When we gathered this week to stay with the prophecy fulfilled in John the Baptist, themes of preparing and being prepared wove through our sharing. There was a hushed sense of God’s active involvement in preparing us for the further coming of wholeness (salvation) in us. While we each acknowledged our cooperation in this life time preparation of being restored to living from the wholeness which is ours, there is a deep reverence for the Mystery of God’s workings and ways.
Somehow in God’s coming to us and dwelling inside us, some kind of hidden mystery is at work that displays the glory of God in us. And somehow, someway that hidden transformation in us begins to provide a smoother path for God’s love and grace to be accessible to others who may be seeking it.
May there be gentleness, patience, and grace as you come again to prayer. May the kindness and nearness of our God be a sweet place to dwell as you listen to each other.
Luke 3:1-6 NRSV
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,
“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”
For Reflection and Prayer:
Was there a word, a phrase, image, or feeling that ‘shimmered’ as you listened? Allow it to land in your heart. Stay with it. Savor it.
Reflect on what you heard. What effect does it have on you? What meaning does it hold for you? What does the Holy Spirit seem to be conveying to you? Talk it over in your prayer.
Perhaps you want to draw or color your prayer or journal the conversation.
As the time of prayer comes to a close, share some moments of quiet with Jesus, simply resting safely in his presence.
