A few times each year, our family would take a trip to Lancaster, PA. My sisters and I loved going to visit our cousins. My mom’s youngest brother has four boys, and I am the oldest of three girls. Our ages lined up pretty nicely, and we had a ball playing together.
We had lots of traditions around our visits to see the Rissers. We loved playing kick the can in the barnyard, having picnics down at the pond,and putting together Christmas plays for our parents to watch.
On one particular Christmas visit we were not ready to leave. As our parents called to us to say our goodbyes as we would be leaving early the next morning, directly from my grandparents’ house, the five of us older cousins gathered in a circle. We wholeheartedly prayed that it would snow so much that we wouldn’t be able to travel the next day.
Imagine our delight when we woke to find my dad shoveling a foot of snow from my grandparents’ driveway. Our prayers had been answered!
Reflect on your own childhood. What memories of delight or wonder stand out? When have you experienced God’s care or response in a dramatic way? Take a moment to note this remembrance in your journal or to share it with a friend or family member. Perhaps you can call, text or email someone who was part of the moment of wonder. Allow the beauty and goodness of this gift to be multiplied in the gratitude and sharing.
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
Comfort & Joy: Readings and Practices for Advent is available now! With readings to walk through the Advent and Christmas season, the weekly offerings in Comfort and Joy include a variety of devotional meditations and invitations to spiritual practices that help us slow down and savor this sacred season.
some comfort and joy 