11 December 2018
Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent
Praying with the parable of the lost sheep from today’s gospel can elicit different movements in our hearts. We might perhaps be reminded of our lives before coming to truly know and love God and thus be filled with a sense of joy and gratitude. We might also be reminded of a loved one who has fallen away from the faith and is walking alone and thus be filled with a sense of sadness and despair. This sentiment is all too frequent in our increasingly secular society. Many are the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, and friends who suffer because of the absence of God in the life of one they love.
It is a real temptation to get lost in this sense of suffering and despair. But we must remember that Advent is a season of hope. With a prayerful spirit, we must be hopeful that our God will seek out and find our loved ones who have gone astray. And if we do find ourselves lost in our suffering in despair, we must remain hopeful that he will come to us and lovingly seek us out as well.