Reflect
I peer at the glass,
struggling
to make out the image.
Trying to discern
the shape
of the face
staring back at me.
In the waiting: Do not forget his great faithfulness
At the end of the year it can be easy to start focusing on the year to come. 2019 is only a few days away, after all, and it seems wise to start planning and thinking about what is to come.
Especially, if you are in a time of waiting. It can be easier to forget about the year that has passed in pain and waiting, and instead focus on believing and hoping again for the year ahead.
Yet this hope and belief is grounded in a knowledge of the one who holds your hopes and dreams, ‘in the waiting’. And it is good to remind yourself of the faithfulness of the one who holds you.
Continue reading “In the waiting: Do not forget his great faithfulness”In the Waiting: Find strength in joy
When the angel first appears to Mary her first reaction is not joy! In fact, one version of the account in Luke says she was “greatly troubled” and another says she was “thoroughly shaken.”
The angel has to reassure her and tell her “not to be afraid.”
In fact, the reaction from Mary followed this pattern: fear, questions, and then acceptance.
Continue reading “In the Waiting: Find strength in joy”In the Waiting: Hold on to Hope
The birth of Jesus is not the end of the story. Yes, it is the advent, the arrival that we celebrate at Christmas. But this baby still had to live, he had to grow and learn, he had to start his ministry, he had to gather his disciples, he had to teach, he had to suffer and he had to die.
And there was persecution and challenges right from the start. The second chapter of Matthew details the jealous vendetta of King Herod against this newborn child.
Continue reading “In the Waiting: Hold on to Hope”In the depths
I notice it already,
the shortness
of breath
the tightness
in my chest
I don’t want to venture
below
the surface
In the waiting: slow down
My youngest daughter decided she was going to read the bible. We suggested she start with the new testament, and after a short while reading she exclaimed, “there’s a lot of babies in this story.”
She had been reading the gospel of Matthew which lists the lineage of Jesus. Starting from Abraham, through David, to his father Joseph. As the passage itself says, there are 14 generations from Abraham to David, and 14 generations from David to the Babylonian exile, and then 14 more generations from the exile until Jesus. As my daughter said, “That’s a lot of babies!” There is very long time between the promise of the Messiah and the arrival of him.
