Sunday December 13, 2020
Today’s Advent reading is about Joseph and the dream he had to take Mary as his wife in spite of the fact that she was pregnant. The story we call the Annunciation is actually found in Luke 1:26-38. We could, of course, analyze these two stories as have several generations of biblical scholars but at this time in our lives, we need to have faith in the possibility of miracles.
We all have events in our lives that we may or may not call miracles. Having hope in the future is in itself a miracle. The self-giving work of medical personnel in the face of the possibility that they, too, might become ill is a miracle.
What is a miracle? Living as if we really can create a future better for all of us. That is the greatest miracle of all.
Prayer for the Day
Opener of hearts, enter into our lives in these dark times
And help us to see the many miracles of love around us;
Transformer of minds, move us beyond narrow conceptions of belief
And give us the faith to live a life of care for others.
Enabler of change, hold us firm within your arms
As we seek to create a world that reflects your will.
In the name of him who came to show us how to live,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
Faith is not belief in spite of the evidence but a life lived in scorn of consequences. … We have come to dissociate belief from faith and we think of belief as a way of thinking when the original intent was not to describe a way of thinking but a way of acting.
-Clarence Jordan, activist for social change (1912-1969)
Miracles occur naturally as an expression of love. The real miracle is the love that inspires them. In this sense, everything that comes from love is a miracle.
-Marianne Williamson, American writer
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you,
And through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
When you walk through fire, you shall not be burned
And the flame shall not consume you,
For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
Isaiah 43: 2-3