Advent Reflection- Day #15 (Third Sunday of Advent)

​From today’s Old Testament Reading, “Shout for joy!”  “The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst…”  
 
From today’s Psalm, “Cry out with joy and gladness for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.”  “..For great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel!”
 
From today’s second reading, “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!”
 
From today’s gospel reading, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming.”
 
Do you see a theme today?  The first theme is “The Lord is in your midst!” 
 
For centuries people had been waiting for the Messiah to come. So when John appeared saying “Prepare the Way of the Lord”, they wondered if John was the long awaited one. To answer, John uses terminology that the people of his day would understand. He is much lower than “The One” who is coming. In fact, he is not even equivalent to the lowliest servant, who would be the only one lowly enough to loosen the sandal of the master. John’s words actually precede the ‘reversal’ that we see in John’s gospel (John 13:1-10) when Jesus humbled himself completely and not only loosened the sandals of his disciples, but washed their dusty feet as well!
 
The second theme today is, “Rejoice! Shout with Joy!” 
 
We are called to shout the joy of the Lord’s presence to all people.  How can we do that in a world where many don’t want to hear?  Preparing the way of the Lord by serving others gives joy to everyone!
 
The Lord is in our midst!  Share the Joy!
 
Blessings….
Carol Mullins