1st Sunday of Advent

Daily Meditation: Jeremiah 33:14-16

I will raise up for David a just shoot. (Jeremiah 33:15)

Happy Advent! This season of waiting and preparation is just what we need to get ready to welcome the Lord at Christmas. Yet Advent can so quickly become filled with parties, gift buying, and card writing, as well as apprehension or fears concerning difficult family situations. So how can we better embrace this season and the grace God has in store for us? Today’s first reading gives us a beautiful image that can help us: “a just shoot” rising up to give us new life (Jeremiah 33:15).

Jesus, the true “just shoot,” wants to help us embrace a sense of peaceful waiting and joyful expectation in the midst of all the busyness and crowds. As we set aside time to be with him, he can help us lift our eyes to the heavens and ponder the star that is approaching Bethlehem and the empty manger that is waiting for the Savior.

He can also help us “prepare the way of the Lord” in our hearts (Luke 4:1) as we consider the ways in which our lives have become cluttered with self-centeredness or anger or pride. Jesus, the “just shoot,” can give us the grace to see our sins and our anxieties more clearly and to bring them to him for forgiveness and healing.

If you’re feeling the weight of the expectations and perhaps the tensions of the coming weeks, you’re not alone. Say yes to God’s invitation—to the disarming, gentle, “just shoot” that can bring you new life. Say yes to the One who longs to give you rest in the midst of the pressures in your life.

This Advent, commit yourself to trusting in Jesus, the “just shoot.” Let him meet you where you are, lead you to deeper surrender, and make you ready to receive his presence at Christmas!

“Lord, your ways are so different from my ways. Help me to receive all the grace you have for me this Advent.”

Psalm 25:4-5, 8-10, 14
1 Thessalonians 3:12–4:2
Luke 21:25-28, 34-36