Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me comprehend, and apprehend, the fullness of God’s grace …

Colossian 1:1-14 & Luke 1:26-56

 
September 8th marks the celebration of the birth of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Although it is not as large a celebration as the nativity of her son, it is similarly significant to humanity.  As a young person from a good and practising Jewish family Mary was ‘found to be’ a faithful young woman ‘full of grace’. Certainly Mary knew scripture by heart – the Magnificat she recited when visiting Elisabeth is basically a recitation of Psalm 146. And I can picture Mary being so free from the cares and worries of this life, described later by her Son as the ‘weeds’ of our life journeys, that her days could have truly been full of the virtues of Faith, Hope and Love, as well as the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control.  Mary comprehended the grace of God, and had brought it so entirely into herself - had apprehended God’s Grace - that the Holy Spirit was able to easily fertilize the seeds of the Word within her to be able to bring about the birth of Jesus.  And this Jesus, the Son of Humankind who was so purely the Son of God, was the one (human) being that could redeem the world –by his Nativity, ministry, passion, death and resurrection.  Like Mary, each human being has seeds of the Word of God within our beings – we are made in the image and likeness of God. Am I too full of myself or the temporal things of life to let these seeds grow? Am I too full of other things to comprehend God’s grace, let alone to apprehend – take in –God’s grace in my life, to be ‘’full of Grace’ like Jesus’ mother, Mary?  Will I pause today to consider the Grace of God at work, beyond, above, around, beyond, and within me? Holy Spirit of Jesus, help me comprehend, and apprehend, the fullness of God’s grace.
 
My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour.  (Psalm 146:1-2 & Luke 1:46-47)
 
For it is by God’s grace that you have been saved through faith.  It is not the result of your own efforts, but God’s gift so no one can boast about it.
St. Paul in his letter to the Ephesians 2: 8-9
 
Soli ad gloriam Dei
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