December 6, 2024
by Barbara Dilly
Creighton University - retired
click here for photo and information about the writer

Friday of the First Week of Advent
Lectionary: 179

Isaiah 29:17-24
Psalms 27:1, 4, 13-14
Matthew 9:27-31

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Reconciliation and Healing

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Holding Hands with God: Pondering Isaiah

I am drawn to the words of Isaiah today, “Those who err in spirit shall acquire understanding, and those who find fault shall receive instruction.”  I understand this passage to be prophetic of the coming of the Christ, therefore it is fitting we reflect on it during Advent. Indeed, during Advent, we look to a time when the lowly will find joy in the Lord and the poor will rejoice in the Lord. We await a time when tyranny and arrogance will be no more. We long for the days of justice for all and we await a time of reverence and awe in the God of Abraham. Just as the people of Isaiah’s time, we seek to hear the word of the Lord and see through the gloom and darkness that surrounds our lives. We also seek a time when those who find fault with the lowly and the just, and are on the alert to do evil, shall receive instruction from the God of the house of Jacob.

So, how beautiful are the Psalmist’s passages for today. We read these words with confidence that the Lord will enlighten the eyes of his servants here and now, in all times and places. As in the days of Isaiah, our blindness is not just a form of ocular trauma. It is a form of spiritual trauma, leaving us to live in a form of gloom and darkness. But during Advent, we believe and wait for the Lord with courage, trusting that our Lord shall come with power and enlighten us so that we may see with more than just our eyes. At this time of Advent, we can look forward to acquiring spiritual understanding according to our faith. I pray that we will not be afraid of the light that reveals the spiritual truths we seek to understand the loveliness, the bounty, and the power of the Lord.

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