Today we remember the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, when her parents Joachim and Anne brought Mary to the Temple in Jerusalem. They hadn’t expected to have children, so in thanksgiving for this gift, they offered her back to be consecrated to the Lord, to belong to him. This offering and belonging is echoed in the Gospel. Jesus’ “mother and brothers” come to him, and he explains what it takes to belong to him, as Mary does: “whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
Let us imitate this today. First, we experience the whole day as a gift from God. Then, in gratitude, we generously offer it back to him, to be used for his purpose. What does it take to consecrate our day? Using it to do “the will of [our] Father in heaven.” What is God asking you today?
—Beau Guedry is a former Alum Service Corps volunteer who now teaches science and coordinates liturgy at Strake Jesuit College Preparatory School in Houston.