Thus says the Lord:
You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah
too small to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel;
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient times. (Mi 5:1)
No one likes to be the “puny” person, the one treated like a punk, the one without any kind of power or authority. We hate it when others are over us and we do anything we can to get out of those situations where we feel powerless or not in control.
One can imagine the effect of the words from the Prophet Micah upon the people of Bethlehem-Ephrathah. They were part of the people of Israel but were too small to be of any concern to anyone. Their destiny was always decided for them by others. They had no real say in any matters of importance.
And yet, from their tiny roots would come forth the Messiah. It is like a Cinderella story of ancient times.
We have been preparing the past few weeks for the coming celebration of Christmas this Friday. In our preparation, we have had the opportunity to take stock of our own lives and to ask ourselves the question: What does the Lord want from us?
He wants us to prepare. He wants us to be ready for His return. He wants us to live as one family, united in love.
Have we done everything that we could do this Advent season?
FAITH ACTION: What still needs to be done for your spiritual preparation for Christmas? Make a firm resolution to accomplish all that you need to do these next few days.
You are cordially invited to our Nine Lessons & Carols which takes place at 6:00 p.m. this evening, Sunday, December 20th at St. Thomas More Church. We hope to see you there!