Love has come to walk among us

This Christmas eve, I am struck by the fact that the Holy Family are a sharp contrast to so many of us celebrating the birth of the Child. We in the western world lack for nothing, but they were poor travellers with no place to lay their heads. Then they became refugees, running from a mad king who was afraid that the Child might usurp his powers. These days, we all know about refugees, and some of us are afraid of them.

But that little family and its holy Child call us to a simple awareness of those among us who are frightened, far from home, alone, struggling, or looking for a friend -- we who have so much are invited to be generous, warm-hearted and loving. Do we have more than a stable to offer?

Today, I was listening to Michael W. Smith's Christmas Album and was struck by a line in his Anthem for Christmas: "Love has come to walk among us/ Christ the Lord is born this night."

Let's not fail to notice the love that waits to be noticed as it walks quietly among us, or to live it and be it ourselves. That's why Christ came -- to call us to BE love, so that love walks among us always.

Thanks to Alwyn Barry for posting this YouTube video (with Chris Monson's fitting images) so that you all can hear the Anthem for Christmas for yourselves. It's an inspiring and inspired piece of music.

Have a blessed Christmas, my friends, and BE love all year long.

A simple Christmas prayer

What is Christmas? For some, it's an opportunity to get out of the cold and darkness for a midwinter vacation. For others, it's an excuse to buy presents and have parties. And for those who don't get so caught up in the hoopla, or the over-analysis of "God-with-us," it's a time to reflect on life's blessings, and to help those who are not so blessed.

Whether you believe in the Christ of Christmas or not, this season is often the time of miracles, of people digging deep, and the impossible coming true.  

 

My Christmas prayer is simply that you may feel God's life in you, a life that quietly and humbly frees others to be truly and joyfully human:

Jesus,
You came to free us
from apathy, isolation, ignorance and selfishness.
Your life calls us
to recognize God's life flowing in us,
and in each person we meet.
Thank you for our blessings,
and for our challenges.
Show us,
in the year ahead,
the places
where our love
can make a difference.
+Amen

From our house to yours, a very Merry Christmas, Joyeux Noël, Frohe Weihnachten, Buon Natale, Wesołych Świąt, Feliz Navidad, Maligayang Pasko, Prettige Kerstfeest, Nollaig Shona... and I wish I knew how to type in all the other languages, too... God bless you!

A good Christmas message

My uncle sent me the link to this video. If all politicians were like Brad Wall, giving thought to peace on earth, single-minded trust, perfect love, hope, gratitude, and doing our part to share our blessings with the less fortunate, this world would be a much different place. Well done, Premier Wall. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you, too.