Listen to God's voice at the foot of the crucifix." ~St. Gaspar del Bufaro~

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Early Christmas Gift of Grace

One of the delights of being a parent are the special moments that we share with our children.  In particular, it is a unique joy and a gift to watch them walk in faith;  These occasions are the ones that I treasure the most!

Today, our seven year old Superboy received an early Christmas gift of grace~His First Holy Communion!
Is he beaming with JOY or what?
It was an extreme honor, to say the least!

For months, Superboy has been yearning begging to be an altar server with his older siblings for early morning daily Mass.  Father M. agreed that he could be an "apprentice" on the altar to receive some on-the-job-training.  He had been doing this for about a month when Fr. M. asked us our thoughts about having Superboy receive an early Holy Communion so that he could receive the Body of Christ on the altar.  

Father M. felt that he would receive many extra blessings from this Sacrament before the age of reason.  Understanding the magnitude of this honor, we held many discussions about the pros and cons of agreeing to this early Sacrament.  As a Mama, I feared rushing into it too soon as the other children had to wait patiently and enjoy that anticipation.  After much prayer and a meeting with Father M., we decided to go ahead and allow Superboy to receive this Sacrament.

Surrounded by his parents and 4 siblings, Superboy received Jesus in the warm, intimate, peaceful, and {early} setting of 7 AM Mass.
What greater gift is there than this?
The stresses of the season were far behind me at this moment...Jesus as the reason- for- the- season suddenly had new meaning.

Father M. challenged all of us to renew our own faithfulness and love for Christ in the Eucharist.  I know for me, personally, I fall deeper in love with our Savior every time one of our children receives a Sacrament.  Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Holy One, Emmanuel.

It was a beautiful morning of Advent grace, followed by the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.  We enjoyed a nice breakfast at home in the company of a few special guests...Grandma Judy, Great Grandma Jackie, and Fr. M. 
Later on in the morning, I read this quote, during my Holy Hour, that summed the day up perfectly!
"God wishes to be seen, 
and He wishes to be sought, 
and He wishes to be expected, 
and He wishes to be trusted."
~St. Julian of Norwich~

In the end, Superboy taught us all a few things...He saw, he sought, he expected, and he trusted God.  Ultimately, God provided a great gift, as He always does:)

8 comments:

  1. He certainly is beaming. :) What an incredible blessing! Something that your whole family will always remember. And what a precious moment with you and your hubby standing by your son!

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  2. Super boy just exudes joy in that picture. Goose bumps! What an absolutely beautiful time of the year to receive this life giving sacrament!

    Congratulations and big hugs from all of us!

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  3. blessed, indeed. may superboy continue to be transformed by His grace and His true presence.

    pax Christi, Lena

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  4. Congratulations to your son and your whole family! What a beautiful way to remember receiving the sacrament for the first time. Your breakfast table looks so warm and inviting - what a wonderful day for your family! I bet he can't wait to altar serve again with his brothers!!

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  5. Just beautiful. I feel weepy! Congratulations to all of you! +JMJ+

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  6. Congratulations! I too feel closer to God whenever my girls receive a Sacrament! Brianna just received First Communion as well and has been on cloud nine ever since!

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  7. what a gift you son gave your family!! his love of Jesus enriched your whole family. what a blessed day and event. Oh you must be so overflowing with joy, Tiffany!! God bless Superboy and his love of Jesus in the Eucharist!!

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