Isaiah 64:8

"Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand." -Isaiah 64:8

We are all the work of God's hand. That's a pretty good place to start as we head into the season of Advent, is it not? I mean, with all the expectations that the coming month can throw upon our shoulders and into our already busy lives; what if we could just keep in our mind, soul, and heart that "we are all the work of God's hand"?

How might that humbling, yet comforting phrase help us to clarify the priorities of this month? In what ways might we treat our siblings in faith, as well as all those with whom we come into contact, differently? Might remembering that we are all the work of God's hands help us stop from time to time throughout these next twenty-six days to pause and give thanks for being held in God's hands?

When and how will you work to better understand what it means to rest in God's hands even as the crush of Christmas bears down on us all?

O Lord, watch over us as we prepare our whole selves for the mystery and beauty of the Nativity. Guide us into a greater understanding of what it means for us to be the work of your hand. And with that understanding may we see both our siblings in faith and the stranger on the street in a whole new way. Amen.