Christmas: A time to Give Thanks to God.

Homily for December 22, 2017.


“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Luke 1:46. 

Giving thanks is not just an act, it is an attitude; it demands humility on our part to acknowledge all that we are and all that we have are gifts not rights. Today we encounter two women who were able to give thanks because they acknowledged their nothingness.

It takes a really humble person to be grateful or to return thanks. Even as Christians, most of us find it really difficult to give thanks to God because we always feel that God has not done enough. We forget that before God we are mere dust; we assume we have a right to demand certain things from God; we even issue commands and shout at God when we pray. This is sad!

When we look at the song of Hannah in our responsorial psalm and that of Mary in our Gospel passage, we cannot but see a theology of how God works; a theology Paul summarizes in 1 Corinthians 1, 27: “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”

According to Hannah: “The well-fed hire themselves out for bread, while the hungry batten on spoil. The barren wife bears seven sons, while the mother of many languishes.” And for Mary: “He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.”

In other for us to really give thanks, we must first come to terms with our nothingness. Only then are we able to see that we don’t even deserve a tiny fraction of the things we have, only then are able to see that our cup is half full and not half empty.

Hannah prayed fervently for a child, she prayed so hard one day that Eli mistook her for one who was high on alcohol. When she told him her problem, Eli assured her that God would answer her prayer. In today’s first reading, we read about how Hannah brought the boy Samuel back to Eli saying:

“As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed; and the Lord has granted me my petition which I made to him. Therefore I have lent him to the Lord.”

What a lesson for us! It is one thing to ask, but do I remember to thank God for the ones he has answered in the past? Do I keep my promises to God?
As Christmas approaches and the year itself comes to an end, let us pause for a while today to count our blessings. Enough of complaining. You may not like your life as it is now, perhaps you did not achieve your targets this year, or maybe you don’t have enough money as you hoped for but then, take your mind back five, ten years ago; recall when you didn’t even have anything at all, remember when you used to go around your neighborhood wearing only pants, playing on the sand or running with a bicycle tire. Did you ever know you would be where you are today?

My brothers and sisters, there is so much in our lives that is worth giving thanks for. Let us join our voices with Hannah and Mary to sing praises to God from the depths of our hearts.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, teach me to Give Thanks. Amen.

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Friday of the 3rd Week of Advent. Bible Study: 1 Samuel 1:24-28 and Luke 1:46-56).

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