Reading
Praise the Lord!
Let my whole being praise the Lord!
I will praise the Lord with all my life;
I will sing praises to my God as long as I live.
Don’t trust leaders;
don’t trust any human beings—
there’s no saving help with them!
Their breath leaves them,
then they go back to the ground.
On that very same day, their plans die too.
The person whose help is the God of Jacob—
the person whose hope rests on the Lord their God—
is truly happy!
God: the maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them,
God: who is faithful forever,
who gives justice to people who are oppressed,
who gives bread to people who are starving!
The Lord: who frees prisoners.
The Lord: who makes the blind see.
The Lord: who straightens up those who are bent low.
The Lord: who loves the righteous.
The Lord: who protects immigrants,
who helps orphans and widows,
but who makes the way of the wicked twist and turn!
The Lord will rule forever!
Zion, your God will rule from one generation to the next!
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 146 (CEB)
Reflection
Where do you see God working in the world today—at home? At school? At work? At church?
Where are the places where it feels harder to see God?
We may know the “right” answer is that God is everywhere, yet if we’re honest, it can be hard to see God in certain moments. When people are grieving or in pain, or when we look at the news or scroll through social media, we can find ourselves wondering, where is God?
This Advent, our family is taking time each day to reflect on where we see God in the world around us. During this first week, we are simply asking: Where did you see hope today? On the first day, it was a little hard to find answers. Yet, as we talked about what hope is—looking forward to or expecting a better tomorrow—our children started to notice hope around them in small but meaningful ways:
“My friends looking forward to Christmas presents.”
“My teacher had someone in her family die, and she’s been sad, but she smiled today.”
They may sound simple, but in the act of intentionally looking and noticing, they’ve begun to see God at work through glimpses of hope.
As you seek to make room for Jesus this season, keep your eyes and heart open to where God is working around you. You might even ask yourself:
- Where have I seen the hope of Jesus this week?
- How can I share hope with someone who might need it in the coming days?
Prayer
Ever-present God, on days when it’s harder to see you, remind me that you are always with me. Help me to notice you in the world around me. And work through me to bring hope to those in need this week. Amen.
