This week’s readings are a literal cornucopia of jewels waiting to bedeck our souls. Each one contains many blessings for all of us. In our first reading from Samuel, we witness the calling of Samuel to the Lord. The voice of the Lord is so powerful in his life, that this young prophet hears the Lords voice clear and loud.
In our lives the calling of God may not be so audible to us, but if we take time to be still and quiet we will hear him whisper in our soul. The problem is our lives are filled with such noise and distractions and e-mails and texts, that it is actually uncomfortable and unfamiliar for us to be quiet. Yet this is what our Lord calls us to. He tells the Israelites to “listen” to His words and voice. Jesus tells us that we will know His voice. The way we do that is through listening. It takes practice, it is not easy. Tell God exactly what young Samuel said, “speak Lord for your servant is listening”.
In our second reading St. Paul reminds us that our very bodies are the Temples of the Holy Spirit and that we should use our bodies for good things and as a blessing to God. St. Teresa of Avila explained in her famous words that “God has no hands on earth but yours, no feet but yours, no body on earth but yours”. We are called to use everything we have for God, this includes our bodies.
In our Gospel we have an incredible scene as John the Baptist sees Jesus coming. Notice he does not say: ”Behold the Lion of Judah” or “Behold the King of kings” or even “Behold my cousin Jesus”. No instead he says words that echo through all eternity “Behold the Lamb of God”. Remember the Passover story? A lamb raised by man was killed, its blood spread and its flesh eaten. If all three of these things were done, then the angel of death would “Passover” them and they would be saved. John knew that it would take the “Lamb of God” whose blood would be shed, whose flesh would be eaten and who would conquer death once and for all. Something to seriously think about as you listen for His voice, as you do His work in your life, and as you commune with our Lord. May God richly bless you always.