Daily Gospel Reflection for December 21, 2023

Join us as we reflect, ponder, and pray together inspired by today's Gospel.

Today's Gospel: Luke 1:39-45

In our family, we love the stories behind a name. Our children listen wide-eyed and with smiles on their faces as we tell them why we chose their particular names. Our daughter, Elizabeth, is named for today’s Gospel passage: “Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit.” Luke 1:41

When Elizabeth was in my womb, I imagined a girl who would someday be a woman who was filled with the Holy Spirit, who had that fire of the love of the Lord within her.

“[Elizabeth] cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.’” Luke 1:42

I imagined a girl who would someday be a woman who could name and rejoice in the presence of God in another person.

It occurs to me that we often pray to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We pray for the Spirit’s guidance in our own lives. We pray that others will see God in us. How often do we make this prayer for others, particularly other women?

By God’s grace, St. Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit, and with that grace, she praises the presence of God in another woman, Mary. We often live in a realm of competition and comparison with other women. When we are tempted to that reality this week, let’s ask for St. Elizabeth’s intercession so we can embody the humility, joy, and gratitude that she did.

Ponder:

Do I praise God for the way He fills and animates other women in my life?

Pray:

Come, Holy Spirit, give me the grace to see and praise how You bring beauty and goodness into the world through women in my life.

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It occurs to me that we often pray to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We pray that others will see God in us. How often do we make this prayer for others, particularly other women? #DailyGospel

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