Saturday of the First Week of Advent
Every breath you take is a gift from God.
These were the first words spoken to me by a priest after I confessed my sins while receiving the sacrament of reconciliation a couple of years ago. This statement has stayed with me not only because of its truth, but because of its daily implications. It calls me to constant appreciation and thanksgiving for every moment of my life, because God continues to will my existence by his love. In practice, keeping my mind continually centered on God is difficult, but it is through building this habit of thanksgiving that I grow closer to God and align myself more fully with his will.
In today’s first reading from the Book of Isaiah, we hear many of the gifts that God will give us if only we ask. If we cry out, he will be gracious. He will give us the bread we need and the water for which we thirst. He will show us the way. He will help us sow seeds and produce rich and abundant wheat. These are in addition to the gifts we have already been given: friendship, community, our basic needs, and our natural talents. What is the purpose of these gifts from God?
The Gospel reading from Matthew answers this. It tells us, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” We are called to be laborers in that harvest—to be missionary disciples who help unite all people to the love of Christ. God has given us, and will continue to give us, the gifts we need to be faithful stewards in his plan. For the apostles in today’s Gospel, Jesus gave the gift of driving out unclean spirits and curing every disease and illness. And at the end, Jesus gives us the essential takeaway: “Without cost you have received; without cost you shall give.” This is one of Christ’s most crucial teachings. We are called to follow it by evangelizing the world and giving generously of our time, talent, and treasure.
Fittingly, today is also the Feast of Saint Nicholas. One of his most famous stories is the one commonly associated with Santa Claus and the gift-giving spirit of Christmas. A poor man had three daughters, but he had no money to provide dowries for their marriages. Saint Nicholas secretly threw bags of gold through an open window and into the girls’ stockings on three separate occasions, giving them the means to marry. But he is not remembered only for his monetary generosity. Other stories tell us that he fervently prayed for students and children who had been lost or murdered, and through his intercession they were restored to life. Saint Nicholas was a champion of using his God-given gifts—his treasure and his powerful prayer—and offering them back to the world as fully as he could. Let us follow in his footsteps and in the commands of Christ by giving our own God-given gifts back to the world.
