Happy Birthday, Mary--a woman who cooperated with God's plan of salvation

Today we celebrate the birthday of our Blessed  Mother. No ordinary birthday, to say the least.

Here is a woman who always said “yes” to God’s plan of salvation. Her “yes” was not an easy yes.  She risked her life when she said “yes” to the incarnation, to allowing God to use her womb to give human form to His Son, whom He was sending into the world to carry out His plan of redemption. He was not going to lose any part of His creation. His love for us was too great to let that happen. Yet, God has given each one of us a free will. We can say “yes” or “no” to our salvation and to what it takes to choose that which leads to eternal life with God, to eternal happiness, to eternal peace and, in the meantime, to peace with ourselves, with others and with God.

 Mary believed in God. She accepted His plan and did not ever thwart it. She sums it up at Cana when she said to the servants: “Do whatever He tells you.”  Do I do whatever God tells me? Do I even take time to inquire of God what His will is for me or do I just plow ahead each day doing my own thing? And when obstacles come—I don’t get my way—do I simply rant and rave, become quarrelsome instead of stepping back, taking time to reflect and pray about the situation that I am ranting about?