Advent from the Gospel of Mark

"And it came to pass, in those days,

That Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee,

And was baptized by John in the Jordan."

Thus Jesus appears for the first time
In the Gospel of Mark,

The earliest gospel,

The gospel others will build upon.

Dark Mark.

There is no babe in swaddling clothes.
There is no child teaching in the temple.

Mark shows us Jesus

At the start of his ministry,

A man grown.

God speaks:

"Thou art my beloved Son,

In whom I am well pleased."

Jesus knew God's love eternally.

How wonderful to have such love
Proclaimed by God.

At Christmas may we all know God's love

And have that love proclaimed
In our souls.

I Am With You

"Lo, I am with you always,
Even unto the end of the world."
With these words of the risen Christ,
Matthew ends his Gospel.
This is Christ's promise,
Not to protect us from the world,
But to be with us.
We are never alone,
In sickness, pain, or deprivation.
God is always there,
Crying when we mourn,
Hurting when we suffer,
Laughing when we are happy,
Holding us when we die.
Our companion, our life.

Photo courtesy NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center