Second Week of Advent

How is Advent going in your homes? We've been on the road, so it has been a case of Advent interupted ;-) Saint Nicolas did make an appearance in Henderson Nevada on Friday night - we are a bit worried that he may have tripped over some bushes in unfamiliar territory!


We attended Holy Mass at a lovely parish where the priest reminded us to take a moment to place ourselves in the presence of God. I thought of Msgr. Doerfler, who always prefaced the Holy Mass with those words. It was only later that I found out he passed away that very morning. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him . May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

As I listened to the first reading (Isaiah 11:1-10), I thought it would be helpful to set the scene. Prior to the shoot springing from the stump of Jesse, there is massive, loud destruction. We talked about that later in the day, how our world often seems like the world in Isaiah's day and how easy it is to miss the beauty God places in our path along the way. So we played in the snow and appreciated the wonder of it all.

Week 2 Advent Wreath Prayer:

Let us pray:

O Lord, stir up our hearts that we may prepare for your only begotten Son, that through His coming, we may be made worthy to serve you with pure souls. Through the Same Christ our Lord. Amen.

If any of you are doing the Jesse Tree, please comment and let me know how it's going!

I'll close with a quote I found last week that really spoke to me and gave me joy, I pray it touches you as well!

In the peace of the Good Shepherd,
Beate


"The one true God, ‘the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,’ is not a God who is there in Heaven, unconcerned with us and our history, but he is the-God-who-comes. He is a Father who never stops thinking of us and, in the extreme respect of our freedom, desires to meet us and visit us; he wants to come, to dwell among us, to stay with us. His ‘coming’ is motivated by the desire to free us from evil and death, from all that prevents our true happiness. God comes to save us." ~ Papa Ben 12/06