One of the great blessings I have in my pastoral ministry is that I do a lot of one-on-one community work. I get to meet and greet and help and learn from people who live near the church and participate in the church's ministries and worship. I try to help them with thier real life needs such as food, shelter and spiritual care and in return they tell me their stories. Many of these folks are the very ones that we pass by every day on street corners and in store lines. They don't stand out, they don't always rise to the top, they often times simply exist day to day. But what is such a blessing is they share wonderful stories of journeying through life...the hard times, the good times and the God-times. It is the stories they tell that allow me to see God working in their lives, and through them I see God working in mine and those I tell, and so it goes on.
It strikes me that Mary and Joseph had stories to tell too. Stories of angels and shepherds, stories of prayer and praise. Stories of shame and confusion, stories of tough decisions and relational losses. How many people, I wonder, stopped to listen to their stories? How many people in providing for the needs they must have had as poor and homeless travelers, were moved and changed by their stories? How much more did they hear about God's great promise than even the accounts we have today? How might we learn of God's will and work in our lives if we listen to and tell each other's stories?
Let us pray: God bless us on the journey. Your name, Emmanuel, is God with us. We know that you are. Help us to listen to the stories of your poeple. Help us to find the compassion to see others as your children, and just as you worked such miracle in the lives of the Holy Family, let us better understand your holy work in the lives of those we meet every day. Amen
Saturday December 9th's reflection finds the holy family at http://psaltery.blogspot.com/2006/12/advent-week-1-saturday-posada.html
Happy Advent! Jennie
