Happy Feast of the Holy Family, and a Happy New Year!
It is hard to believe that it is nearly 2024. Do you remember where you were when the year 2000 began? I do. I was in Haiti, helping a priest friend. We in the US were worried about computers crashing, no electricity, shortage of food, and the like, so I thought I should I spend time in Haiti since they are already lacking many of those things. No worries if you weren’t born yet; you didn’t miss much! All went well.
Enough about the year 2000; let’s return to Advent 2023. During this season, we have heard the word haste mentioned many times: Mary went with all haste, shepherds went in all haste, etc. Perhaps we, you and I, have been going in haste, but there may be a slight difference. The focus of our haste may rather be a frantic attempt to be and do all the things that we needed to accomplish before Christmas day.
Mary went with a sense of urgency to Elizabeth. When was the last time you went in all haste, urgency, to help your spouse, a friend, or a person in need? Sometimes I just want to say “Can’t someone else do it? I’m busy with so many things… I’ll do it later,” or even “I just don’t want to do it!” God wants to fill us with a holy sense of haste and urgency: an urgency to serve God and others.
Do I have that sense of urgency to go and serve another?
We are not asked to serve the whole world. We are asked to do our small part for our families, the Church, and our local communities. When was the last time you went in haste to volunteer to help a family member in need? When was the last time you went with holy urgency and haste to volunteer for a parish function? When was the last time you went joyfully in haste and helped others with a local community project?
Our call as Christians is to serve God and others with holy urgency and joyful haste. I pray that you respond with joyful haste to the many opportunities that present themselves in 2024. May your New Year be BLESSED!
Till next week
Sister Theresita
