Second Sunday after Christmas, January 3, 2021

Second Sunday after Christmas, January 3rd, 2021

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me . . . . "  So begins the epistle appointed for the Second Sunday after Christmas.  The Prophet Isaiah has it exactly right.  The Spirit of the Lord is indeed upon me and He is upon you as well.  So many people throughout the world have been looking forward to a "New Year."  To most of us, 2020 was pretty bad.  2020 was horrible, to say the least.  Small businesses shut down.  People losing their jobs.  People getting sick.  Family members dying.  Those in the nursing homes forced to stay away from their loved ones and friends for months and months at a time.  Churches being shut down.  The list goes on and on and on and on.  I think everyone has been affected one way or another.  Some have been affected more while others have been affected less.  And some people are already saying that the year 2021 will present us with another rollercoaster ride even worse than 2020.  Well, if that is the case then all the more reason to remember the words of the Prophet Isaiah:  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me!"  Stay close to God in the year 2021 like never before.  Remember that Our Blessed Saviour quoted these words as well:  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord." (St. Luke 4:18-19) Did 2020 make you poor?  The Lord is here for you.  Have you been left brokenhearted over the deaths of loved ones this year?  Christ is here for you.   Have you been held captive and lost some of your freedoms in 2020?  Christ wants to set you free  As bad as the year 2020 was, it was good in one respect, in my opinion.  2020 helped to set true priorities in place.  2020 helped us to see who and what is truly important in our life.  Our Blessed Saviour wants us to have good priorities as well.  He wants us to set God first in our life.  Put God as our top priority and everything else will fall into place.  Does that mean we will not have problems?  Does that mean we won't have obstacles along the way?  Does that mean all of our troubles will somehow magically disappear?   Of course not.  But God will be with us.  God is there for us.  Let the words of the Prophet Isaiah be our words as well in the year 2021:  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me!"   

PLEASE NOTE:  St. Margaret Church will NOT meet on Sunday, January 3rd, 2021.

St. Margaret Church is still being affected, as is the whole world, by the Coronavirus outbreak.  Specifically, our church is not allowed to meet as we would like due to CDC and State recommendations.  But despite these recommendations, our members still continue to pray to Our Heavenly Father.  Our members still continue to reach out to their neighbors and loved ones.  Our members still continue to be the face and hands and instruments of the Lord throughout these troubling times.  Additionally, Fr. Todd also continues to post his sermons and reflections online.  So, please continue to pray for St. Margaret Church and all the Christian Churches throughout the world that we may continue to stay close to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.   

And please remember that you can still show support to St. Margaret Church by sharing these posts on social media . . . sharing the sermons and reflections of Fr. Todd on social media as well.  In this way, despite any sort of "lock-down," you will help St. Margaret Church continue to spread the Gospel and continue to tell the world about our love for Our Blessed Saviour!