Sunday-.Psalms are replaced by Luke for December 6. It is the great song of Zechariah in Luke. Few words grab me in Scripture such as his evocation of tender mercies.The power of god gets expressed in a kind-hearted, accessible way, the birth of a child.Tender is quite mild, as it usually means from the gut, and mercy is a root for a word for charity. God’s inner being is demonstrated in the miracle of new life that will become the Baptist.
Monday- Faith is a way of looking at what there is to be seen in the world and in ourselves, and hoping, trusting, believing against all evidence to the contrary that beneath the surface we see there is vastly more that we cannot see.-from Secrets in the Dark
Tuesday-“We should ask for the grace to weep for this world, which does not recognise the path to peace. To weep for those who live for war and have the cynicism to deny it,” the Argentine pontiff said, adding: “God weeps, Jesus weeps”.
Wednesday-Gratitude has a way of transforming our approach to life into one that is more open-hearted, generous, and joyful. Rather than moving through our day feeling cynical or burdened, we can consciously choose our thoughts. This doesn’t mean that we have to offer gratitude for injustices or abuse, we are always called to resist those. But it does mean we might be able to tap into greater joy to replenish us for those moments when we do need to fight for dignity and kindness. Gratitude overflows into joy and makes us feel connected to something bigger than ourselves.
Thursday-To the home of peace/to the field of love/to the land where forgiveness and right relationship meet we look, O God,/with longing for earth's children/with compassion for the creatures/ with hearts breaking for the nations and people we love./Open us to visions we have never known/strengthen us for self-givings we have never made/delight us with a oneness we could never have imagined/that we may truly be born of You/makers of peace.:John Philip Newell
Friday-Jer. 33:14-16-God breaks into the Israelites and our fearful realities with a word of promise about the future. "The days are coming," says God, "when my justice and righteousness will prevail." God beckons us to open up our imaginations to what God is doing and will do in the future. Justice will reign and rulers and all people will participate in God's righteousness, humbly living with one another in a just and loving relationship. The waiting of Advent is not simply making the best of a bad situation but trusting in the creative and redemptive purposes of God. Trusting that God has more in store for us than any Christmas gift can offer. "The days are surely coming," when God's peace, love, wholeness, and mercy will be the reality in which we all partake.(From God Pause)
Saturday-"If in your lifetime the only prayer you offer is Thanks, that would suffice," wrote medieval German mystic Meister Eckhart. I find thanking another is an act of humility; I admit I'm not self-sufficient. Ira Kent Groff
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