Welcome to St. Luke’s 2021 Advent Blog
From November 28 thru December 24 parishioners of St. Luke’s will be sharing their reflections on the daily readings.
We invite you to click on any of the reflections below and enjoy.
Ponderings on Christmas Day
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Ponderings on Christmas Day December 25, 2021 Isaiah 62:6-12 | Titus 3:4-7 |Luke 2:(1-7)8-20 | Psalm 97 “…But Mary treasured all these words, and pondered them in her heart.” Luke’s lyrical account of the Birth of Jesus, and its reference...
Live fully into this love relationship with God.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Live fully into this love relationship with God. December 24, 2021 Isaiah 9:2-7 | Titus 2:11-14 | Luke 2:1-14(15-20) | Psalm 96 Today’s readings proclaim God’s gift of divine love that has been, is, and always will be with us. To start us...
“His Name is John”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “His Name is John” December 23, 2021 Psalm 25: 1-14 | Malachi 3:1-5 | Luke 1:57-66 A controversy. Elizabeth and then her husband Zechariah find themselves being challenged by some traditionalist priests over what to name their child. What’s...
Mary voices radical humility
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Mary voices radical humility December 22, 2021 Psalm 113 or Psalm 122 | 1 Samuel 1:19-28 | Luke 1:46-56 As a chorister, I grew up singing the Magnificat, the song of Mary, whenever we did Evensong. I still sing it every Sunday at my church...
Love Story
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Love Story December 21, 2021 Psalm 33:1-5, 20-22 | Song of Solomon 2:8-14 | Luke 1:39-45 Don’t you love a great story? The men of Theology on Tap have been talking a lot about stories this past year. We’ve focused our attention on...
Notice the miracles in the smallest of changes
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Notice the miracles in the smallest of changes. December 20, 2021 Psalm 24, Isaiah 7:10-14; Luke 1:26-38 “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it." Psalm 24 proclaims the majesty and wonder of God and all His creation. I most clearly...
Restore Us
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Restore Us December 19, 2021 Micah 5:2-5a | Hebrews 10:5-10 | Luke 1:39-45 (46-55) |Canticle 15 (or 3) or Psalm 80:1-7 The birth of Christ brought a much-needed light into the world. Each year our collective Christmas tradition includes...
Fall Down on Your Knees. Fall Down on Your Knees.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Fall Down on Your Knees. Fall Down on Your Knees. December 18, 2021 Psalm 25:1-14 | Malachi 3:1-5 | Luke 1:57-66 I’m going off script -- my apologies for not writing about today’s Advent readings. Because I want to share with you something...
Selah…Selah…Selah… Bask in God’s presence and love
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Selah…Selah…Selah… Bask in God’s presence and love December 17, 2021 Psalm 67 | Isaiah 56:1-8 | John 5:33-36 Psalm 67 - Partial quote “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah” “Let the nations be...
“Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” December 16, 2021 Psalm 30 | Isaiah 54:1-10 | Luke 7:24-30 In the season of Avent, we begin our liturgical year and look forward to the coming joy of Christmas. We celebrate...
The Work of Christmas
Home > Advent Blog 2021 The Work of Christmas December 15, 2021 Psalm 85:8-13 | Isaiah 45:5-8(9-17)18-25 | Luke 7:9-23 I am the Lord, and there is no other; there is no God but Me. Isaiah 45: 5 These words are a continuing refrain in the 45th chapter of...
Imagine a world without shame.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Imagine a world without shame. December 14, 2021 Psalm 34:1-8 | Zephaniah 3:1-2, 9-13 | Matthew 21:28-32 Reading today’s Psalm, two sections jumped out at me. The first was line 5: “Look upon him and be radiant, and let not your faces be...
“You’re not the boss of me.”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “You’re not the boss of me.” December 13, 2021 Psalm 25:3-8 | Numbers 24:2-7,15-17a | Matthew 21:23-27 When trying to find inspiration for this blog assignment I found these 3 lines that kept bugging me and I had to figure out why: And when...
“Is a puzzlement.”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “Is a puzzlement.” December 12, 2021 Zephaniah 3:14-20 | Philippians 4:4-7 | Luke 3:7-18 | Canticle 9 Usually I enjoy puzzles: word, number, logic, jigsaw, a good mystery. If I’m to be honest, I waste a lot of time solving them. But the...
“Happy are those who saw you and were adorned with your love!”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “Happy are those who saw you and were adorned with your love!” December 11, 2021 Psalm 80:1-3,14-18, Sirach 48:1-11; Matthew 17:9-13 Well, gosh I want to be happy, I sure would like to be adorned with God’s love…how do I get me some of that?...
God will walk the path with you
Home > Advent Blog 2021 God will walk the path with you December 10, 2021 Isaiah 48:17-18 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, who teaches you for your own good, who leads you in the way you should go. The above words...
Every one of us can be a Saint Nicholas
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Every one of us can be a Saint Nicholas December 9, 2021 Psalm 145:1-4,8-13, Isaiah 41:13-20; Matthew 11:7-15 Advent is the season during which we prepare for the coming of the Great King, the Holy One of Israel. And most of us are pretty...
I knew I was listened to, a sacred listening that required no actual words.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 I knew I was listened to, a sacred listening that required no actual words. December 8, 2021 Psalm 103:1-10 | Isaiah 40:25-31 | Matthew 11:28-30 Growing up, I was welcomed at the neighborhood Catholic church, or at least I felt I was,...
Maybe you are a shepherd.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Maybe you are a shepherd. December 7, 2021 Psalm 50:7-15 | Amos 5:18-24 | Matthew 18:12-14 Here’s a familiar passage that most of us have heard many times- the story of the Good Shepherd. I’d like to bring it into a modern setting. A teacher...
God is with us.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 God is with us. December 6, 2021 Psalm 85:8-13 | Isaiah 35:1-10 | Luke 5:17-26 I am humbled by the scriptures for today. Each one is a description of how God made his presence known to his people. And what a perfect Advent message. Emmanuel,...
Love is contagious.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Love is contagious. December 5, 2021 Baruch 5:1-9 | or Malachi 3:1-4 | Philippians 1:3-11 | Luke 3:1-6 | Canticle 4 or 16 Paul to the Philippians: And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full...
The goodness and majesty of God.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 The goodness and majesty of God. December 4, 2021 Psalm 147:1-12 | Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26 | Matthew 9:35 — 10:1,5-8 As a teenager I often felt that many Bible readings were harsh and frightening. However, over time, I discovered inspiring...
“The deaf hear…” “The blind see…”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 “The deaf hear…” “The blind see…” December 3, 2021 Psalm 27:1-6, 17-18 | Isaiah 29:17-24 | Matthew 9:27-31 I turned 70 this past summer. And I’m still trying to wrap my mind around this reality. I find myself worrying about my memory. What...
Dad is my cornerstone.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Dad is my cornerstone. December 2, 2021 Psalm 118:19-24 | Isaiah 26:1-6 | Matthew 7:21-27 When I think about a cornerstone in my life, besides Christ, I would have to say that my Dad is my cornerstone. Dad was everything to me, and when he...
Psalm 23 – A Psalm of David “The Lord is my shepherd…”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Psalm 23 – A Psalm of David “The Lord is my shepherd…” December 1, 2021 Psalm 23 | Isaiah 25:6-9 | Matthew 15:29-39 I like to think of things in context, I also like to research interesting words and know what the definition is in the...
There is a sense of hopefulness while we wait.
Home > Advent Blog 2021 There is a sense of hopefulness while we wait. November 30, 2021 Psalm 72:1-8 | Isaiah 11:1-10 | Luke 10:21-24 I look forward to Advent. Without fail, every year, I am eager for Advent to begin. It might be my favorite time of year. I like...
Living into “The Present House of God”
Home > Advent Blog 2021 Living into “The Present House of God” November 29, 2021 Psalm 122: Song of Praise and Prayer for Jerusalem;Isaiah 2:1-5: The Future House of God;Matthew 8:5-13: Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant As I have done for over 20 years, I stepped...
There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars…
Home > Advent Blog 2021 There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars... November 28, 2021 Jeremiah 33:14-16 | 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 | Luke 21:25-36 | Psalm 25:1-9 It is the first Sunday in Advent. How are you feeling? This has been another year of...
