Reflection
The readings today give us two different images of faith. In the book of Daniel, we see violence all around us, and the only way it is tempered and destroyed is when good triumphs over evil, when faith becomes stronger than despair and calls one to place their trust in the irrefutable belief of a God who cannot be destroyed by evil. For those who believe in the power of God, they enjoy everlasting peace in the kingdom of God.
In the gospel, Luke presents us with a picture of creation which brings forth an abundant harvest if we only take the time to focus on a loving God who calls us to embrace a life of faith and trust in the one who holds the key to our happiness.
We are a few short days away from the end of the church year and the beginning of a new church year as the season of Advent fast approaches. If we are who we say we are as faithful members of the Body of Christ, eagerly anticipating the day we enjoy everlasting life with our Creator God in the kingdom prepared for us, maybe it would behoove us to reflect on what this kingdom is really supposed to look like.
While some may see the Kingdom of God as some heavenly realm in the sky above, I prefer to think that the Kingdom of God rests all around us right here in our midst.
I think we are being given a ‘wake-up call’ in the sense that we are challenged to take notice of the kingdom happening in our midst. I have been blessed to enjoy several ‘kingdom’ moments in the past weeks which have led me to believe even more that the greatness of the Kingdom of God is real and alive, right here, right now, which gives me blessed assurance that God is present in the chaos and beauty of our daily lives and calls us to pay attention to this blessing.
Some Kingdom moments for me have included the joy of celebrating with one of our inmates at prison ministry last evening as we send her forth to begin a new life on the outside in the coming days. She is looking forward to reuniting with her infant daughter for Christmas and a life filled with hope and promise. She also recently completed her full initiation into the Catholic church with the reception of Eucharist and Confirmation. She seriously prepared for full communion over the last several months in anticipation of living a faith-filled life with her family in the future. Another special moment came over the weekend as one of our twelve OCIA candidates became a first-time Daddy with the birth of his baby girl! The kingdom moments came as the members of the OCIA community came forward with congratulations and blessings for the new family. One of our overall purposes of OCIA is to build a community of faith whose focus is to live in a relationship with Jesus Christ in a way that is shared with their fellow journeyers. It was a super good feeling I enjoyed as I witnessed them being Jesus for one another, a real example of what God has in mind for the Kingdom of God in action!
In the midst of this season of Thanksgiving, I enjoyed another kingdom moment as I was blessed to celebrate an early holiday with my Kentucky family of twelve, including four youngsters who are growing up way too fast. The three oldest, ages eight to eleven years, all took turns in reading the meal blessing prayer. They took their role seriously and proudly as they blessed the feast before us. It was a special moment we all enjoyed. Of course, following the prayer, they quickly returned to the chaos and antics one would expect from children of their age!
They reminded us that to be human is very much a part of the kingdom of God here in our midst😊!
May we all continue to look for and enjoy the small and large kingdom moments as we embark on this season of prayer, reflection and anticipation along with the joy, hope, peace and love that leads us to be the kingdom people we are called to be. Happy New Year!
