6/6 We won’t achieve the perfection we dream of, but we can move towards it, inching towards a world that is kinder, more loving, more compassionate.

Where is Christ inviting you rejoice and dream this Advent?

5/6 In the darkest time of the year Advent invites us to look into the darkness and dream of the light that it cannot overcome. It encourages us to imagine the very best we can be in these dark times, so that we have a vision to work towards, something to aim for.

4/6 As I look around our world it’s tempting to see this as at best a beautiful fantasy, a dream that has no place in the harsh reality of a modern life that leaves no place for dreamers. Yet Advent is the season for dreamers. It calls us to risk dreaming. This is not an escapist fantasy.

3/6 "...for tyrants shall be no more, and scoffers vanish…and all be destroyed who are disposed to do evil…” It’s a promise to put those most in need in the forefront, to protect them and bring them to a place where their dignity will be respected and they will be truly valued.

2/6 This beautiful and consoling thought is taken up again today by the prophet Isaiah as he describes how God will transform the lives of his people, welcoming them home to a new place of safety. He writes: “The lowly will rejoice in the Lord even more and the poorest exult in the Holy One;...

5/5 He tells the story of the wise person who built their house on rock to remind us that it is the rock of his word and his teaching that will sustain us whatever storms we face.

Where are you being called to trust that Christ will bring his light into the heart of your dark times?

4/5 As we sit in our own dark times it’s a valuable message for us too. In the gospel Jesus shows us how we can keep on trusting in such times.

3/5 He knows that it is not easy for people who have lost everything to trust, yet he carries on with his message of hope. He carries on believing the promises God has made to the people will be fulfilled. Even in the darkest of times Isaiah’s message is to wait in hope for the light to return.

2/5 In today’s first reading Isaiah calls the people to keep trusting, regardless of appearances, in spite of all they have lost and suffered:

“Trust in the Lord for ever, for the Lord is the everlasting Rock…”

Isaiah calls the people to keep trusting in spite of all they have lost & suffered: “Trust in the Lord for ever, for the Lord is the everlasting Rock” He knows that it is hard for people who have suffered & lost everything to trust, yet he carries on with his message of hope.

6/6 Mary, Elizabeth, Zechariah & Joseph stayed open to the possibility of blessing even in hard, dangerous circumstances. They journeyed on trusting that if they lived with integrity they would receive the blessings God promised. Where are you discovering God’s blessing in these challenging times?

5/6 This is not a new situation, all through their challenging and difficult history the people of Israel believed in and sought God’s blessing even when it seemed very far from them.

4/6 That makes it harder to discover and acknowledge the blessings that God is still showering on us. Advent calls us to be open to the possibility of blessing even in times when all our instinct tells us to be wary.

3/6 Both readings offer us a glimpse of the Kingdom in our midst, of the blessings a loving God showers on us. It’s easy to believe in such blessings when our lives are relatively easy, when our societies feel stable and secure. But we live in times of great uncertainty, suffering and fear.

2/6 “On this mountain God will remove the mourning veil covering all peoples, & the shroud enwrapping all nations, God will destroy Death for ever. The Lord will wipe away the tears from every cheek…” In the the feeding of the 5000, Jesus makes that vision a reality for the crowds who follow him.

And the sad thing about that is that true happiness is in that inner work. We can still have the fun things, but just in proportion.

7/7 To even attempt that is admit the need to make hard choices, putting aside our own interests for others. Advent calls us to help make this vision a reality for today in whatever small ways we can.

Where are you being called to help make the kingdom a reality for those around you this Advent?

6/7 Advent is a wake-up call It compels us to notice the disparity between Isaiah’s vision and the word we live in. It invites us to ask ourselves what choices we can make in our lives to help make that vision a reality.

5/7 Isaiah’s vision is based on the hopes of generations of people of faith. More than that it’s based on the efforts of people of faith and goodwill, who acted with courage and integrity even when that seemed to go against their own best interests.