Advent Daily Devotional: Let Him Love You: 21st Dec

LET HIM LOVE YOU

Reading 1, Zephaniah 3:14-18

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21

Gospel, Luke 1:39-45

Reading 1, Zephaniah 3:14-18

Shout for joy, daughter of Zion, Israel, shout aloud! Rejoice, exult with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem! Yahweh has repealed your sentence; he has turned your enemy away. Yahweh is king among you, Israel, you have nothing more to fear. When that Day comes, the message for Jerusalem will be: Zion, have no fear, do not let your hands fall limp. Yahweh your God is there with you, the warrior-Saviour.

He will rejoice over you with happy song, he will renew you by his love, he will dance with shouts of joy for you, as on a day of festival. I have taken away your misfortune, no longer need you bear the disgrace of it.

Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21

Give thanks to Yahweh on the lyre, play for him on the ten-stringed lyre. 

Sing to him a new song, make sweet music for your cry of victory. but Yahweh's own plan stands firm for ever, his heart's counsel from age to age. 

How blessed the nation whose God is Yahweh, the people he has chosen as his heritage. We are waiting for Yahweh; he is our help and our shield, for in him our heart rejoices, in his holy name we trust.

Gospel, Luke 1:39-45

Mary set out at that time and went as quickly as she could into the hill country to a town in Judah. She went into Zechariah's house and greeted Elizabeth. Now it happened that as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, 'Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? Look, the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by

the Lord would be fulfilled.'

Writer's Reflection:

It’s the 21 st December! How on earth did it come around so quickly? If you’re anything like me, the last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of Christmas parties, last minute shopping, card writing and some crafty Christmas fun! This season should rightly be characterised by joy -  but so often the joy is replaced by a stress based striving to complete different to do lists. During my own Christmas season, after an intense weekend of parties and a rather great EP launch (shameless plug for @beaconmusic) I’m left trying to delve deep into the true meaning of Advent and the true meaning of the feast to come. At the heart of this season is the person of Jesus who fulfilled so many promises, and whose entry into this world forever changed history.

Today’s readings are the perfect reminder for me that the coming of Jesus is a cause for great rejoicing - not just because Jesus came to Earth 2000 years ago as a baby, or that He will come again - but that He desires to come and encounter us right now. As Zephaniah says in today's first reading; ‘Yahweh your God is there with you’. Truly, we are called to rejoice because our God seeks to come to us and be with us in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. Whether we are weary, burdened, just plodding along or overjoyed - the Lord is with us. He wants to meet us where we are at. He wants to walk with us. And speaking directly to each and every one of us - He wants you to let him love you.

For me this first reading is a reminder that our Lord is a God of kindness and compassion. He is a God who wants to delight in every single one of us. For so long I’ve struggled with the image of the Lord rejoicing over me with happy song and shouts of joy as we are told of today, but this Advent I feel like He’s been leading me to understand this passage more and more. I’ve discovered that my own understanding or personal realisation of this passage does not change the fact that the Lord does rejoice over me. It is an invitation to let him pour His love onto me and to let me embrace the way that He delights in each of us. This 2018, a few of my friends have had babies, and watching them become mums and dads has helped me to understand just how the Lord looks at us. That look of unconditional love is the way that God gazes upon us. 

This Advent season, let us bring our hearts and minds to recognise the joy that we should have at the knowledge that God is present, and marvel at the miracle of how He chose to enter our world - out of His incomprehensible love for us. As John the Baptist leapt in his mother's womb at the moment Jesus was present, so too let us be filled with the Holy Spirit to rejoice at the Lord's coming. He is our Saviour and there is no one but Him that we need. We are so truly loved by the Creator of this world - and what a joy that is!

We are waiting for Yahweh; He is our help and our shield, for in Him our heart rejoices, in His holy name we trust.

Prayer Reflection

In the final days of Advent, how can you make time to sit and soak in God’s love for you? How can you make room in your life to receive the love that the Lord has for you?

Writer's Bio: Francesca Carbone

Hi! My name is Fran! I'm 23 and currently working as part of a school chaplaincy team in Brighton! You're most likely to find me in a cosy coffee shop with either a good book or an equally good pal. Fresh flowers, live music, sea side views and dinner parties make my heart ridiculously happy.  

For me, following Jesus is the biggest adventure I've ever been on; it's taken me to places I never thought I'd go, led me to people I am so blessed to call friends and pulled me out of my comfort zone more times than I can keep count of.