“Sometimes it’s the little things that mean the most: the song of a bird, a warm breeze blowing through the trees, a friendly voice on the other end of a telephone, a note written by a friend to us when we need encouragement, the wag of a dog’s tale as we come home from a hard day at work. These things are intangible – we cannot put a price tag on what they mean to us or how they help us to feel abiding peace even in the midst of turmoil.” – Heather Perkins

This reflection is so true. I don’t know about you but when major things happen I find it easy to deal with them; it’s the crazy little things that put us over the edge. It is also true that the little things help us through difficult times. I think of it as God whispering care and concern for us through these “little” experiences.

“ I believe that this is what our God speaks to us. This is God’s ‘Happy New Year’ to us. Instead of simply working hard all by ourselves on some resolutions that we hope will change us into better people, we want to come before our winter God and offer ourselves to him, believing in his mercy, healing, and refreshment, trusting that his touch is what we most need, and that this touch is a pure, free gift. We do need to take action in our lives and to try to break old habits and attitudes that keep us from gospel living but we cannot force this to happen; indeed, it cannot happen without the grace of God active in our hearts. Just as the waiting, brown earth cannot force the snow to fall so, too, we cannot force the inner change we so long for. We can only be open, ready, waiting, yearning, and believing that God yearns the same for us and will grace our needy lives if we are receptive to the gift being offered to us.”-  Joyce Rupp

Instead of making resolutions that we won’t keep, pause for a while and ask God,

“Where do I need to grow?”. Take the time to listen. God will guide each one of us on the path that we need to grow.

“You have to be taught the way of peace, the way of love, the way of non-violence. In the religious sense, in the moral sense, you can say that in the bottom of every human being, there is a spark of the divine. So you don’t have a right as a human to abuse that spark of the divine in your fellow human being… If you have someone attacking you, beating you, spitting on you, you have to think of that person. Years ago that person was an innocent child, an innocent little baby. What happened? Did something go wrong? Did someone teach that person to hate, to abuse others? You try to appeal to the goodness of every human being and you don’t give up. You never give up on anyone.” – Congressman John Lewis

As I was thinking and praying about my reflection today, this quote came up. Congressman John Lewis was beaten for his beliefs but it did not make him a bitter man. He, like Jesus prayed for his persecutors and became an activist for peace. He worked for justice. We need more people in our country especially our media to stop the violent rhetoric and become sowers of mercy, peace and justice.

“ Close your eyes and just imagine the clean, white fluffy snow softly falling, covering all the drab spots of deadness on the earth. See that same soft, clean whiteness fall into your heart. Feel it heal the wounds, making clean your dreams and your hopes. Hear the God of new beginnings speak to you about the fresh start being offered.

It is this ‘God of freshness’ who encourages our journey. If we are to walk into the new year hopefully, we need to look at God as well as at ourselves. When we look to the Scriptures, we learn how much God desires new beginnings for us. This is a constant theme that runs through the sacred word. We here again and again that God refreshes, renews, heals, blesses, makes whole, cleanses what has become mired, clears what has become blurred, restores what has died, recovers what has gone astray. Yahweh speaks in Isaiah and tells us that there is no need to recall the past… I am doing a new deed… now I am revealing new things to you… for past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from your eyes. At the beginning of the new year, we can hear Yahweh saying not only in Isaiah but in our own lives as well:

‘Come now, let us talk this over… Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool’ (Is 1:18).” – Joyce Rupp

“ Herod is a guy we know, a coward who appears secure in his status and power but is desperately afraid of losing it. We know what’s coming, the slaughter of the infants in Bethlehem, the beheading of John the Baptist. And all because a man fears losing his position and facing social shame. The magi can read a man better than most, and their discernment, their recognizing that something is not right with Herod despite his words of encouragement, saves the life of the infant Jesus. As they avoid returning to Herod and find ‘another way,’ the magi move God’s salvation story along.

Epiphanies are not easy on us. It can hurt to recognize the lie behind another’s words. When I suffered an accident that severely limited my mobility, a person I considered a friend ignored me completely. Just four words –‘How are you doing?’-would have helped. But nothing for weeks, and then a text after I had recovered: ‘You can always count on me.’ Those words stung because he had just demonstrated that they were not true. I could no longer trust him, and I needed to pray over it and move on.

This betrayal reminded me that our world is one of darkness and pain, and that we need the light of Christ to guide us. He shows us what is possible when we let go of fear, neuroses, and all the idols we cling to for false security. When we need it most, Christ will provide another

way.” – Kathleen Norris

Wow, Kathleen hit the nail on the head. How true. She brought the idea of finding another way in a different light. I’m sure there are people in our lives that have let us down.

I remember when people who were not happy with my entering the convent, said to my mother, “Aren’t you upset?” She said, “ No, because God will be faithful to her.” 

In the darkness God will be our light!