When driving on the road, we need one of two things to get to our destination.
We need to have a local knowledge or familiarity of the roads to navigate our way
Or we may need a map or an navigation app to find our way to our destination.
Our local knowledge or familiarity can be useful if the roads have not changed or if there are no detours or no road diversions.
Otherwise a GPS navigation app would be necessary to get along the right direction.
In the 1st reading, king Ahaz was told to ask the Lord for a sign when he was faced with a threat from the enemies.
But he refused to ask for a sign from the Lord. He would rather rely on his own assessment to come to a decision.
In the gospel, Mary asked for a sign when she said, "But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?"
And when she heard Elizabeth, whom people called barren, had conceived, Mary accepted that this was the sign to assure her that the Lord would take care of matters.
When we are faced with difficult choices, may we be humble and surrender ourselves to the Lord.
Let us also trust in Him, for our ways are not His ways and our thoughts are not His thoughts.