Now it's our turn to move closer to Emmanuel, God with us.
Although the joy of Christmas encourages us, we can quickly fall into fear as our days move forward. Unfortunately, the truth is that we are often more comfortable keeping God at a safe distance from us. We want to be warmed by the fire of God's love, but we sometimes don't want to stand too close to the flames. So before God can work His will in our lives, He has to invite us closer so that the grime of our sinfulness can be burned away. Knowing this, we need to remember the Advent journey started with the angel's words to Mary . . . "Do not be afraid."
Now it's our turn to move closer to Emmanuel, God with us.
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Our attitude this Advent can reveal much about our faith. This season is an opportunity for us to grow in faith, and in doings so,
we become more attentive to God's action throughout our lives. Thought for the Day: God loves us simply because we are. He comes to us in the Incarnation to show us how much He loves us. In turn, our response to the question, “Why do you live the way you do?” should always be, "Because God loved me first." What God started in the beginning, He will finish in the end.
We know this to be true because He promised that all the peoples on earth will be blessed through Abraham, and on Christmas morning, a weary world rejoices as we celebrate our dear Savior's birth. As God's story of redemption continues through the Old Testament, we are reminded that His plan was in place from the very beginning. Like pieces of a puzzle, we begin to see the bigger picture, a promised Redeemer sent by God to reconcile His people. This holiday season, let us rest in the promises of God and reflect on the covenant that was fulfilled in the birth of Christ. Thousands of years ago, God was thinking of you and me, and weaving together a love story just for us. Thought for the Day: The Holy Spirit is God’s guarantee of what will come. His work in our lives today assures us that the transformation process for our new bodies will be thoroughly completed when we see Christ face to face. (ref. 2 Corinthians 5:5) There must be a time to slow down, and wait for the good pleasure of the Lord. When we do, we have a chance to discover that God deals in amazingly creative ways with our problems if we are willing to wait.
In the process we can learn some patience. Not all tension is bad, for in the long, involved, and sometimes painful solutions that God advances, we discover that faith grows when there is little more to do than to be patient and trust in God. Rest in the Lord. Wait patiently for God. And know that the capacity to be patient in adversity is a gift from God. |
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November 2022
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