Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of PEACE – Starts DAY 8 – Sun, Dec 5
The Peace of Wild Things — Wendell Barry
When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
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WEEK of PEACE: DAY 8
Sun, Dec 5
Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace —
in peace because they trust in you. — Isaiah 26:3
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them
light has shined.— Isaiah 9:2
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How do you cultivate peace through this practice of reading, reflecting, and lighting candles?
Perhaps the first truth is that by setting aside time to dive into any spiritual practice, you make a commitment to yourself and your loved ones. You honor yourself and others by setting apart time, space, and attention to be present to the inner, spiritual part of your life. You cultivate this aspect of wellbeing. You give it space and priority.
When you ignite the first and second candles, you focus on wellbeing in relationship to self and others. This simple act is one step in being present. Let the light of peace warm you. — Rev Gail
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No person, no place, and no thing has any power over us,
for ‘we’ are the only thinkers in our mind.
When we create peace and harmony and balance
in our minds, we will find it in our lives.
— Louise Hay
Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart.
— Kahlil Gibran
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of HOPE – DAY 7 – Sat, Dec 4
Be strong and take heart,
all you who hope in the Lord. — Psalm 31:24
Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path. — Psalm 119:105
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The final day of its solo vigil, this candle sums up the week’s theme of hope. Alone it burns. Signals to you. Symbolizes everything you can imagine that hope might offer or promise. Dares to challenge its surroundings and add its small brightness to the world. Reminds you that your life, your heart, your mind, your choices, your voice, and your acts make an impact. — Rev Gail
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A lot of people have their big dreams and get knocked down and don’t have things go their way. And you never give up hope, and you really just hold on to it. Hard work and perseverance. You just keep getting up and getting up, and then you get that breakthrough. — Robert Kraft
In the right light, at the right time,
everything is extraordinary. – Aaron Rose
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of HOPE – DAY 6 – Fri, Dec 3
… hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem. — Psalm 130:7
O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.
— Psalm 43:3
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By now, the Advent candle has melted down and lost some height, especially if it is used every day. Yet its flame flares and rises upright: one small beacon.
‘Grounded hope’ requires a sense of empowerment and agency. In response to whatever is happening in your life, you develop confidence that you can exert some control over whatever comes next. Hope includes this proactive, reality-based troubleshooting approach to the issues in life.
Writing about resiliency for Option B, Kravetz observes,
‘We start by asking, “Given what’s happened to me, what am I going to do about it? How can I build a better life on top of it?” Then we set goals for ourselves and find sources of motivation to pursue those goals.’ Perhaps events occur that are beyond your control. Perhaps circumstances include situations that involve your own choices and actions.
Scientist and change-maker Jane Goodall reflects, in her book Reason for Hope: A Spiritual Journey, “Each one of us matters, has a role to play, and makes a difference. Each one of us must take responsibility for our own lives, and above all, show respect and love for living things around us, especially each other.”
What plans might you make in response to whatever requires change in your life? Break your strategy into small do-able steps. Pace yourself. Set up the opportunity to succeed incrementally as you implement your strategy.
Look again at the candle. Focus on its capacity to change its surroundings and how it affects your perception of your world. Hope is achievable! — Rev Gail
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They say a person needs just three things to be truly happy
in this world: someone to love, something to do,
and something to hope for. – Tom Bodett
There’s a sorrow and pain in everyone’s life, but every now and then there’s a ray of light that melts the loneliness in your heart and brings comfort like hot soup and a soft bed.
– Hubert Selby, Jr.
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of HOPE – DAY 4 -Wed, Dec 1
For surely I know the plans I have for you,
says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm,
to give you a future with hope. —Jeremiah 29:11
Where is the way to the dwelling of light? — Job 38:18-20
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This solo candle lifts its presence as a guide. It shines into the season of waiting and preparing. It becomes a companion.
In day-to-day living, we probably don’t focus on our need for hope. Rather, we seek or rely on hope in times when you struggle.
Another strategy for cultivating hope, especially when you are experiencing challenges, is to find at least one relationship that remains supportive. Just one.
At first, people often respond in overwhelming numbers with tangible gestures of kindness in the wake of trauma or loss. Over time, that network of sympathy and outreach slows down. Yet your human need to foster hope is often a long-term approach to whatever situation has troubled or transformed your life. If you have one or more vital connections that continue to be present throughout your journey, this is often enough to cultivate hope.
Perhaps, on the other hand, you are that significant relationship or form of support for another person. It’s imperative to honor self-care boundaries, so that you maintain your own equilibrium when offering compassion to someone else. Yet realize, even when you set limits, that by caring and showing up consistently for another person, you make a difference. You help foster resilience in another life, as well as your own.
Maybe, in this Advent season, you receive someone else’s light. Or perhaps you offer your own to another. One way or another, hope burns. — Rev Gail
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Hope can be a powerful force.
Maybe there’s no actual magic in it,
but when you know what you hope for most
and hold it like a light within you,
you can make things happen, almost like magic.
– Laini Taylor
Listen to the inner light; it will guide you.
Listen to the inner peace; it will feed you.
Listen to the inner love; it will transform you.
— Sri Chinmoy
Advent Daily Devotional: WEEK of HOPE – DAY 3 -Tue, Nov 30
O hope of Israel, its savior in time of trouble,
why should you be like a stranger in the land, like a traveler turning aside for the night? — Jeremiah 14:8
Why is light given to one who cannot see the way,
whom God has fenced in? For my sighing comes likemy bread,
and my groanings are poured out like water. — Job 3: 23-24
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Shining a light doesn’t always mean dispelling the difficult truths it reveals. When building resilience, which feeds hope, researchers state that many people begin with an optimistic or idealized worldview. For instance, many folks originally believe that the world is safe, the world is good, and good things will happen for good people.
Often experiences of trauma, challenge, or loss dismantle such an overly-idealistic worldview. Lee Daniel Kravetz writes, “This can feel terrifying and painful, but it’s healthy to accept a new, more realistic perspective. The world is safe—but also unsafe. Good things happen to good people—but bad things do too. I am a good person—but that doesn’t protect me from trauma.” When you shine a light, and then examine what you discover there, and allow it to reframe your perspective, this may become a strength. Now you have created the framework that allows you to discover how you can be a change-maker.
Knowing what you’re facing or undertaking, you also know what needs to adapt or change. Thus you can begin to imagine and plan for how to create that transformation. Jane Goodall, who collaborated with Douglas Adams on The Book of Hope, states, “Hope is often misunderstood. People tend to think that it is simply passive wishful thinking: I hope something will happen but I’m not going to do anything about it. This is indeed the opposite of real hope, which requires action and engagement.”
One light can become the spark that starts a revolution. — Rev Gail
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You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope. — Thomas Merton
As we work to create light for others, we naturally light our own way.— Mary Anne Radmacher