Third Thursday in Advent

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.”

God is with us. In the midst of our trials this simple statement can be hard for us to accept as the truth, however, God is always there for us even in our dark nights when all consolation is lost to us. It is in these moments that our faith is tested the most by the temptation of doubt. We ask ourselves why God has allowed evil to befall us, especially when we try to be good people. What we fail to realize is that Jesus Christ is with us in these moments of suffering constantly offering us His Strength to bear us to the end. He does this precisely because he went through the same dark night on the Mt. of Olives. He is truly with us in our agony because He too has suffered evil in spite of leading a good and holy life. He chose to be with us in not only our joys and life, but also our pains and death.

When we are suffering do we suffer with Christ or do we selfishly suffer alone? When we come across someone else who is in pain do we give comfort to them even in the midst of our own trials or do we allow our pain to blind us? What are things we can do to remind ourselves that God is with us even when we are most tempted to think He is not?

O Lord, you are always with us, show us how to be with you and all your children whether we are in joy or suffering.

Amen.