December 17, 2019 Reflection -Christmas Novena, Day Three – Hope!
Priests and religious at Mirjana’s Apparition exercising the gift of hope! (c) Mateo Ivankovic 2017 December 17, 2019 Christmas Novena Day 3 – Hope! Dear Family of Mary! Today we are praying for an increase in our hope. Hope can be a tricky virtue to understand. We can think that hope has to do with achieving or receiving the things we think we need in this life. We can set God up as the one who will give us what we hope for, forgetting that God has a much bigger plan in mind and that our hoped for desires may actually be detrimental to us. The Catechism tells us: “Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit.” (CCC 1817) The hope that comes from God is a gift that helps to purify our desires! We start to want the things of heaven more than the things of earth. We start to have a fire in our hearts for Jesus and His love which burns away all our lower desires and helps us to see our life in terms of eternity. The Virtue of Hope sets our eyes on God. It shows us what is awaiting us, and keeps us positive and moving ahead because we know that God is faithful and will not let us down. Our hope is secure in God! It is nearly impossible to live without hope. So that is what the enemy does to us, takes away all hope, because we lose sight of what we should be hoping for and feel only the loss of the things of earth. In this message Our Lady gives us everything we need for a solid Hope: December 25, 2016 “Dear children! With great joy, today I am carrying my Son Jesus to you, for Him to give you His peace. Open your hearts, little children, and be joyful that you can receive it. Heaven is with you and is fighting for peace in your hearts, in the families and in the world; and you, little children, help with your prayers for it to be so. I bless you with my Son Jesus and call you not to lose hope; and for your gaze and heart to always be directed towards Heaven and eternity. In this way, you will be open to God and to His plans. Thank you for having responded to my call.” How can we lose hope when we have such a Mother!! How can we lose hope when Jesus is our Brother and Lord? Let us pray: May the Virgin Mary help us to open the doors of our hearts to Christ, Redeemer of man and of history; may she teach us to be humble, because God looks upon the lowly; may she enable us to grow in understanding the value of prayer, of inner silence, of listening to God’s Word; may she spur us to seek God’s will deeply and sincerely, even when this upsets our plans; may she encourage us while we wait for the Lord, sharing our time and energies with those in need. Mother of God, Virgin of expectation, grant that the God-who-comes will find us ready to receive the abundance of his mercy. May Mary Most Holy, “Woman of the Eucharist” and Virgin of Advent, prepare us all to joyfully welcome Christ’s coming and to celebrate worthily his sacramental presence in the mystery of the Eucharist. -St. John Paul II We can add our Rosary to these prayers as part of the Novena! In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!Cathy Nolan©Mary TV 2019