Is it enough? Am I enough?

At one point or another in our lives, we might become fearful that we will come up short. We’ll need a few more dollars to pay that heating bill, more food to satisfy all the growing bodies, and one last squirt of toothpaste to stretch a household budget. Still, maybe our greater fear is coming up short in our interior lives. It happens to the best of us; our lives get busy, our attentions shift, we get tired, and we string together several days without really connecting with God. I get it; occasionally, we can rally and rise to the challenge, but we can wrestle with feelings of defeat when the days without quiet connection with our Lord stack one after another.

Isaiah appreciates human limitations like these when he depicts a lifeless stump when he foreshadows the coming of Christ as a new king. Inspired by this, his critical prophecy, though it might seem like an exercise in folly, stay true to things hoped for when it seems pointless. Push through, talk to Jesus in prayer, and make an extra effort to greet everyone, even when it’s not appreciated with good cheer. Grab the opportunity to lend a hand when it might seem your contribution is only a drop in the bucket to address a much larger need. Remember, when we remain connected to the Holy Spirit dwelling within us and cooperate with the Spirit’s promptings, our God will always bring light into the darkness. And like the new and living shoot that sprung from a dead stump in today’s first reading, our Creator will bring forth life where it seems impossible. God’s love is active. He is dynamically fulfilling all His promises made to us, His much-loved daughters and sons, through the gift of Christ through our Baptisms.

Like deepening your relationship with Christ through our Parish Advent Weekly reflections, God’s Promises & You, or by taking advantage of our gift to you, free access to the intrinsically Catholic Hallow app. Maybe bring a friend to Dr. Hale’s talk on depression on December 7 or The Well Women’s Advent Retreat on December 10. Are you interested in serving others? There are opportunities to bring joy to those living on the margins by participating in our Giving Tree or Boxes for Baltimore programs. Then there is the Family Holy Hour Pizza, Pajamas, & Praise on December 17, the Blue Christmas Prayer Service on December 19, and a Ladies’ special Advent Holy Hour on December 21.

Visit https://olphparish.org/advent/ for event times and additional information.

Lastly, I hope you’ll join us this week for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, a holy day of obligation. Our Masses will be celebrated Wednesday, December 7, at 5 pm and Thursday, December 8, at 8:15 am and 7 pm. Please also mark your calendars for taking advantage of a great opportunity on Wednesday, December 14, at 7 pm with our Parish Penance Service, with eight priests confirmed to help us that evening to hear confessions.