Psalm Reflection: The Third Sunday of Advent, “Gaudete Sunday” - Cycle C

“Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.” - Isaiah 12

This past July, I was in Indianapolis helping serve on the team for the 10th National Eucharistic Congress, a historic Catholic event that filled Lucas Oil Stadium with 60,000 Catholics. I was working 12-16 hour days and was away from my wife and three children for 8 days, which was the longest I had ever been away from them.

While the event was happening, Delta airlines was affected by a Microsoft outage that resulted in insane flight delays. Guess what airline I was flying home?

Despite my hopes that the delays would be fixed by the time I left, the day I departed was wrought with delays. I asked everyone I could think of to pray that I would get home that night so I would not have to spend another day away from my family.

My flight home was routed through Atlanta International Airport, a hub for Delta airlines. My flight to Atlanta was delayed multiple hours and I was going to miss my connecting flight home. I got to the airport early and got on standby for an earlier flight to Atlanta that was also experiencing delays. I managed to land in Atlanta seven minutes later than my connecting flight was supposed to leave, and I ran to the terminal in the hopes it was a little more delayed and I could make it.

Now, if you have ever been to Atlanta airport, you know that it is massive. It has been rated the busiest international airport in the world. It consists of nearly 200 gates divided among 8 terminals, which are connected by an underground train. So running through this airport consists of running from a gate, downstairs to the train, getting off the train and running upstairs to the next terminal and down to your gate.

So I ran to my gate only to discover my flight had just left. I looked around and saw Delta help desks with lines that stretched hundreds of people long, with individuals sleeping on the floors, some having been stuck in the airport for days. I refused to accept any reality where I would not make it home to my family, so I looked up every flight I could find from Atlanta to Southern California and ran to each gate to try and get on the flight.

After multiple failures, I finally ended up at the gate for a flight to San Diego that was departing two gates down from where I had originally landed in Atlanta, and I begged the flight attendant at the desk to get me on the plane. Then the bad news started to pile on.

The pilot might be timing out of his allotted hours and may not be able to fly the plane.

My original destination was different from this flight and they needed a manager to authorize it, but there was no manager around.

I kept praying under my breath, “Please get me home, Jesus. Please get me home, Jesus.”

Suddenly, a manager emerged from the gangway to inform us that the pilot was good to go and all passengers needed to board immediately. He turned and looked right at me and said, “what do you need?” Within minutes he had authorized my ticket for the flight and I was on the airplane. It was the quickest a prayer of mine had ever been answered.

I called my wife to tell her I finally got on a flight, and when she picked up the phone, all I could say was, “I did it. I’m coming home,” and tears started to stream down my face. I could hear my wife getting emotional on the phone, we were both missing each other so much that the reality of being reunited, despite all the delays and cancellations, made us overjoyed.

The words of this week’s Psalm remind me of how I felt, waiting and anticipating something that was finally able to happen despite all the obstacles and unexpected turns: “Cry out with joy and gladness: for among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.”

Everything that you and I have ever hoped for awaits us in Christ. Everything we have ever desired, and everything you would possibly need to be completely fulfilled and satisfied can be found in the Lord.

Advent is a reminder for us to remove the false hopes and unsatisfying alternatives from our hearts, and to recognize that everything we have been waiting for is finally here.

No matter the delays and difficulties in your life, the Lord is here and wants to move in your life to bring you back home to Him. So this Advent, run to Him. You may end up taking a different journey than you expected, but it will be one that is full of joy, adventure, and hope.

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

Matt

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, December 15th, 2024, The Third Sunday of Advent, “Gaudete Sunday” - Cycle C: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4, 5-6.