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Do you know how magnificent a sacrament the Eucharist is?  It ought to be looked at as a jewel that reflects light from its different facets.  The Eucharist is a  covenant between ourselves and God, a remembrance, a thanksgiving, a Real  Presence of Jesus among us, a  mystery of faith, and a spiritual food for our journey of life.

In addition to all this, there is another facet of the Eucharist which we need to rediscover especially in this Advent Season. The Eucharist is a sacrament given to us by Jesus for our healing.

More than ever, people today want and need to experience the saving power of Jesus found in the     Eucharist.  It is intended by God for our healing so that we might be free and live truly as the sons and    daughters of God.  Many in our parish, however, do not recognize what a great gift the Eucharist is and, therefore, remain in their weakness.  Many are sick, depressed, bound up in themselves and don’t know how to get freed.  The Eucharist was given to us as a healing sacrament and each and every human being should approach it as such.

In the Eucharist, we can reach out and truly touch Jesus, the Son of God.  Think about that for a

moment!  How awesome is that?  Jesus has given us Himself in a form that we can touch.  Because we are  human, made in the image and likeness of God, we need God to touch us often.  Jesus left us His Body and Blood so that you we might be touched by Him and be healed.

Do you believe this?  Jesus truly desires to live among us and within us.  We receive the Bread of Life and the Cup of Eternal Salvation in order that we might be strengthened to avoid sin and evil and to do good.  Without this spiritual food, we will remain weak.

The Sacrament of the Eucharist is for our healing.  To experience this healing, we need to approach the table of the Lord with yielding hearts, with expectant faith, and with persistence.  If we hunger for God alone, He can fill us with His healing love.  If we yield our hearts and minds to Him, offering no obstacle to Him, no resistance to His presence and love, then God will fill us with His power.  But we need to hunger for God and yield with faith to Him, expecting the Lord to respond.  Too often, we receive little from our faith because we expect little.  We should expect more from the Lord in the Eucharist and we should ask for what we need.

Jesus came to earth to heal us.  We need to allow Him into our hearts and lives so that He can be our healer and our savior.  At the time of receiving the Eucharist or at the time before Him at the Holy Hour, we should ask the Lord for what we really need.  Ask and you shall receive.

On this Third Sunday of Advent let us reevaluate our personal understanding of the Eucharist and let us always approach this sacrament with a renewed commitment.