the Lord your God is in your midst

It has not been lost on me this Advent just how different this third week is compared to the rest of this season.

On the first week of Advent we celebrated St. Francis Xavier, St. Nicholas, and the powerful feast day of the Immaculate Conception of Mary.

During the second week, we had St. Lucy, St. John of the Cross--and the beautiful feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!

Yet while our first two weeks featured a pretty high-ranking posse of saints, this third week of Advent is instead quiet, still, full of calm.

Instead of outward-directed feasts, it is the Scripture readings for each day that have knocked me off my feet!

“The Lord, your God, is in your midst”!

“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us’.”

“Do not be afraid…because your prayer has been heard.”

For nothing is impossible for God!

And today, as if to emphasize the message we might have missed from Sunday’s readings, we hear once again the same reading from the Prophet Zephaniah. May I suggest you read it today as a message for you, personally?  Go ahead, LISTEN with your heart to what God is saying to you today:

“Shout for joy, [fill in your name]! Be glad and exult with all your heart, [fill in your name]! The Lord has removed the judgment against you, he has turned away your enemies; The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst, you have no further misfortune to fear… Fear not, [fill in your name], be not discouraged! The Lord your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior; He will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love”

~Zephaniah 3:14-18

[photos: Ein Karem: Mary traveled to Ein Karem for three days to visit Elizabeth ]