Advent 4th Sunday 2014

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122114.cfm

2 Sm 7:1-16; Rom 16:25-27; Luke 1:26-38

David wants to build a dwelling place for the Lord. This is thoughtful; he lives in a palace, and the Lord a tent. But the Lord seems to ignore this noble gesture of David’s; instead He focuses on His own affairs. He is little concerned about David’s grand gesture of love, gratitude and friendship, and much more interested in His own plans for gifting David with so much more. Perhaps He heard David and His own magnanimity was His response to David’s generous desire for praise, but He did not acknowledge it. The Lord God had moved on.

In the case of Mary, the Lord, speaking through Gabriel is also quite absorbed with the gift He is giving. He mentions the gift almost at once and continues with detailed description. The gift, of course, is His own Son.

We tell the Lord what we want and need, we listen to hear what He is inviting us to; we also express gratitude to Him when He has done for us what is helpful or needed, or has handled things better than we could have hoped for or imagined. I hope I express to Him the gratitude that spills out of my heart at all the wonderful things He gives and does for me; I try to be conscience to do right by these gifts, to use them wisely and for good. For an example, I love working as a LNA (Licensed Nursing Assistant) in a nursing home, often on a rehab unit. It is a gift from God and I try to perform my duties in a loving, compassionate way.
But the Lord, apparently, seems to think that David missed the point. I bet you, He thinks I have missed the point too! Jesus tells us the right and good, loving and compassionate thing to do, but scripture is not simply a moral handbook.

I once read Jane Austen’s Guide to Dating. Falling into gender roles, the author proposes it is the man’s role to please, and the woman’s role to be pleased. If we tolerate the blatant sexism, such an attitude in a relationship is applicable to many circumstances. It is not as easy or common as it sound to recognize when another is trying to please us and to be so passive as to simply allow ourselves to be pleased. This applies to our relationship with the Lord.

The manner in which the Lord God speaks to David and Mary demonstrates His desire to give beyond measure. He is an “Over-the-top” God, generous to a fault, I tell Him. While I feel gratitude, of course, He doesn’t give me gifts so I can express gratitude. If I can be so bold as to say, He gives me gifts as do human friends and parents, because he loves me and delights in delighting me.

I am competent, to some degree, at recognizing the gifts He bestows on me, but I think in my haste to express gratitude, I sort of skip the step of pleasure. I am meant to surrender to the joy of being delighted and knowing that it delights the Lord that I am delighted.

Reflection Questions: What could God be giving you that He is focused on and you are missing?

Writing Exercise: When have I allowed myself the pleasure of enjoying God’s gifts to me? When did I skip experiencing the pleasure and move right to expressing gratitude?

Art Exercise: Create using your preferred medium a piece that represents a gift of God’s that you enjoy.

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