
Week 3, Thursday – December 21st
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”
Luke 1:41-43
I write this from a seat in my local parish church, putting my pen to the page in between gazes at my Lord in the Eucharist. There are a dozen or more others scattered through the pews, each in quiet prayer of adoration. I see only Him though, held in a shining, golden monstrance on the altar. The words of St. Peter on the mountain of Christ’s transfiguration keep repeating in my ears.
Lord, it is good for us to be here. It is good for us to be here.
After some time, the Holy Spirit shifts the words in my mind.
How good it is of you, Lord, to be here with us.
With the Incarnation of the Son on the first Christmas, God came to live among us. In baptism, He makes our souls His dwelling place. In the Eucharist, He becomes the Bread of Life to sustain us.
What goodness, what generosity, what love there is in the Lord’s choice to be here. How kind and merciful. How marvelous. When the Lord came to her, Elizabeth’s soul and even the child within her recognized His presence. She responded with joy and awe, speaking in grateful praise. I pray that my soul responds similarly to Christ’s presence.
How good it is that He comes to us. How good it is of Him to be Emmanuel, God With Us.