Are you taking this time of Advent to prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? I know that you feel there are presents to buy and cards to send but stop a moment to figure out what is really important. The thing that most people want at this time of the year is love in all its many shapes and forms. It could be fellowship for someone who is experiencing a dark moment in their lives. It could be a text message to someone who is searching for a guardian angel. It could be a simple act of letting someone into the traffic line. It could be a smile as you pass someone in your building. The fact is that we all need to feel loved and this is an especially stressful time not only because we feel that we have so many obligations but because we are vulnerable. So often the holiday season brings up images and memories of unhappy moments. It is human nature that we dwell on the negative and we must fight to focus on the positive. Instead of harboring those disquieting memories, focus instead on what you enjoy about this time of the year. Look for the good. Look for the light. You know that you will find Jesus Christ when you do this. He is our light and He brings joy and love to our lives through his sacrifice. Jesus taught us that the future is best left to God our Father. Allowing our Father to guide everything that we do allows us to truly live a life filled with grace. It is the ultimate "present" at a time when we are rushing to buy the perfect gift. But we already have it in the grace that God has provided. Why not pass it on? The perfect gift that you can give to celebrate Jesus' birth is God's grace. Leading others to this magnificent gift should be our focus during Advent. Give it freely and often and know that God will continue to bless you. Only grace can move us to love God, and only God can give grace, through Christ, our Mediator. As we grow in our love of God, we are more likely to share our love with others. Let's make this Advent season a time of love.
Born during the turbulent era of the French Revolution, Saint Jeanne Jugan rose above hardship and a lack of formal schooling to become a profound vessel of Christ’s mercy. After losing her father at a young age and working through her youth as a kitchen maid and nurse, her life radically changed one freezing night when she encountered a blind, paralyzed elderly woman with nowhere to go. Jeanne carried the woman back to her own home, placed her in her own bed, and began a lifelong mission of radical hospitality. This act of profound love blossomed into the Little Sisters of the Poor , a thriving community dedicated to sheltering and honoring the destitute elderly. Despite later facing heavy trials—including being unjustly sidelined and stripped of her leadership by a controlling chaplain—Jeanne accepted her obscurity and exile with a joyful spirit, resting her complete trust in God's hidden providence until her death in 1879. In our daily lives, Saint Jeanne Jugan invites us to lo...
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