The Ancient Promise Is Fulfilled

Look at me. The skin on my hands is so thin that I can see my  veins and my bones. My feet shuffle so slowly that everyone rushes  past me in the street. The ache in my back never stops. Isn’t it enough  already, you who have been our hope for ages past? Long ago, you  said that you would not take me to you until I had seen your Messiah.  I felt then that it was a wonderful promise. But extreme old age is a  burden heavy to bear. All that I love is gone. I have waited so long.

What’s that? This is the day? Go to the temple? 

Look at her. Her cheeks are fresh, gleaming with joy, as she holds  that boy. She is young. Yet a sword will pierce her heart. The babe  is light in her arms. She doesn’t know how heavy it will be to hold a  lifeless child. The man stands behind her, a holy family. She doesn’t  know the hole left in your heart when your spouse dies. O Lord, I  have seen too much. The heaviness of earth weighs me down. 

What’s that, you say? This is the One? The child? 

Look at him. His tiny head nestles in the crook of my arm. His  eyes briefly open. His eyelids flicker as he looks into my eyes. This,  this is the one who will set your people free? Joy rises within me.  We your people have waited so long. This baby so small will be our  hope for years to come? My ribcage swells in jubilation. My aches  are gone. I feel like dancing! 

Now, Master, please, set me free. Let me come to you in peace.  You have fulfilled your promise! Bless you, bless you, my God! 

Consider/Discuss 

• God works miracles through the very old. Abraham and Sarah, Simeon  and Anna—they were faithful for so many years. The Lord’s promises to  them were fulfilled. How have you seen the beauty of God through eyes of  those who have lived long? 
• God works miracles through the very young. The Holy Family is a sign of  promise for years to come. How have you seen the beauty of God through  the lives of those who are very young? 

Living and Praying with the Word 

God of the heavens, you asked Abram to count the stars, to trust  you for descendants. You asked Simeon to trust that the Savior of  the world would come. You ask us to trust that you do fulfill your  promises. You came to us within a human family. So this day, we  entrust our families and all those we love to you to hold and keep  safe. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, pray for us!