The WORD in ADVENT - Living the Reign here and now #18

Wait, Bear fruit and Praise the Lord

Wednesday, December  19, 2018

Judges 13:2-7,24-25; Luke 1: 5-25

Living the Reign here and now involves an enduring wait, timely action and constant acknowledgement of the Lord. This is a special type of fruitfulness that the Lord expects of us. We have two episodes of such miraculous fruitfulness narrated today... both bring out the same salient characters that we just mentioned: to wait, to bear fruit and to praise the Lord. 

When the Lord is with us, and we acknowledge and appreciate that presence and found our lives on that presence, we become fruitful in a miraculous way. From where we do not expect and from circumstances that are most unlikely we will  see shoots of new life - that is Lord's doing. The parents of Samson and John are given as models of the people of the Reign - just like them, we might feel we are incapable of doing such a great task of bringing forth the Reign but we wait on the Lord, wait till the appointed time when we shall bear the right fruit expected of us and that would fill our hearts and our minds with praises to the Lord.

There are two verses that these events remind us so strongly of. First, from John: Apart from me you can do nothing (Jn 15:5). And the other, a corollary from Paul: I can do everything through him who strengthens me (Phil 4:13). How true! With my Lord around, it is not difficult at all, to be fruitful. 

All that we need to do is, even during the darkest hours wait on the Lord, be filled with the graces of the Lord, and when we are expected, bear fruit. Bearing fruit would be the greatest of all praises, if we constantly acknowledge the presence and guidance of the Lord in our lives. This is already living the Reign here and now!