This is Cardinal Francis George. I invite you to join me for the next two minutes to reflect

with Father Robert Barron on the Word of God, which is the Word on Fire. Word on Fire Catholic

Ministries is a non-profit ministry at the forefront of Catholic evangelization, using

new media to spread the faith and every continent. Father Barron challenges us to open our hearts

to the Word on Fire, which is God's Word of Love for each of us. If our hearts are open,

the Lord can change and transform us so that we might speak with love about the one who

is love. The global benefactors of Word on Fire with the support of the Archdiocese of

Chicago now present Word on Fire. Peace be with you. Friends on this fourth Sunday of

Advent, we are called to dream big. Our minds, our visions, our perspective, even the most

pious of them are not enough for what God has planned. Our first reading is taken from the

seventh chapter of the book of the prophet Isaiah. It recalls the time in the eighth century

BC, when the kingdom of Judah found itself in dire straits. It was threatened by the mighty Assyrian

army, and it was under the leadership of a young inexperienced king named Ahaz. Put yourself

for a moment in the shoes of Ahaz, this young guy, this young king, has a huge responsibility,

and his country is being besieged by a mighty invading force. I'm sure he was getting advice

from all over the place, much of a contradictory. Well, under severe pressure, this young man

was wavering. He was quaking in his boots, unsure of what to do. One option was to enter into an

alliance with some neighboring powers, trying to bolster his position against the Assyrians. But at

this point, the prophet Isaiah comes into the picture. He challenges Ahaz, this young king,

to trust in the power of God and not in political alliances. And the warrant for this is the ancient

promise made to Ahaz's ancestor, King David. Go back now to the second book of Samuel. The

prophet Nathan conveys to David this great promise that the house of David would rule forever

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