12/20/2013 – Friday of 3rd week of Advent – Isaiah 7:10-14

      King Ahaz and the tribe of Judah were terrified about the possibility of being attacked, so they turned to the Lord in their distress.   The Lord directs Ahaz to ask him for a sign to show that he is with them, but Ahaz responds that he will not put the Lord to the test.  Isaiah tells Ahaz that as a sign, the Virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and that Son will be called Emmanuel.  The name Emmanuel means “God is with us.”  We see this prophecy as being fulfilled in the birth of Christ.

      How often do we try to put the Lord to the test?   How often do we ask for a sign from the Lord, a very specific sign that meets our own needs, our own desires, our own selfish whims.   There may be a very specific sign we are asking of the Lord, but that may not be the sign he is wanting to send us.  The season of Advent has a lot of signs that are sent to us – the Advent wreath, the nativity scene, the hymns we sing, the sacrament of reconciliation, the Word of God that speaks out to us, and gestures of charity and generosity that people uptake.  All of these signs are helping us journey through Advent, helping us prepare for the birth of the Lord into our world at Christmastime.  How are we following the signs, the devotions, and the rituals that the Lord is sending our way?