Fourth Sunday of Advent
Fourth Sunday of Advent
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves” (Mt 11:28-29). The Lord invites us to find peace and joy in Him this Sabbath as we set aside time to worship and rest.
PREPARE
“Remember the sabbath day—keep it holy. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God.”
Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word “Shabbat”, which literally means “to stop.” Keeping holy the Sabbath is not just a commandment, but an invitation. An invitation from the Lord to stop our work, stop our worrying, stop our striving. An opportunity to fid rest and to be renewed. A chance to refocus on the things that truly matter - the Lord, family, community. In our culture, Sunday has become a day to “catch up” on everything that didn’t get done during the week, and any time left over is often seen as an opportunity just to “get ahead” for next week. But we Christians have a chance now to remember what it means to keep the Sabbath. During this pandemic the Lord is calling us back to Himself, offering us a chance to reclaim the gift of the Sabbath, reminding us again what it means to “keep it holy.”
A basic principle for observing the Sabbath is only to do things that can be considered “rest” or “worship”. Here are a few ideas to consider to begin more to enter into the Sabbath. Maybe pick just one thing to focus on this Sunday, then next Sunday keep that practice in addition to a second one. And then the next Sunday add a third, to slowly over time begin to enter into this great gift of the Sabbath more and more.
Keep the Lord at the center - read the Mass readings ahead of time, participate in Mass, make more time for prayer, spend some extra time in silence focusing on the Lord
Try not to work - resist the urge to check your email, or catch up on a few things, and leave it for Monday
Plan ahead - take care of what needs to be done before Sunday, so plan the rest of your week to make sure you get the laundry done, have gone grocery shopping, etc.so you don’t have to do any of it on Sunday
Spend the day “screen free” - try to stay off social media, internet news, and your phone as much as possible. If you can’t make it the whole day try to go for at least a few hours
Be intentional with others - if you live with others (ie. family, roommates), is there something you can do together like play a game or go on a hike? If you live alone, can you reach out to a good friend and catch up?
Leisure, not entertainment - try to do things that are life giving; binge-watching a favorite show or playing video games for hours rarely leaves anyone with a new zeal for life. Read a good book, go on a long walk, develop a hobby.
PARTICIPATE
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). Each Sunday we are called to “keep holy the Sabbath” and although that may look different for right now we will still come together as a St. Ann community through the gift of technology.
MASS READINGS
GIVING
Take a few minutes to give to St. Ann Parish. Please give generously and sacrificially as an act of faith during these difficult times. You can give online:
After giving, offer ways to be generous of your whole self during this trying time for our world.
“Each must do as already determined without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work.”
PROCESS
“Then the angel said to her, do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” (Lk 1: 30)
As we get closer to Christmas, you might find yourself reflecting on how fast this year has gone by. This year has pressed us to experience a dramatic shift from our familiar way of life. For many of us, letting go of the old familiar way we used to live has been particularly difficult as we adjusted to a re-routing of our lives. For this reason especially, you might be yearning to make Christmas and family traditions as normal as possible. The exterior preparation for the season might look the same as before such as a beautiful tree, shiny ornaments and twinkling lights. All of which have been prominently displayed in stores for a few months now.
Although surrounded by delightful decorations everywhere we look, it might not be a big surprise that many of us are feeling fatigued, melancholy and perhaps have a nagging feeling of how uncertain the future seems. It might be hard to muster up some Christmas cheer! Maybe you have a deep longing in your heart for some good news to help you feel reassured and safe. This sense of longing should not surprise us as one of the strongest human desires is for peace.
Whatever you might say about the times in which we live today, you would likely not say they are filled with peace. We need peace for our hectic and troubled hearts. In Luke’s gospel, we see a glimpse into Mary’s life as she also faced a dramatic shift from her reality, potentially disrupting her peace. In fact, her initial reaction was that “she was greatly troubled” (Luke 1:29). Although we get a sense of the initial fear and confusion she might have felt, we also see the example of God wanting Mary to be at peace. Before the angel announces a change of plan for her life, he reassures her to “not be afraid” because she has “found favor with God” (Luke 1:30). This is a powerful reminder that peace is not absence of conflict or problems, but rather peace is an absence of fear. On the first Christmas night, the angels announced “peace among those with whom God is pleased” (Lk 2:14). How is it possible today to experience an absolute peace that erases fear from our hearts?
Christ our Lord, the Prince of Peace, has come into this world so that we might have peace. He was born, suffered, and died for us so that we might have the peace of being reconciled to God, and the grace to truly reconcile with one another. The peace he offers us is not the peace of the world, which seeks only to avoid conflict, but is a deeper peace, rooted in authentic reconciliation and forgiveness, a peace which anchors our hearts in his love and which casts out all fear, no matter what storms may rage around us. And so as we prepare for Christmas, prepare your heart to receive Him and allow yourself to let go of anything that keeps peace away. “Be anxious about nothing. But in all things, with prayer and supplication, with acts of thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God. And so shall the peace of God, which exceeds all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).
PRACTICE
Christmas is just a few days away. Even though this year has held extraordinary challenges, the Prince of Peace wants to be born anew in our hearts and lives. But often there are things we need to surrender to make room for Him. Our practice this week is to take some time to reflect on what we need to let go of so that we are better able to receive our newborn King, for example:
Is there any unforgiveness you need to surrender?
Is there any fear or anxiety about a situation that you need to surrender?
Is there any anger you need to surrender?
Is there a situation you are impatient about that you need to surrender?
Is there something in your life that you are trying to control that you need to surrender?
Whatever it is that you need to let go of, take some time to surrender it to the Lord in prayer. Your prayer can be as simple as, “Jesus, you are the King of Kings and the Prince of Peace, I give to you ________. Help me to let go of this so that I might be more filled with your love, joy, and peace as I celebrate your birth at Christmas. I am your servant, be it done unto me according to Your will.”
You might also find encouragement in reflecting on the words of St. Teresa of Avila, known as her “Bookmark”:
Let nothing disturb you, Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing; God only is changeless.
Patience gains all things. Who has God wants nothing.
God alone suffices.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Think about how you can continue to reflect on God’s word to you this week, and how you can invite others into the conversation. You can use the questions below for personal reflection, or to grow with others. Be creative! You could consider gathering with friends and family, or starting a group text, or a group FaceTime, to discuss the questions below.
What stands out to you from the readings this week? What might God be speaking to you at this time?
Were you able to do something last week to spread joy to someone else? How did it go?
In this Fourth Sunday of Advent we focus on peace. What are words you would use to describe what it is like when you feel at peace?
Is there a difference between what the world considers to be “peace” and what a Christian considers to be “peace”? If so, what is different? If not, what is the same?
Do you consider yourself to be an anxious person? Are there things that you feel particularly anxious about right now?
We hear in today’s Gospel that Mary was “greatly troubled” at the greeting of the angel Gabriel. And, yet, even in the uncertainty and questions she is able to respond, “may it be done to me according to your word.” What lesson is there for us in her example?
With Christmas being this week is there anything you need to let go of to be more filled with His peace at the celebration of His birth?
KIDS
ACTIVITY
Draw a picture of what you think an angel looks like. We don’t know what angels look like so it’s fun to use our imagination to think about what they could look like!
CONNECTION
On this fourth Sunday of Advent we read the story of the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary about the birth of Jesus. We see Mary’s example of faith and obedience to God. It is a great example to us of how to be obedient even when we are scared or don’t know what’s going to happen. Mary trusted and said yes so we should follow her example in our own lives.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What would you say/do if an angel told you that you would be the Mother/Father of Jesus?
Do you think it was easy or hard for Mary to say yes to God? Why?
What do you think the life of Mary was like?
Mary says yes to being the mother of Jesus. What are some ways you can say yes to being a follower of Jesus?