Day 30 · The Nativity Fast
The Messenger Before Him
““Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me! The Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple. Behold, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, is coming!” says the LORD of Armies.”Malachi 3:1
Reflection
Malachi, whose book closes the Twelve Prophets, promised a messenger who would prepare the way, and then the Lord himself coming suddenly to his temple. Christ said that this messenger was John the Baptist (Matthew 11:10). Orthodox Christians call John the Forerunner, and the icon of the Deesis shows him with the Mother of God on either side of Christ, both turned toward him in prayer: the two who prepared most closely for his coming. Preparation is holy work, and the Fast is our share in it.
A prayer
Lord, through the prayers of your Forerunner John, prepare the way in me. Bring low the mountains of my pride, fill the valleys of my discouragement, and make my crooked paths straight, so that I may be ready when you come. Amen.
Carry this with you
What needs to be cleared out of the way in your life before the feast?