Holy Days

Originally posted on December 18, 2019

Happy week before Christmas! I do pray you are able to discover happy moments. And I pray that you can discover the joy and peace that always comes from the awakening our awareness of God in everyone, every place, and every hour.

It’s been way too long since I’ve made the time to write. Not that there hasn’t been reason to but because, I think, I am stuck. Stuck in that place where we feel like what we are working at is impossible. Our country is in such great turmoil. Shootings continue and no one even seems to notice the pain and sorrow among the public bickering and blizzard of hate blowing mercilessly through the airwaves. A bit dramatic? Maybe. But it’s how I am experiencing it and it makes me want to shut down.

But I can’t, even when, especially when, I feel my voice is so very small that it can’t be heard by even the best of ears. As I sit with scripture and pray, looking for the courage to continue to speak, God reminds me that nothing is impossible when we are working together to offer the world beautiful, joyful glimpses of the peace of The Kingdom.

In this third week of Advent, as we light the third candle, I am reminded that each tiny light alone is enough to pierce the darkness but together the light is so much brighter. And we have the hope of more light to come. Together with God we can continue to bring compassion to the world through the small things: simple acts of kindness, choosing not to join in the anger and hate, smiling, choosing words that build up rather than tear down, looking for sameness rather than difference.

Most importantly, we can all choose to not look for things to argue over. We’ve become so addicted to arguing that we create needless conflict over the smallest of things. I was hoping the false debate over “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays” would die down but I keep seeing posts, including the two pictures with this post, which state my position accurately if, perhaps a little more bluntly than I would say it.

The greatest act of compassion we can do in this next week is to let go of our need to be right at another’s expense and remember the real reason for the season: the love of God so great for all people that he came to live as one of us so we can know and reveal that same love in our own lives.

May the God of peace fill you with joy and love in the hope of his coming.