grief and light

Good evening friends,
As the details keep flowing out of Connecticut it's hard to imagine the situation or know what to do. Some horror is too deep for words. This is not God's will; it's not a test of faith for the families. It is pure and simple a tragedy with no easy explanation. Our role as Christians is to pray for strength and comfort for those who grieve.


In the midst of the darkness that surrounds us, God's love in Jesus Christ breaks in. Our reading today takes us to a small town with a bad reputation. God chose a young woman in this town to be the mother of Jesus. We see here and in the verses that follow that Mary was brave, faithful and open. She also had questions about what God was doing. Even though she didn't know everything that lay ahead, and even though her "worst case scenario, self-protective instincts must have been going off, she says "yes" to God. With all we know now about how deep God's love goes, how can we say "yes" today too?

God bless,
Sam


Luke 1:26-38
²⁶In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” ²⁹But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

³⁴Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” ³⁵The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. ³⁶And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. ³⁷For nothing will be impossible with God.” ³⁸Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.