And Mary said,
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant....
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty..."
     Luke 1:46-48, 52-53

She spent a long time developing her Christmas list, written in different colors of crayon. She had pored over catalogs and newspaper circulars. Items were divided into categories and those she really wanted got stars. She included explanatory notes and finally stapled the four pages together and excitedly presented them to her mother. Her mother sighed, wondering where in the house they would fit one more stuffed animal, and reminded her daughter not to get her hopes too high about the more elaborate items on the list.

Later that evening, the girl came back with one more page of items listed in colorful crayon. Her mother, busy getting ready for work the next morning, almost told her to come back later. However, she took the list and began reading:

The homeless child's Christmas list
 1. coats, really warm coats
 2. long, knee high socks
 3. mittens and gloves
 4. scarfs
 5. hats
 6. sweaters
 7. sweat pants
 8. sweat shirts
 9. PJs
10. the most important, Homes

While the mother fought back tears, they talked about homelessness and the holidays and what they might do to help.

Gracious and merciful God
In this season of abundance and excess, help us to remember those who have little. Let us be grateful stewards of all that we have been given and grant us the courage to reach out to those in need. In the name of your son Jesus whom you sent to fill the hungry with good things. Amen.

Sunday December 9, 2007
Liturgical Year A Week 2