Advent
While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Luke 2:6-7
The Christmas story is filled with surprises. God comes to earth not as a full-grown, powerful king, but as a helpless, wiggly, red-faced newborn! He is born not in a palace, but in a stable with cattle and a sheep or two. His parents are not a “hot item,” but rather a poor, humble young couple. They come not from Rome or Jerusalem, but from an obscure village in a small country dominated by a foreign power. The first guests to arrive are not people of renown, but shepherds, a shabby and homeless lot.
A question to ask ourselves today is this: how open are we to the God of surprises? Do we stubbornly cling to our puny expectations, our preconceived ideas, our petty prejudices or do we allow ourselves to be swept off our feet by a God who gets a kick out of doing unexpected and astonishing things?
God of surprises, help me to be more open to the amazing things you are doing in my life and in our world.
Sr. Melannie Svoboda, S.N.D.
Originally published December 25, 2008
