The Memory

This past week, at the end of the Christmas season, my parish was in the middle of putting away the decorations. One morning as we entered the church, I noticed that Mary and Joseph were not in the stable. No baby Jesus , no angel, no shepherds and not even hay. Just the stable. Empty.

As I looked at it with some nostalgia, I wanted to remember the Holy Family, the prayers said, the graces received from them this past Christmas… and grace came over again.

Every morning I offer to God, my Lord, my entire liberty,
my memory, my understanding and my whole will. And He takes the memory and fills it with his grace. The memory brings grace each time I use it for the glory of God, to remember His love and care, to recall encounters we had along the way, lights of truth and clarity in doubt. All graces.

They say that the body has memory cells (ask my husband, he’s the scientist) that, when a harmful virus or bacteria attacks, they remember it from past illnesses and combat them accordingly.

Our spirit, I’m sure, also has those kind of “cells”.  When we remember his grace and love, we are able to combat the world, the flesh, and the devil much more easily.

Let’s look at the empty stable and remember. He can be found there always.

Written by: Begona Garijo