Today’s Reflection
EVERY EXAMPLE OF GOODWILL proclaims Christ’s coming. Every genuine outbreak of “Christmas Spirit” speaks God’s blessing. Every gracious act of love, gesture of peace, and inkling of hope proclaims the witness of the shepherds. Each resounding experience of joy cries out with passion the reality of God’s creative and redeeming love. What a dark world this would be without Christ. What an empty festival of winter would remain if God had not so loved this world.
- Derek Maul
In My Heart I Carry a Star
From pp. 137-138, In My Heart I Carry a Star: Stories for Advent by Derek Maul. Copyright © 2008 by Derek Maul. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.
Today’s Question
Describe a recent encounter of a goodwill action, and thus, an encounter with Christ. Share your thoughts.
Today’s Scripture
As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.
Colossians 3:12, NRSV
This Week: pray for peace. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.
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This week we remember Stephen (December 26).
Lectionary Readings
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
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Helping Mom with the activities of daily life, going for a car ride. seeing skiers and new snow, helping Erich with school, taking Anneliese shopping, to doctors, and to church, sending emails to Jenny, Chris and friends, donating to causes where people are helped, sponsoring a child in Peru.
May peace not be just something we hope for but be a reality, with Christ in us and with the power of the Holy Spirit God can use us to bring peace to a troubled world. Lord, use us as instruments of your peace. In your name I pray, Amen.
Spending time with my nephew on Christmas night – away from the other family in the den – just listening to how he is doing, things he has been going through. There are times to “shoot the breeze”, and then there are times for intense listening.
Treating my family to a meal at the new neighborhood western food cafe and spending time with a cousin who just came back from New York are some of the ways of reflecting God’s love.
for some people we are the only people who many other people will ever get a glimpse of the Love of God from. We were put here primarily to demonstrate the extent of GOD’s love for all of humanity.
We also were put here to experience the Joy and Pleasure of basking in the love of GOD, and to offer this love to others.