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To the only wise GodSunday, December 21, 2008
Luke 1:34-38 And the angel said to her in reply, "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 called holy, the Son of God ... nothing will be impossible for God."
And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.
No spring now. It's dead winter. Darkness draws everything into sleep, hibernation, waiting and resting. Trying to face the wind I curl up my body, crunch up my face, hold my breath. And all I want to do is crawl into a warm corner and stay there for days and days. A baby has everything he needs inside his mother. Jesus is resting and growing and waiting within Mary. The Holy Spirit waits with him. The storms that blow around Joseph and Mary sound distant and don't seem dangerous to him. Jesus is growing stronger every day. Mary rests her hands on him and feels him moving, loves to feel him moving. The security of her baby makes her feel secure in spite of everything. God's baby is coming soon. And nothing's going to stop him. Let it be done to us according to your word, O Lord. Do not depart from us, do not abandon us, but stay with us forever. You will be with us always. |
On this shortest day of the year (12 hours and 7 minutes of sunlight), the wind blows bitterly out of the northwest, rushing over ice and snow-covered plains around Champaign. The soybeans and corn have long been harvested, and the ground waits silently for spring.