Although we know that we shouldn’t make any more excuses and turn down God’s invitation, there may still be fear in our heart.  It is normal in our human nature to feel frightened, anxious, confused and uncertain, when we receive the invitation from God. Even the Blessed Virgin Mary was no exception. In Luke Chapter 1 verses 28 to 29, in the narration of the Annunciation, the angel went to the young Mary and said, ‘“Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.’

Indeed, God’s invitation usually happens when we least expect it, and sometimes it may catch us off guard. But on that day, the angel immediately said to Mary, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God” (Luke 1:30). Although we would not be favoured with God the way like the Virgin Mary, we can be certain that God knows we will also feel perplexed the moment we receive His invitation. Just as Jesus often said to His disciples, “Do not be afraid, it is I!” God will also gently say to us, “Do not be afraid, for you are my beloved child, in whom I am well pleased.” When Jesus was baptized, which was before He began His public ministry, the Father proclaimed, “This is my Son, the Beloved,with whom I am well pleased” (cf Matthew 3:17) So, apparently,

the Father’s joy was not based on the merits of Jesus or us. His joy in us is unconditional! The Virgin Mary would never have imagined that she would be able to bear the burden of being the mother of the Son of God, but she did not doubt that God could make this incredible thing happen, so she peacefully and confidently accepted God’s astounding invitation.

How could Mary, a humble young girl, be qualified to become the Mother of God? From this example, we can be certain that

God does not consider our ability, but our love and fidelity towards Him. The Heavenly Father is pleased when we desire to respond to His call because of our faithful love for Him.

These simple conditions are enough to drive us to take one step further and offer ourselves to the God we love! This is a response out of love, which is much better than being driven by responsibility!

When we are willing to take one step further for God, we must trust that He will not forsake us and leave us to bear the burden alone.

He will surely give us the best support, the Holy Spirit, so that we can accomplish great things beyond our own ability, just as the Blessed Virgin Mary and her cousin Saint Elizabeth did!

Imagine, who would say that they were suitable to become the mother of the Son of God and the precursor of Jesus respectively? Who are we to judge in what way the Heavenly Father can empower us to accomplish His great works? Our souls, let us not be so proud!

Are you willing to set aside your plans in order to accomplish the work of God whom you love, just as Mary did? Are you also willing to set aside your own wishes for the person whom God wants you to love today?

Today’s prayer

Loving Heavenly Father, thank You so much! Though I have been rejecting Your invitations over and over again, You have never given up on me. You have shown me that nothing is impossible with You if I humbly allow You to work wonders in my life, just as Your beloved Son and the humble Virgin Mary did. Please don’t let me ever forget that You are well pleased with me. You take pride in me simply because I am Your child! From this day forward, I am willing to surrender to You. Father, may it be done to me according to Your word.

The Collection of The “5L2F moment” Acts of Love

Fountain of Love and Life intends to collect the acts of love from the Farmers of Hearts all over the world and offer them as spiritual bouquets to our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us on the Cross.

We encourage you to respond to our invitation and share with us the fruits of your “5L2F Moments” acts of love. We will offer all the fruits of the charitable acts collected in this Lent to our Heavenly Father in the solemn mass of Easter, in return for the grace of our Lord Jesus who sacrificed His life to redeem us! Please visit lent.fll.cc/action and share with us your “5L2F Moments” acts of love.

On every Sunday during this Lent, we will post on our social media selected sharing from those who consented to have them published, so that these testimonies of how God touches us will continue to inspire and encourage others and multiply the impact of these “Five-Loaves-And-Two-Fishes Moments”. Thanks again for your sharing! God bless!

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