Sunday 24th of Dec
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’”
Matthew 1:18-25
With Christmas now upon us and gratitude in our hearts, we are invited with St Joseph to reflect on our Advent journey and how Jesus has come to be born in our hearts over the past four weeks. We have been preparing our hearts for Jesus’s coming by staying awake and preparing the way, just as Joseph did.
Joseph had hesitations about his involvement in God’s plan, but ultimately, he surrendered to God’s will. It is God’s will that Jesus be born in our hearts this Christmas, even in our hesitations and uncertainty. It is God’s will that love be stronger than hate, peace stronger than war, faith stronger than doubt, and boldness stronger than fear. In the coming of Jesus, God desired to be with us: One with us. May we open our hearts to the outpouring of his love and presence upon us this Christmas.