| Tuesday, December 09, 2003 Meditation Isaiah 40:1-11 About five hundred years before Jesus came, a prophet wrote about the expected Messiah. His words tell of a time when all Israel’s sins will be forgiven and when the times of hardship and pain will be over for Jerusalem. It is a message of coming comfort and peace. It’s a message of restoration and hope.
John the Baptist selected this very passage from Isaiah to describe his own vocation in life. Just as a king in ancient times had forerunners sent ahead of him to prepare the way, John was the “forerunner” of Jesus: He fillled in the valleys, smoothed out the rough roads, and turned the eyes of the Israelites toward heaven. John moved his hearers to repent for their sins and to prepare themselves to receive the One who was greater than he.
Jesus did come. After he rose from the dead, he promised that he would come again, this time as a King. In the meantime, we have seen the Holy Spirit’s work again and again. In every age, the Spirit has raised up servants who call out to us and tell us to “prepare the way” for Jesus’ Second Coming.
Some of these servants have called us to deepen our prayer life. Others have called us to a greater reverence for the Eucharist. Still others have called us to repent and turn away from sin. Who among us hasn’t been touched by the lives of these holy people? Through these “forerunners,” the Holy Spirit wants to guide us and protect us. He wants to help us see our faults and encourage us when we are despairing. When we are suffering, he wants to hold our hand and support us. When we are wandering, he wants to keep us on the right track.
More than anything else, the Holy Spirit wants to help us keep our hopes high. He wants us to know how bright and how wonderful heaven is going to be. He wants us to dream about a world without poverty, without war, without hatred, and without sin. This is why he wants us to pray, “Come, Lord Jesus.” Today, why not tell Jesus that you are grateful for sending us prophetic voices, saints who cry out, “Prepare the way for the Lord”?
“Holy Spirit, move in me. Straighten out my rough roads so that I may be smooth and perfect when Jesus comes again.” |
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