Day Nine of Lent – Unwelcomed by the World

REFLECTION AND PRAYER
Day Nine of Lent
Unwelcomed by the World

While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Luke 2:6-7

One of the first great sorrows to fill the heart of our Blessed Mother came at the moment of Jesus’ birth. It’s hard to fathom that at the moment the Mother of God was about to give birth to her Son, the Savior of the World, the only place they were welcomed was a place where animals dwelt. There was no room for Him in the inn or in any other home. It must have been quite an experience for her. She was aware of the amazing fact that her Son was the promised Messiah. She knew that she had conceived Him miraculously, by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit. But now that it was time to be born, He was rejected for the first time. His first bed was a manger, the feeding trough for animals.

Rejection was a part of the lives of Mary and Jesus. It began with His birth and ended on the Cross. Our Blessed Mother was there throughout. But the rejection they encountered in life never robbed them of their peace and joy. One thing that clearly overshadowed the rejection of the world was the shared love of this mother and Son. The bond that they shared served as their mutual daily spiritual food. Their shared love enabled them to overcome the pain of earthly rejection so as to live the will of the Father to perfection.

So often in life we also experience rejection, misunderstanding and a lack of welcome by the world. When this happens, there is a great temptation to get angry and even despair. The key to enduring rejection is to be certain of the love and full embrace of the Mother of God and Jesus her Son in your life. They are always there with arms open wide. They will never leave you. They will never reject you.

This gift of their loving embrace must also be offered by you to others. You are called to be the Mother of Jesus and you are called to be Jesus Himself to others. Your care and concern for others must be motivated by the love you receive from this Holy Family.

Reflect, today, upon two things. First, know that you are always welcomed by the Mother of God and by Jesus her Son. You always belong to this family. Reflect, also, upon your duty to bring their family love to others. This is especially the case for those in need and those whom God has entrusted to your care. Do not waver in being welcoming in every way, for in the act of welcoming another, you will find that you are welcoming Christ Himself.

PRAYER

Dearest Mother, I thank you for welcoming me always as your child. May your heart be my home as I rest close to your Son. May I never be deterred by the rejection I encounter in this life. Instead, may I always turn to your loving embrace, knowing that you welcome me as you welcomed your Son into this world.

Help me, dear Mother, to always provide care to those who encounter rejection in this world. May I be an instrument of your welcoming heart to all who are in need.

Precious Lord, You had no place to lay Your head except a manger. Yet the presence of Your mother was all the welcome You needed. Help me to open my own arms to You as You show Yourself in others. Help me to seek out those rejected and in need. May I be that manger for them and a refuge of Your own divine love.

40 Days Journey with Our Lord
Day Nine: Penance

Fridays in Lent should be days of penance. Why? What is penance? What’s the value of penance? First of all, Fridays are days of penance because our Lord died on the Cross on a Friday. We should see every Friday as a commemoration of that saving sacrifice. By doing penance on Fridays, we willingly participate in the penance Jesus did through His passion and death. So every Friday is a day on which we should more fully share in Jesus’ Cross, just as every Sunday should be celebrated with great solemnity as we rejoice in His Resurrection.

Penance can be mysterious. Why would we deny ourselves pleasures? Why wouldn’t God want us to enjoy everything this life has to offer every day of our lives? Jesus already destroyed sin and death, so one might conclude that we should only focus on the joy of the Resurrection, always!

The problem with this thinking is that Jesus Himself said numerous times that if we are to rise with Him, we must die with Him. We will save our lives only by losing our lives for Christ’s sake. We must take up our cross and follow Jesus.

Penance is necessary in this life because our human nature remains in a state of Original Sin. As a result, our desires, appetites, passions, and emotions are not easily aligned with the will of God. These good human qualities are subject to confusion, indulgence, and sin. Penance is a way of helping every part of our humanity to enter into submission to God’s will by overcoming those inordinate tendencies that lead us to sin. Penance helps those disorders within us to die so that every part of our humanity may rise with Christ, conform to His humanity, and be set free from the sins and temptations that keep us bound.

On a personal level, Jesus did not need to enter into the penitential state of the desert to curb His appetites, desires, and passions. His soul was already perfect in every way, and He always felt, desired, and chose only the eternal goods. Jesus’ choice to embrace the penitential state of the desert was not for Him; it was for us. By doing penance in the desert, by denying his appetites and human desires, He endowed penitential acts with power. For that reason, when we choose to imitate Jesus’ penance in the desert and choose to embrace His Cross as our own, we receive that power and grace that are now hidden within penitential acts, waiting to be discovered and received.

Ponder your attitude and approach to penance. Though the Church only prescribes abstinence from meat today, our penance should go much further if we are serious about becoming more like Christ. Think about ways in which you can live more sacrificially today. Make concrete choices to do so. As you do, offer them to the Father in Heaven, in union with the penitential life of Jesus in the desert, and anticipate the blessings of grace you will discover in this holy act.

PRAYER

My penitential Lord, by doing penance within Your human nature, You endowed penitential acts with Your grace. Please fill my heart with a burning desire for that grace, as well as with a desire for how Your grace is received. Give me a desire to live a penitential life. Help me to find You, dwelling within those acts of love, to be strengthened to overcome the disorders and temptations I endure every day.

Mother Mary, pray for us. Jesus, I trust in You.

Source: mycatholiclife