“ ‘…Every valley shall be filled
and every mountain and hill shall be made low.
The winding roads shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” Luke 3:5
St. John the Baptist when throughout the region of Jordan proclaiming the baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins. In this Gospel, Luke is quoting the prophet Isaiah who said a voice would cry out in the desert, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His path - the voice of St. John the Baptist.
St. John the Baptist inspires the words that fall off our lips as we recite the Hail Mary under our breath two thousand plus years later seeking the aid of our Holy Mother. As an unborn baby St. John leaped in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary greeted her. Elizabeth, humbled, responds by saying, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”
When do I pray the Hail Mary? As a daily, ritualistic prayer and through out my day when I’m overwhelmed, unsure, or dealing with anything that seems out of my control at that moment. I don’t say it enough in the form of the rosary as part of my daily prayer regiment. It is not an easy devotion for me…unless I hide myself in the bathroom for quiet or find silence in the middle of a sleepless night.
While praying the rosary as a daily ritual is something I aspire to but am not quite there…yet, (growth mindset) - I have been doing better about praying the rosary to intercede for others who I know are in desperate moments on an “as needed” basis. Whenever I do this, it is I who receive the gifts of the Spirit. Knowing this, I made an intentional effort to add it to our family Advent practices this year.
In addition to the scripture on the little pop out Advent calendar that my sister sends every year to her sweet nephews, I decided with the encouragement of some colleagues at my school to make a homemade Advent calendar with little bits of “Family time” that capture the true essence of this season as we prepare for Christ.
I purposefully tried to include activities that we could actually complete despite my busy work schedule this season so that family time would be the priority this Advent season. (Sing carols around the tree, have hot cocoa and enjoy a game night, drive around and look at Christmas lights…you get the picture.)
The other night I came home exhausted. We had already pulled our activity from the wreath that morning before school. It read, “Pray a decade of the rosary around the Christmas tree.” As I kicked off my shoes and made myself cozy in the boys bed to read our bedtime book, barely keeping my own eyes open, they looked me and said, “Mah-OM….the rosary!”
In an instant, I mentally ruled out re-gathering around the Christmas tree for this devotion now that all teeth had finally been brushed and kids were IN their beds. And…just thought of picking my body up again to go get their little wooden colored rosaries hanging in the living room after not sitting down in what seemed 14 hours must have been obvious on my face.
Paulie, who just recently turned six, looks carefully at me and cocks his head a little. (He does this when he’s thinking.) “MOM! We’ll do it right here.” He points up to the lights we have strung around his bunk bed that we use for reading every night. “Look,” he said, as he placed his fingers on a “bead.”
His little brother picks a spot far enough away on the string of lights so that they don’t run into each other as they pray. I choose my own starting spot. We begin our Hail Mary’s and the boys grow excited offering each one up for someone they love before saying the next color of the lights that their fingers reach and reciting the prayer.
“ ‘…Every valley shall be filled
and every mountain and hill shall be made low.
The winding roads shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” Luke 3:5
I used to think this verse was something more apocalyptic. But now I know the prophet Isaiah and St. John the Baptist were not necessarily talking about the physical terrain of our beautiful earth in this scripture…They were talking about the interior terrain of our soul.
Holiness is making the mountains low and filling in the valleys within so we can hear the voice of God and know His will to act on it.
What are the mountains in your life? Mountains of work. Lack of time. Emails. Social media. Pride. Perhaps overextending ourselves even with good intention. Sin without reconciliation.
What are the valleys? Self doubt. Insecurity. Anxiety. Moments of helplessness. Relationships that are aggravated or even broken that need healing.
My son went into the moment with a natural growth mindset. He looked at the situation and instead of letting us climb up a mountain of excuses or slip into the valley of self pity - he was a problem solver. He found opportunity for holiness in the simplest moment.
Over the next ten days, it is good practice to chip away at the mountains and get out your shovel to fill in the valleys. Examine “the voices” within that dictate your day and effect your spirit. Go to confession. Surround yourself with people who lift you and support you. Spend time with your family. Most importantly, in the ordinary moments… Be filled with true joy.
Seek Him.
