know that he is always with us. No matter what.
What is God telling me today as I start the year? What are my fears and worries as I enter another year? Pandemic? Career concerns? Financial concerns? Health issues? Family matters? What can I learn from Mama Mary?
May we always remember that God will always bless us, and may this lead us to be like Mama Mary, who trusts and surrenders to God, despite not knowing his plans for us yet.
Father God,
Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live! Thank you for another year! Thank you for all the great blessings of 2021! Thank you for all the challenges of 2021. We’re glad it’s over. It was another very tough year. And we have faith that this year will be better. Still, Thank you for everything. As I start the year, I look forward to receiving more love, blessings, and challenges from you. Lord, I do not know what this year would bring, but I do hope that it would bring me closer to you. I do not know what will happen, but you do. I do not know what this year holds, but I know who holds everything in his hand. Lord, I trust in you. May the challenges and hardships, as well as the blessings and triumphs this year bring me to loving you more and may they strengthen my faith in you. I ask Lord that you hold my hand every step of the way. Never let go of me, and make me more and more like you. As you do, may I radiate you to others I encounter. Amen.
In Christ,
-g-
Ps
This story reminds me that even if God’s ways are not our ways, it is still the best, it is still better than what we have imagined, better than what we want for ourselves.
The Parable of the Three Trees
Once upon a mountain top, three little trees stood and dreamed of what they wanted to become when they grew up.
The first little tree looked up at the stars and said: "I want to hold treasure. I want to be covered with gold and filled with precious stones. I'll be the most beautiful treasure chest in the world!"
The second little tree looked out at the small stream trickling by on it's way to the ocean. "I want to be traveling mighty waters and carrying powerful kings. I'll be the strongest ship in the world!"
The third little tree looked down into the valley below where busy men and women worked in a busy town. "I don't want to leave the mountain top at all. I want to grow so tall that when people stop to look at me, they'll raise their eyes to heaven and think of God. I will be the tallest tree in the world."
Years passed. The rain came, the sun shone, and the little trees grew tall. One day three woodcutters climbed the mountain.
The first woodcutter looked at the first tree and said, "This tree is beautiful. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining axe, the first tree fell. "Now I shall be made into a beautiful chest, I shall hold wonderful treasure!" The first tree said.
The second woodcutter looked at the second tree and said, "This tree is strong. It is perfect for me." With a swoop of his shining axe, the second tree fell. "Now I shall sail mighty waters!" thought the second tree. "I shall be a strong ship for mighty kings!"
The third tree felt her heart sink when the last woodcutter looked her way. She stood straight and tall and pointed bravely to heaven. But the woodcutter never even looked up. "Any kind of tree will do for me." He muttered. With a swoop of his shining axe, the third tree fell.
The first tree rejoiced when the woodcutter brought her to a carpenter's shop. But the carpenter fashioned the tree into a feedbox for animals.
The once beautiful tree was not covered with gold, nor with treasure. She was coated with saw dust and filled with hay for hungry farm animals.
The second tree smiled when the woodcutter took her to a shipyard, but no mighty sailing ship was made that day. Instead the once strong tree was hammered and sawed into a simple fishing boat. She was too small and too weak to sail to an ocean, or even a river; instead she was taken to a little lake.
The third tree was confused when the woodcutter cut her into strong beams and left her in a lumberyard. "What happened?" The once tall tree wondered. "All I ever wanted was to stay on the mountain top and point to God..."
Many many days and night passed. The three trees nearly forgot their dreams.
But one night, golden starlight poured over the first tree as a young woman placed her newborn baby in the feedbox.
"I wish I could make a cradle for him." her husband whispered. The mother squeezed his hand and smiled as the starlight shone on the smooth and the sturdy wood. "This manger is beautiful" she said.
And suddenly the first tree knew he was holding the greatest treasure in the world.
One evening a tired traveler and his friends crowded into the old fishing boat. The traveler fell asleep as the second tree quietly sailed out into the lake. Soon a thundering and thrashing storm arose. The little tree shuddered. She knew she did not have the strength to carry so many passengers safely through with the wind and the rain.
The tired man awakened. He stood up, stretched out his hand, and said, "Peace." The storm stopped as quickly as it had begun. And suddenly the second tree knew he was carrying the king of heaven and earth.
One Friday morning, the third tree was startled when her beam were yanked from the forgotten woodpile. She flinched as she was carried through an angry jeering crowd. She shuddered when soldiers nailed a man's hands to her. She felt ugly and harsh and cruel.
But on Sunday morning, when the sun rose and the earth tremble with joy beneath her, the third tree knew that God's love had changed everything. It had made the third tree strong. And every time people thought of the third tree, they would think of God. That was better than being the tallest tree in the world.
So next time you feel down because you didn't get what you want, just sit tight and be happy because God is thinking of something better to give you
........... Author Unknown
