The 25th of March came and went yesterday, with nothing on my blog, partly because I forgot the date.
It’s never too late to start preparing for Christmas, and the 25th of March is always a timely reminder – to start working on Christmas gift lists for the family. Right?
Well, sort of…
In the Catholic world, the 25th of March is also the time we pause to reflect on Mary’s yes to the Archangel Gabriel, because it marks 9 months before we celebrate His birth. We reflect on the moment Mary accepted the role as Our Savior’s mother – who would become the mother of us all, as Jesus drew His last breaths on the Cross.
She would then continue with her yes, accepting her Son’s lifeless body, as it was removed from the Cross and placed in the tomb.
Last year, I wrote a brief reflection about the Annunciation. This year, the day came and went in my usual style – feeling a day late and a dollar short when I realized it was a special day in the Church.
Fast forward to Mass today – known as Laetare Sunday, or the day the priest wears the color Rose (not pink) as a symbol of subdued joy. Laetare means joy – the anticipation we are feeling for Christ’s Resurrection. Our deacon gave an awesome homily on how Jesus is present in every single one of the Sacraments – He is present to wipe the mud from our eyes in a physical sense, with sacramental oils, but also in a spiritual sense. And, because of that, we should have joy for having the opportunity to meet Jesus throughout various times in our faith journey!
To me, the entire weekend was a great way to reflect on Mary’s yes, and the joy celebrated by the Church yesterday. Without Mary’s yes, Jesus would not have been brought into the world. Our salvation would not have been won, before we were even begun! And, for that, we should be joyous!
Today was also a day to reflect on my own yes to God. Throughout our sacramental journey – some of them, like Communion and Reconciliation – we have repeated opportunities to say yes to God. Other times, our yes is given only once – during Confirmation and vows, whether religious or marital vows. Even as infants, our parents give a yes to God when they open the reception of our souls to the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Baptism.
But, what about the everyday yes?
How am I showing Jesus I am giving Him my yes in my daily life?!
How do I go about giving my yes to God, in my given state of life, as a wife and mother?
Furthermore, what is the manner in which I am saying yes? Am I saying so begrudgingly? Or, am I saying yes in a manner modeled by Mary – with humility and reverence?
On a larger scale, how are each of us, as a spouse, as a parent, as a child, giving our yes to God? How are we letting God know we accept His mission for us in life?
I’m (still) working on saying “yes” in being a spouse and parent – four grown children now, which is a little easier for me. I’ve never been “good with children,” and that’s another topic.
A phrase in your opening sentence, “because I forgot the date,” rang a bell. That happens pretty often for me, with anything involving time: birthdays, anniversaries, holy days of obligation, you name it. My wife, happily, is much more practical.
All this is my way of saying ‘thank you!’ Good thoughts, well-said.
Thank you! I definitely agree – working on saying “yes” is an ongoing process.
The more I spend days with the kids, the more I overlook dates, so hats off to your wife! I used to be all about dates and calendars, and that has slipped in the last year… 😳😂
#1 I love your sweater! Totally understand why it’s your favorite 😊
#2 I love your line at the end about the manner of our “yes” – begrudging should not be the goal! I’ll definitely be thinking about that today…
That was a last minute thought… I almost put in a humorous “low energy isn’t counted”… 😂
Thanks for commenting!
I love that your one time Yeses are also everyday Yeses. We say yes to the Holy Spirit in confirmation, but we say yes to the Holy Spirit’s voice in our lives every day. We say yes to God’s mercy in Reconciliation, but we say yes every day we try to avoid temptation and root that sin out of our lives. We say yes to our spouse on our wedding day, but we say yes to loving them in all the little, beautiful, and even difficult moments of every day…
If we just say yes the one time… do we really mean it? Like you point out, we need to show Jesus our love by saying yes every day I love the quote:
“How am I showing Jesus I am giving Him my yes in my daily life?!”
Thank you! You are so correct – it’s all great and dandy to give the big public yes through the Sacraments, but it’s the smaller, everyday yeses that also make a huge impact on our lives!