"I am all yours, and all that I have is yours, O most loving Jesus, through Mary, your most holy Mother"
(True Devotion, 233).
DAY 7 of 33: Contemplating the Hail Mary.
Action: Pray the entire Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary today contemplating God becoming man. The video teaching of this week is the a visual meditation and reading of one of my most favorite meditations on the hidden life of the Holy Family, it is taken from a reflection written by Caryll Houselander entitled Wood of the Cradle, Wood of the Cross. You can find the meditation in print here.
This final day of the 1st Week of our 33 Journey to Consecration, we will ponder on the hidden life of the Holy Family.
"The Gospels offer very sparse information about the years the
Holy Family spent in Nazareth. St
Matthew tells of the decision taken by Joseph, after the return from Egypt, to make
Nazareth the Holy Family's permanent home (cf. Mt 2:22-23), but then gives no
further information except that Joseph was a carpenter (Mt 13:55). For
his part, St Luke twice mentions the Holy Family's return to Nazareth (cf. Lk 2:39, 51) and gives two
brief references to the years of Jesus' childhood, before and after the episode of the
pilgrimage to Jerusalem: "The child
grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favour of God was upon him"
(Lk 2:40), and "Jesus
increased in wisdom, age and grace before God and men" (Lk 2:52).
Mary pondered these events in her heart."
(John Paul II)
“If we look carefully into this life that was apparently so unremarkable, we shall find that it was greater and more adventurous, more full of exciting events, than we are accustomed to assume in our hasty perusal of the Gospel.”
Pope Paul VI
When we look at the life of the Holy Family, we can reflect on its mysteries and incorporate them into our lives, but recognizing:
Mary is our model.
She has gone before us as the first Christian disciple, but every action of love given to Mary (which she received in its fullness of grace) is also meant for us and given to us as well (to the extent of our capacity -- based on our humility, desire, faith and love).
For, we, too, are called to be filled with grace and living tabernacles of God’s presence --
bearing Christ within our bodies so to give birth to Him to the world.
We are called to ponder and treasure His Words,
to live in intimacy and love with Him each day,
to nurture His life within our families,
to bear witness to His miracles and to the Truth of His Words,
to stand with Him unto the Cross bearing our sufferings,
to be one with the Apostles and pray for the Holy Spirit’s outpouring upon the Church,
to be united with him at death,
and taken up body and soul into glory on the last day.
Mary is our model.
She has gone before us as the first Christian disciple, but every action of love given to Mary (which she received in its fullness of grace) is also meant for us and given to us as well (to the extent of our capacity -- based on our humility, desire, faith and love).
For, we, too, are called to be filled with grace and living tabernacles of God’s presence --
bearing Christ within our bodies so to give birth to Him to the world.
We are called to ponder and treasure His Words,
to live in intimacy and love with Him each day,
to nurture His life within our families,
to bear witness to His miracles and to the Truth of His Words,
to stand with Him unto the Cross bearing our sufferings,
to be one with the Apostles and pray for the Holy Spirit’s outpouring upon the Church,
to be united with him at death,
and taken up body and soul into glory on the last day.
Without Mary, we would not have
Jesus.
She is an indispensable part of God's plan.
God could have given Jesus to us a different way, but He didn't.
He willed for Jesus to come to us through her.
Thus, each time we say a "Hail Mary" we are simply echoing the words of the Archangel Gabriel and of Elizabeth who was filled with the Holy Spirit. Each time we say it, we are recalling the greatest event of all history, the moment that God became man in the Incarnation, through the "yes" of a virgin. Each time we pray the Hail Mary we are invited to remember Mary's continual "yes" to God, to His Son and to the Holy Spirit -- even unto the Cross. Each time we pray this prayer from heaven, we, too, are called to consider that our "yes" to the Holy Spirit's power in our lives can bear Christ into the world.
She is an indispensable part of God's plan.
God could have given Jesus to us a different way, but He didn't.
He willed for Jesus to come to us through her.
Thus, each time we say a "Hail Mary" we are simply echoing the words of the Archangel Gabriel and of Elizabeth who was filled with the Holy Spirit. Each time we say it, we are recalling the greatest event of all history, the moment that God became man in the Incarnation, through the "yes" of a virgin. Each time we pray the Hail Mary we are invited to remember Mary's continual "yes" to God, to His Son and to the Holy Spirit -- even unto the Cross. Each time we pray this prayer from heaven, we, too, are called to consider that our "yes" to the Holy Spirit's power in our lives can bear Christ into the world.
Each
day, we have multiple opportunities to either say “yes” or “no” to God.
If we
say "yes" repeatedly to God's calls, our heart truly does expand; and
thus, God is able to use us, for we are open to his inspirations and we are
able to do more and more with, in and through Him.
Likewise,
each time we say “no” our heart becomes a little harder, which makes it harder
to hear God's voice; until eventually, if we keep saying “no” our heart becomes
so hard that it is increasingly difficult to say “yes” and go beyond ourselves
– and thus, we hinder the amazing experience of allowing God "to live and
move and have His Being in us!"
Yet, God,
in His Most Gracious Mercy, gives us an infinite number of times to begin
again, for our human frailty often fails us!
So, it
is not about perfectly responding, but never giving up in responding.
If we
continue to strive, He continually pours out His Grace and Life to help us!
During
this time of such great darkness and deceit, when Satan is inviting violence
and despair, I know God is calling ALL WHO WILL LISTEN TO HIM, to
live the answers He has sent to us!!!!
Can you
imagine how transformed our world would be if a countless multitude of little
souls answer His Call to pray much and offer sacrifices to save others??
For He is able to:
"do infinitely more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us" Ephesians 3: 20.
We are able to listen and respond to God and live this transformed life the more we pray the rosary:
The Rosary mystically transports us to Mary's side as she is busy watching over the human growth of Christ in the home of Nazareth. This enables her to train us and to mold us with the same care, until Christ is “fully formed” in us (cf. Gal 4:19,15 Rosarium Virginis Mariae)
With all this in mind, then, let us pray for the grace to be committed to pray the rosary and make it an integral part of our lives, praying:
O Jesus, the Rosary is a prayer to draw closer to You by meditating on Your Life and Your Holy Word. May we seek to enter into the mysteries of this beautiful prayer, asking Our Blessed Mother to help us love Jesus as she does. We ask this in Your Most Holy Name. Amen.
For a further meditation on St. Joseph and some of the most beautiful and profound mysteries regarding and revealed about him, see here:
https://enteringintothemystery.blogspot.com/2018/10/10-of-most-beautiful-and-profound.html
Action:
1. Read through the accompanying pictures and the extraordinary wisdom of St. Louis below if possible.
2. Continue to choose to enter more deeply into the daily prayer program (below) at least in this way:
Ponder and pray the Hail Mary today and the accompanying Scripture texts as you meditate and pray one decade of the Rosary - the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary - while praying for the grace to listen, to hear and respond to God as Mary does.
Praying
also for the grace to surrender whatever is keeping me from responding
fully - in and through and with Mary’s love and help.
Daily Prayer Program for these 33 Days:
It
is important to make a commitment to strive to pray more deeply, more
intensely and with more of your heart during these days of preparation.
Here are some guidelines and suggestions for how to live these days.
Pray about how you can grow in each of these areas listed below and
while living out this prayer program it is especially important to
Trust in the Truth and Supernatural Reality of God’s Presence within each of them
1. Sacraments
• LIVE Grace and Renew our Baptism - renounce sin and Satan
• Mass and the Eucharist the Center of our lives
• Confession frequently
2. Scripture - Pray and Internalize it daily
• To Jelena: “I’m going to reveal a spiritual secret to you:
if you want to be stronger than evil, make yourself a plan of personal
prayer. Take a certain time in the morning, read a text from Holy
Scripture, anchor the Divine word in your heart, and strive to live it
during the day, particularly during the moment of trials. In this way,
you will be stronger than evil.” (Our Lady of Medjugorje, April 19,
1984)
• Rosary – With and in Mary, contemplating Scripture and the mysteries of God
3. Fill mind with wisdom of Mary and the Saints
• God is sending Mary to earth for she is the Crusher of Satan. Listen to her words.
• St. John Paul II – example of life given over – Totus Tuus
• St. Maximilian Kolbe – Militia Immaculata every soul consecrated to Mary will save the world
• St. Louis de Montfort – Mary will form the greatest saints
who ever lived – easiest shortest most sure way to sanctity
• St. Mother Teresa and many more
PART 2: Readings and Prayers for St. Louis-Marie de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary
12 Days of Preparation renouncing the spirit of the world
- Learn about Mary's place in God's plan (words of St. Louis from True Devotion of Mary)
- Pray over Scripture
- Pray with the Heart
- Examine our conscience
PART 3: A taste of Fr. Gaitley's 33 Days to Morning Glory if you have time:
“Come, Holy Spirit, living in Mary. Help me to praise you for such a quick, easy, and secure path to holiness."
CLICK HERE for podcast of Day 7 for Podcast
CLICK HERE for podcast of Day 7 for Podcast
© Janet Moore 2019. All Rights Reserved.
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