Get the lights up outside. Get the Christmas Tree up and decorated. Decorate the rest of the place. Write, address, and mail the Christmas Cards. Go out and buy all the Christmas gifts for family and friends, then wrap them.
Go to all the Christmas gatherings and parties and enjoy them with family and friends.
Get ready for the ones you are hosting or the ones you need to bring food.
This season has a lot of additional things to do on top of the regular busyness of life, doesn’t it?
It’s a time of joyful anticipation, but also a time of a lot to get done.
Sometimes it seems impossible.
Last Wednesday I got a call from my cousin letting me know my aunt had what she thought was a stroke and was taken to the hospital.
In a split second all the busyness of things I was working on didn’t matter.
Then Friday a friend texted me asking for help.
Again, in a split second all the busyness of things didn’t matter.
“…for nothing will be impossible for God." Luke 1:37
This coming Sunday is both the Fourth Sunday of Advent and Christmas Eve.
In the Gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, the Angel Gabriel comes to the Virgin Mary to tell her about what is going to happen…through the Holy Spirit she will conceive and give birth to the Son of God.
After telling Mary everything, Gabriel ends with the verse above – nothing
is impossible for God.
Even when life brings crazy busyness, unexpected illness, difficult situations, or loss, with God, nothing is impossible.
We find we have the grace we need, and we persevere through.
My aunt is home, it wasn’t a stroke.
My friend persevered through a painful day.
Stopping to care for them… God’s grace blessed us.
Let this Advent Gospel story remind you of this, especially these last busy days before Christmas.
Many blessings to all as we move through this last full week of Advent!