Advent Devotional

Matthew 25: 31-40 New International Version 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Blind Man Where did you come from? Before you leaned against the wall Of that jaded discount store? Did people see your cane And pass you in disdain? How long did you sit there, Before anyone spoke? Asked you a question? Have you been here before? Have you sat in this heat? What is that you said? You need to borrow a phone? You can use mine. You need some water, You can have mine. Oh there’s your ride, Have a nice day friend. I wrote these lines in July of 2019 long before the pandemic ever struck. It was a record of my interaction with a man that I noticed sitting outside a big box store. He was sitting on the hot concrete leaning against the wall. As I passed, there was a whisper in the back of my mind, an itch, or as I like to think, the Holy Spirit. I shopped for the items on my list, then on a whim bought a bottle of water. I usually don’t buy water, because I think the bottles are a threat to our environment. I started back to my car with my bags. There he was, the man, still sitting in the heat. His red and white cane was across his lap as he waited. I sat down next to him, no easy feat with my arthritic back, but it allowed me to engage with him and find out if he needed anything. This story is about one small encounter, but this meeting made a small difference, in one person’s life. It is moments like this, when we respond to that small quiet voice, the whisper of the Holy Spirit, that we experience the hope and love of the advent season. Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the gift of the Holy Spirit, guide through life’s struggles, help us to know how to be your hands in this cruel world and experience love, hope and peace during this Advent season. Amen