December
8

Blessed is she who has believed.

And Mary stood up in those days, and went with haste into the hill-country, into a city of Judah, and entered into the house of Zacharias, and greeted Elizabeth. And it came to pass that when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. And she exclaimed with a great voice and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb! And blessed is she who has believed that there shall be a performance of those things which were spoken to her from the Lord. (Luke 1:39-45)

When anyone proposes anything to himself, he perceives it as present, because he puts his mind into the state of that thing; and from this there are longings and consequent delight as if the thing were present. (Arcana Coelestia 7017)

It is the very delight of reason to see from love the effect in thought not the effect in its attainment, but before it, that is, not in the present but in the future. Hence man has what is called Hope, which increases and decreases in the reason as he sees or looks forward to the event. (Divine Providence 178)

“He urged them exceedingly.” That this signifies a state of temptation in which one overcomes, cannot be seen except by those who have been in temptations…. Temptations are attended with doubt in regard to the Lord’s presence and mercy, and also in regard to salvation. The evil spirits who are then with the man and induce the temptation strongly inspire negation, but the good spirits and angels from the Lord in every possible way dispel this state of doubt, and keep the man in a state of hope, and at last confirm him in what is affirmative. The result is that a man who is in temptation hangs between what is negative and what is affirmative. One who yields in temptation remains in a state of doubt, and falls into what is negative; but one who overcomes is indeed in doubt, but still, if he suffers himself to be cheered by hope, he stands fast in what is affirmative. (Arcana Coelestia 2338)

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