A sower went out to sow....

The feast of the Annunciation calls to mind the marvelous things that God has done to Mary. It laso reminds us of humanity's indeptness to her for her selfless courage and abandonment to the will of the Almighty. In that tense encounter between Mary and Gabriel, humanity's collective longing to be saved was contained in that powerful yes of Mary. That paved the way for God to start His work of redemption through His son to be born of her. In tahat moment, God became helpless. Though He desired to save humanity, He couldn't force Mary to say "yes" to His plan. The "yes" has to be done in freedom. St. Augustine wrote, "The God who created you without you, cannot save you without you." Without Mary's yes as humanity's spokeperson, God couldn't save us.It was not an easy yes for Mary. She was disturbed and greatly troubled. She had every reason to be. Nobody can be tranquil before the majesty of God. Besides, the Incarnation of Jesus and our redemption began with a difficult question of faith: a call to believe a scenario unheard of before in human history - a woman conceiving God's Son while remaining a virgin.

To say yes to the will of God is never easy. But if salvation is to be realized in our personal lives, in our own circumstances, we must say yes however difficult it may seem and no matter how hard it demands.

This yes to God is a moment-by-moment, day-by-day reality. If we are not holy in the moment, then we are not holy at all.

As we thank Mary today for her selfless assent to the will of God, let us also ask for her intercession that we may be able to say yes to God in our daily lives. As we trust like Mary, the will of God will never lead us to where His grace cannot sustain us. As we believe that nothing is impossible with God, we fear not for we shall find favor with God.

Dag Hammarskjold wrote a personal testimony about saying yes: "I don't know who or when (the question was put. I don't even remember answering. But at one moment in my life, I did say yes to Someone, or Something, and from that hour I realized that existence is meaningful; and that, therefore, my life, in self surrender, had a goal."