Advent Daily Reflection 2020-12-12
1 Peter 2.5-9
like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in scripture: “See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner,” and “A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
When reading this scripture, the words that spoke to me were "living stone" & "house." I love knowing that we are each alive but rooted in the Lord and that he is our foundation. Implicit in being alive is that you are ever changing and evolving, and in this scripture we see an image of a house being built with these individual stones. Each coming together for a greater good. In the past 9 months I have thought a lot about a house. In this time when we are confined to our, sometimes tiny, apartments we call home in order to keep ourselves and our neighbors safe from a virus, it can feel isolating. In isolation I am comforted by the image of us working together for something much greater- building a house and a world that is covid free. I want to also be grateful for my little home, though it may only be 500 square feet- it has provided me safety in this uncertain time. I know there are many in our city and our country facing houselessness. While we have retreated to our safe havens, and many have complained, we must not forget what a privilege this is.
While we have been isolated, I have thought a lot about what the house God is building will look like. Covid is not the only challenge we face as a nation. We have seen first hand that white supremacy, racism, bigotry, & sexism are flourishing in our country. It is important to remember that, in our isolation, grief, anger, sadness, and frustration, we can and must work together to create the house God calls us to be a part of. A house full of light pushing out the darkness. While I have often felt great darkness around us this year, I am grateful that my eyes have been opened to the realities of my fellow Americans. In this time of advent I am expectant and continue to pray for our country and communities. I pray God will reveal to us his vision for the house he is building so that we may shine a light in the darkness. I see glimpses of this in our community at Holy Apostles, and am grateful to be a part of the work happening here. Through Sacred Ground groups over the summer, supporting undocumented families with rent support, and providing school supplies to children at PS 15, I feel connected to God's heart, and pray we continue to seek out these opportunities to serve as a community, and individually.