1 Kings 3:11-12, Isaiah 9:1-6, Luke 1:26-38, Psalm 113:1-8

Daily Meditation:  1 Kings 3:11-12

1 Kings 3:11-12

“Because you have requested this rather than long life or wealth or even vengeance on your enemies; indeed, because you have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12 I shall grant you your request. I now give you a wise and discerning mind...."

This is the promise the Lord God made to Solomon.  Beloved, to all who ask, You freely give the gift of Your Holy Spirit and with Him come all the gifts.  Grant me this gift of a discerning mind to know what is pleasing to You, in order that I may do it always.  As You have said, so let it be.

Daily Mass Readings:   Isaiah 9:1-6, Luke 1:26-38, Psalm 113:1-8

Isaiah 9:1-6

Beloved, today the Universal Church celebrates the Queenship of Mary.  She is rightly named Queen of Heaven and Queen of the Universe.  She reigns with You her Son who is the King of Kings and Lord of Lord.  Here in these verses we read the prophecies that will be fulfilled in You and all this is possible because Mary said, 'Yes.'  The heavens and the earth stood still with bated breath, God and all in heaven breathed a collective sigh of relief when she surrendered and yielded to the will of the Lord God Almighty.  God is a Gentleman, He takes nothing by force although being God, He could. He always waits for our consent.  

Grant my sweet and beloved Mother, Mistress and Queen, the grace to always say, 'yes' to all that Your Son, the Beloved asks of me.

Beloved, it is rightly said that if Christians get the Annunciation wrong then all that follows from this misstep will be wrong.  Today as we celebrate the Queenship of Your Mama let me reflect along with Your Holy Spirit and the Church on these verses for today's Gospel reading.

Luke 1:26-38

The Archangel Gabriel, God's Messenger is sent to this young virgin who is betrothed.  He greets her with this mind blowing statement, "Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you."  FULL OF GRACE and THE LORD IS WITH YOU, no wonder this young girl trembles at the extravagance of this greeting and is troubled.  The angel himself is awed because he is aware of what God is asking of her.  He knows that God in humility waits for His little daughter whom He has fashioned free from original sin, this masterpiece of His creation, to give her consent to His Divine Plan.  Verses 30-33 tell us that she will bear the Son of the Most High and He will rule over the Kingdom of David, which obviously makes her the Queen Mother.  To her question of how this could be since she is a virgin, the angel responds with verse 35 telling her that her old cousin Elizabeth who is well passed the years of child bearing has conceived and is in her sixth month, for with God all things are possible.  Mary understood that this is what God was asking of her and so she said, "Yes, I am God's handmaiden, let Him do with me as He desires."  

After Christ, there has never been a more perfect, "Yes," than the, "Yes," of Mary.  It must surely displease the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit when we deny Mary her rightful place in the divine scheme of heaven and earth.