Reflect
Core to the Christian Gospel for Franciscans is the realization that the God of the universe decided to enter into our world, first through creation itself (Gn 1), then through the Incarnation (Jn 1), not because of sin or the need to “pay a price,” but simply because that’s what love does. In “both Incarnations,” we are reminded that Christ is one who enters into our lives, and, thus, our own sufferings. We do not know why suffering exists, but the Christian message comforts us to know that we are not alone in our own dark nights of the soul.
Pray
Into the valley I decide to go
from the comforts of light on the mountaintop.
Everyone else went up—dusk dares me to go down.
I’ve felt your presence on the precipice edge,
in vibrant colors, in harmonious sounds.
I want to feel you in the darkness of the gulley,
in drab brown leaves, in lonely silence,
and know you still grieve with me.
Act
Consider coming back to the word with today as anxiety, depression, or grief arises. Emmanuel is the word for the mystery that God is with us.
