December 7th - Reflection

Isaiah 41:14-20 (NRSV)
God will not forget the poor of Israel

Do not fear, you worm Jacob,
you insect Israel!
I will help you, says the Lord;
your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
Now, I will make of you a threshing sledge,
sharp, new, and having teeth;
you shall thresh the mountains and crush them,
and you shall make the hills like chaff.
You shall winnow them and the wind shall carry them away,
and the tempest shall scatter them.
Then you shall rejoice in the Lord;
in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.

When the poor and needy seek water,
and there is none,
and their tongue is parched with thirst,
I the Lord will answer them,
I the God of Israel will not forsake them.
I will open rivers on the bare heights,
and fountains in the midst of the valleys;
I will make the wilderness a pool of water,
and the dry land springs of water.
I will put in the wilderness the cedar,
the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive;
I will set in the desert the cypress,
the plane and the pine together,
so that all may see and know,
all may consider and understand,
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
the Holy One of Israel has created it.

Reflection
I read in the newspaper the other day of a man who came into the homeless shelter to get out of the cold. He was in his 50's and made a statement to such that he was a throw away of society. He didn't understand why he was still alive.

But these are the very angels of God. There are the ones that God understands and came for in this world.

Here is a precious life to God. A life he created and sustains. A life that comes out of exile to return to God. A life to return body and soul. And here is a life we are to love and serve as children of God. A life that we pick up and shelter and become friends with that explore the Word made flesh together. Here is a life for you and I to serve and love. Here in this life is the face of God.

A mission to find God from both directions and all from the inside out. Thanks be to God!

Prayer
Lord, as we wait your coming, let us look around and see your face in need and serve you daily. --- Amen