Reflect today on your call to pray to our Blessed Mother Mary

“Behold, I am the servant of the Lord. May it be made of me according to your word. "Luke 1: 38a (Year B)

What does it mean to be a "servant of the Lord?" The word "handmaid" means "servant". And Mary identifies as a servant. Specifically, a servant of the Lord. Throughout history, some "handmaids" have been slaves without any rights. They were the property of their owners and had to do as they were told. In other times and cultures, a handmaid was a servant more by choice, enjoying certain rights. However, all the maids are inferior in the service of a superior.

Our Blessed Mother, however, is a new type of handmaid. Because? Because what she was called to serve was the Holy Trinity. She was certainly an inferior in the service of a superior. But when the one you serve perfectly has perfect love for you and guides you in ways that uplift you, elevate your dignity, and transform you into holiness, then it is wise beyond description to not only serve this superior, but freely become a slave. , lowering yourself as deeply as possible before such a superior. There should be no hesitation in this depth of servitude!

The servitude of our Blessed Mother, therefore, is new in that it is the most radical form of servitude, but it is also freely chosen. And the reciprocal effect on her of the Most Holy Trinity was to direct all her thoughts and actions, all her passions and desires and every single part of her life to the glory, fulfillment and sanctity of life.

We must learn from the wisdom and actions of our Blessed Mother. He submitted his whole life to the Holy Trinity, not only for his own good, but also to set an example for each of us. Our deepest and most daily prayer must become that of hers: “I am the servant of the Lord. May it be made of me according to your word. “Following his example will not only unite us deeply with our Triune God, it will also have a similar effect on us by making us instruments of the Savior of the world. We will become his "mother" in the sense that we will bring Jesus into our world for others. What a glorious call we have been given to imitate this most holy Mother of God.

Reflect today on your call to pray this prayer of our Blessed Mother. Reflect on the words, consider the meaning of this prayer, and strive to make it your prayer today and every day. Imitate her and you will begin to share more fully her glorious life of grace.

Dearest Mother Mary, pray for me so that I can imitate your perfect "Yes" to the Holy Trinity. May your prayer become my prayer and may the effects of your surrender as the Lord's handmaid also profoundly affect my life. Lord, Jesus, may your perfect will, in union with the will of the Father and the Holy Spirit, be done in my life today and forever. Jesus I believe in you.