Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
IS 25:6-10A
PS 23:1-3A, 3B-4, 5, 6
MT 15: 29-37
As the prophet Isaiah proclaimed,
On this mountain the LORD of hosts
Will provide for all peoples...
As the Psalmist wrote,
I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
As Jesus spoke,
“My heart is moved with pity for the crowd...
I do not want to send them away hungry...”
^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^
Three years ago, as I reflected on these same scripture passages for this same Advent series, my thoughts
were drawn to the problem of scarcity and the abundance that is Christ Jesus. Today, as I reflect on these
scripture passages, my thoughts are drawn to the problem of fear, and to my obligations to overcome that
fear, in light of all that the Lord has promised me.
Friendship, care, hospitality, abundance. The Lord has shared it all with me. Let me not be afraid, so that
I might do the same, in His image.
^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^_^
As an economist, I’ve learned the great potential and value of human freedom. A people who are free, the
discipline of economics teaches us, are a peaceful and a materially prosperous people.
As a Christian, I’ve learned that freedom is a Gospel theme. As Jesus declared in the Gospel of St. John,
“...the truth will set you free” (John 8:32). As St. Paul wrote to the Galatians, “It is for freedom that
Christ has set us free” (Gal. 5:1). The Gospels’ freedom though is different than economic freedom. The
Gospels’ freedom is not mere freedom of choice. The Gospels’ freedom is found when we truly accept that
we are created in God’s image, and then conform ourselves to that image. We experience the Gospels’
freedom, paradoxically, when we constrain ourselves; when we choose to not let fear overcome us; when we
bind ourselves in servitude to others and share our friendship, care, hospitality, and abundance - joyfully, in
the image of God.
Gracious and loving God, as You became my friend, through the incarnation of Your son; as You have shown
me radical care and hospitality; as You have promised abundance to me; help me to not be afraid of others.
Help me to become friends with strangers; to show radical care and hospitality to all; to share with others
the abundance available to me. In so doing, help me to experience the freedom of the Gospel, the freedom
that comes when I choose to not be afraid and bend my will towards You.
Friendship, care, hospitality, abundance. The Lord has shared it all with me. Let me not be afraid, so that
I might do the same, in His image.
Bonnie Wilson is Associate Professor of Economics in the Cook School of Business.
Every day during Advent, students, faculty, and staff from across the SLU community will share reflections on the intersection of the Scriptures of the day, the liturgical season of Advent, and their own lives.
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