Verses:
Malachi 3:1-4
Luke 1:68-79
Philippians 1:3-11
Luke 3:1-6
Theme: God arrives in places of poverty in our lives.
Prayer:
‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.’ (NASB)
‘you’re blessed when you’ve lost it all. God’s kingdom is there for the finding…” (The Message)
“The gospels paint us beautiful portraits of how Our God comes to us in the midst of great poverty. The age of Elizabeth, Gabriel’s annunciation to Mary, no room in the inn, enemies out to get the newborn, all surround the central mystery – our God is faithful. Our God’s fidelity is not only not limited by great poverty, it is most apt in places of great poverty. The way the nativity happened then can tell us a great deal about the “style” of our God. And, it can open our eyes and our expectation to the places of great poverty in our lives now. Whenever I ask, “How can this be a place of promise?” or “How can I expect God to be present in this mess?” I am being invited to experience the mystery of the Incarnation in my life. Eventually, I begin to look for and to really anticipate special intimacy with Jesus in the difficult, challenging, painful, empty, power-less situations of my life. If I desire to find intimacy with God in all things, I’ll pay special attention to the poverty places of my life.”
– creighton.edu/collaborativeministry/advent
