Today’s scripture: Luke 1:26-38 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (David Zier):
Sometimes we hear God speaking to us, telling us that something is happening or will happen in our life and that can appear perplexing or like something out of the blue. Has that ever happened to you?
One of those moments for me happened when I was in Toronto in the 1990s for business, working on a fascinating project to help people with HIV/AIDS. As I would leave the office to go back to the hotel each day, I would see children that looked scared and alone, and hungry, trying to hide as if no one could see them. After a few days, I asked someone in the office about those kids. I was told, “They live on the streets and come out at night. There are many of them and the city could be dangerous at night.”
Well, I really did not hear that last part. I could only remember the looks in the eyes of those children. I felt I was being called to do something. So one night at around midnight I went to a local market and gathered sandwiches and bottled water, apples and oranges. I walked around and dropped food off at places where I saw the children in open doorways or on grates. I was not well received, certainly not trusted, but I just dropped off the food and went on my way.
When I was in seminary I did several projects around homelessness, and in my internship at West Richmond Friends, I worked with Open Arms, a coalition of churches pulling resources together to make a bigger impact on helping those who were slipping through the cracks. I worked with dozens and dozens of individuals and families, sometimes in circumstances that were not easy to see or hear.
I don’t want you to think I am somehow “so good” for doing what I have done. This is really nothing. So much more is needed. I still feel God laying something on my heart that I have barely tapped into. It seems there is always something to do or someone in need. Where is this leading? I like the words of Mary from today’s scripture. “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”
Thought for the day: What is it that God is laying on your heart? What does it mean for you to do and be as Christ?
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.