Reflecting In Her Heart

Most mothers try to keep whatever mementos they can of their children as they grow up.

If we were to ask the mothers here today, they might tell us that they still have the blanket their baby was wrapped in after birth. Many would have pictures of the sonograms taken of their child while they were still pregnant. Others might still have a lock of hair from their child’s first haircut. Those keepsakes would also include many photographs and hours of video of birthday parties, soccer games, dances and graduations. Many women enjoy spending time collecting these items into scrapbooks to share with their relatives and friends.

Families cherish these souvenirs as a way of staying in touch with our past and counting the blessings we have enjoyed, especially the blessing of children. These scrapbooks, pictures and keepsakes then get handed down from generation to generation as heirlooms reminding us of our roots.

We can imagine that Mary also kept mementos of Jesus throughout His childhood. It is not unlikely that she would have kept the clothing He was swaddled in while lying in the manger. Perhaps she kept some of the gifts He made her while learning the carpentry trade with Saint Joseph. As a loving mother, she would have kept all the relics of Jesus’ life she could to hold on to the memory of the many years they spent together in Nazareth.

More important than any of the physical items that Jesus may have left behind, however, were the events that took place during Mary’s pregnancy and Jesus’ birth. Mary witnessed great acts of power from God from the time the angel Gabriel announced to her that she would be the mother of the Messiah to the time she and Joseph found Jesus after He had been missing in the temple. In his gospel, Saint Luke tells us that “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” She might not have had physical reminders of Jesus’ life such as photographs or videos, but she did keep a rich scrapbook of insights in her heart which she cherished and meditated on frequently.

Because of this, Mary is a model of prayer for us. The word “meditation” can sound formidable and lofty. We may think that we are not capable of it. However, meditation is nothing more than pondering in our hearts, as Mary did, all the great things God has done for us. It can be as simple as looking back on our day or on our week and recognizing every blessing we have received. This then leads us to marvel at how merciful our God is and to thank Him for His love.

With time, we cherish those memories of God’s blessings in our lives and share them with others, just as a mother shares pictures of her babies with relatives and friends.

There are two practices we can begin in this new year to help us grow in our love of God through prayerful meditation.

The first practice is the Rosary. In many ways, the Rosary is Mary’s scrapbook. Through it, we prayerfully reflect with her on the events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. In so doing, we come to a deeper appreciation of God’s love and strengthen our resolve to live in accordance with His will. By repeating this prayer, we then come to see our daily struggles and blessings in the light of Jesus’ life. The Rosary is the premier way that Mary teaches us to meditate on the wonders of God.

The second practice is to keep a spiritual journal. Like a scrapbook, a journal is a place for us to write down all the insights we receive in our prayer. It can also be a place where we keep prayer cards or pictures of Jesus or the saints which move our hearts. There are no rules when it comes to keeping such a prayer journal. We should not worry about writing full sentences, checking our spelling or correcting our grammar when we write in it. It is merely a place to keep track of how God is moving in our hearts. This practice trains us to keep alert to the signs of God’s presence and action in our lives. At times when our prayer is dry and God seems distant, looking back on our spiritual journal reminds us of how much progress we have made and assures us that our Heavenly Father will continue to guide us.

On this day, we celebrate Mary as the Mother of God. Jesus has given her to us to be our mother as well. Like a good mother, she wants to teach us how to pray. If, in this new year, we can make a daily habit of praying the Rosary and keeping a prayer journal, we will make great strides in appreciating the great things God is doing in our lives and in our world. Like Mary, we will learn to keep in our hearts and reflect on the love and mercy of our Heavenly Father. And, like a mother who cannot help but share pictures of her children, we will begin to witness to others all the blessings God has showered on us.