December 1, 2015
LK 10:21-24
For this day’s prayer reflection (the first week of Advent), we reflect on a reading from Isaiah 11: 1-10. This reading speaks about Jesus as the “sprout from the stump of Jesse.” From this sprout shall blossom the many gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, piety, and awe of The Lord. We then read of the boundless and wonderful peace that comes from these gifts and with knowledge of the Lord and what is made possible through Him, “the wolf shall be the guest of the lamb.” This line resonates with me for two reasons. Firstly, this shows to me the stretches of the power of the Lord, that two incompatible beings may live and grow under the understanding and gifts of the sprout of Jesse. Secondly, this expresses to me the perpetual mercy of Christ, the Lamb. In this image, Christ is the Lamb, therefore, we, the sinners are the wolves. We, although we falter and pale in the greatness of the Lamb, we are still invited to be guests of and be in communion with Him.