Devotion

December begins with Christmas approaching. The liturgical calendar leads us toward the Incarnation—God becoming human, entering time, entering limitation, entering vulnerability. The shepherds in the fields did not expect an angel. They were doing ordinary work. Yet they were interrupted by extraordinary grace. The Christmas story invites us to live in expectation of God breaking into the ordinary. December is a month of waiting—waiting for Christmas, waiting to see what God might do, waiting for grace. Yet waiting is not passive. Waiting with expectation is a spiritual posture. It means staying alert. It means noticing. It means being ready to be interrupted by grace. As December unfolds, practice this waiting posture. Do not become so busy with Christmas preparations that you miss the Incarnation itself. Do not become so focused on gift shopping and holiday planning that you miss encounters with God. Stay alert. Notice the ordinary moments where grace appears: a conversation with a stranger, unexpected kindness, a moment of beauty, a stranger's generosity, a child's wonder. These are incarnations—God appearing in ordinary time. The shepherds saw an angel in a field. What will you see if you wait expectantly?