Deserts and parched lands

Isaiah 35: 1- 10

For the ancient Hebrew people, the desert was not only barren land but also the place where humankind encounters God. The sparse landscape and the absence of distractions, the dryness and lack of vegetation, all render the human heart more receptive to God's word and more dependent upon God's provident mercy. Thus, the desert, for all its seeming desolation, can actually be an experience of grace and place of spiritual renewal.

Our human condition in all its stark realities can sometimes leave us feeling like wanderers in a dry and lifeless land. Yet this is really a time God has the opportunity to move into our lives. Blessed are those who thirst...for justice, for a new world where the 'lion lies down with the lamb'. In our need, we cry out to God and begin to experience the outpouring of God's love....it may seem a trickle at first but in time, we experience his healing - in Christ he gives us himself and his very presence.

At a time like this, when the world seems upside down, we hold on to a hope that others cannot understand. It is not just a hope for ourselves - an inward looking one where 'me and mine' take center stage. It is a hope that embraces all of humankind...every creature formed by the Creator...maybe this Advent is a time to share that hope with those around us. In fact, it is sometimes better to share the gospel, with few words, with just our lives.