Zechariah his father, filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:
“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hand of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” LK 1:67-79
Are you filled with the Holy Spirit like John the Baptist’s father? Yes, all baptized people are filled with the Holy Spirit. The fruits of the Holy Spirit are peace, joy, charity, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, patience, modesty, kindness, goodness,
and self-control. These are the results of doing God’s will each day (what a daily battle!). Are you seeing some or all of these things in your life? I need work on them, too. You can’t feel them, but you can see them through your actions.
Yesterday, we learned that John’s name means “God is gracious”. Today, Zechariah recognizes this and prophesies through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that God has fulfilled his promise/covenant to bring mercy to all souls. God has chosen to prepare the world of Jesus’ coming through Zechariah’s son, John the Baptist. John gives us “knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of sins”. Forgiveness of sins brings us hope. Jesus will “shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death”. This is the Good News to share with everyone. If you reflect closely today, many profound things are being fulfilled in Zechariah’s prophesy. Do you believe? If so, your heart will be filled with pity and you will come crawling to God asking for forgiveness and a new start; a different life. Are you ready for that battle? Are you truly sorry? As many times as I have been to confession and struggled with sin, sometimes I wonder too. Repentance means to have the intent in your heart to fight with God’s grace and your spiritual powers of intellect and will to never commit that sin again. It is not likely we will stop the sin right away, but God’s grace, counseling from a priest and others God has put around us, and a heart ready to change is the beginning of the journey to sainthood.
Today’s challenge: Reflect on the fruits of the Spirit you see in your life. Plan to work on one that is not present in your life. Go to confession with a repentant heart. Most importantly keep going back no matter what your battle with sin is. That is what God gave it to us for, especially in this Year of Mercy in the Church. Forgiveness is the road to sainthood. It comes from Christ that is why we are so excited for His birth!
Become a saint!
Christian YOLO
“We are one confession away from becoming a saint.” -Fr. Mike Schmitz
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