The Grace of the Walk
A Personal Reflection by fellow pilgrim from Courage for the 4th Week of Advent
The sight of 2 persons on the road can trigger memories in us. To some, it is an image of reconciliation, from a period of mutual estrangement. To others, it mirrors a road travelled with a loved one whom we remember. It may also reflect the solitude we share with Jesus, in a space once marked by years of self-delusion, self-loathing and self-alienation. This image reflects the deepest intimacy we all long for – to be seen, be accompanied fully, without being overtaken or left alone on the road. Recall a beautiful walk you might have had with someone special in your life –the kind of walk you wished will never end…a shared space where words were no longer needed. The walk became nourishing in its own way, full of care and presence, an honest space that builds a life-giving and lasting bond.
Let me share a prayer for anyone longing for such a walk with our Lord this Advent:
Lord, I fill my life with many distractions. I am not always at home in my silence. If silence is the language you speak, I am not always ready to listen well. This Advent, please give me the grace to make a bigger space for you in my cluttered heart. Grace me with opportunities to identify specific roads in my life where you are keen to walk a little closer with me, especially in secret unlit pathways which I struggle to accept or name. Let me not forget the brighter spaces too, past roads where I am grateful for and have often found joy reliving them.
Jesus, my heart contains many roads and I have sometimes given up on one road in exchange for another. I give you permission to walk every road with me, trusting in Your mercy, always stronger and higher than my clumsy sense of pride to manage every route on my own.
I am not meant to walk alone this Christmas, in my desolation or even in my joy. Insecure as I may sometimes be, Lord, please intrude as gently as you can, come …be on the road with me so that I can know you more deeply as Lord and personal friend, one who gives meaning to communities I belong to or be brought to new places of truth and emotional freedom which were once usurped by obsessions or lies which limit the kind of long term contentment and anchor you wish to impart into my life. On the road, the skies will be a lot clearer when I keep you close to me. Even in valleys where no one is near, your stubborn love will hold me close. Slow me down, Jesus and walk with me so that I can also share your friendship with others,who long to share this open road with you. May this Advent be a beginning of new untouched journeys for us, so that the two of us can be a blessing to fellow pilgrims we will always meet on life’s open road.
We Make Room in Love
Reflection for the 4th week of Advent
In this final week of Advent, we contemplate the profound truth that the Word became flesh (John 1:1–14). God chose embodiment, affirming that our bodies, identities, and stories matter. God’s light shines in darkness, not away from it. Our wounds, fears, and histories are not obstacles, but places of revelation. No darkness can ever overcome Christ dwelling in us.
From Christ’s fullness, we have all received grace. Love multiplies; it is not scarce or divisive. We are now the dwelling place of God. God made room in us so that we, in turn, can make room for others.
We are called to reflect God’s inclusive love, creating communities where all belong. Making room in love is not optional; it is our mission. Christmas is not just a feast, it is a calling. The Incarnation continues through us as we carry Christ’s light into places of loneliness and exclusion. Love is not only received, it must be given. This week, let us become that light for the world.
For Reflection
- Where do I sense Christ dwelling in me?
- Who is God inviting me to make room for?
- How is my community called to be a place of welcome?
- What would it look like to be “light” for someone this Christmas?
Reflections on the Artwork
Moses who designed the artwork for this year’s Advent Reflection writes:
We Make Room in Love
Thank you for meeting me. This is something I often think about when I ponder on my interactions with friends from Courage/enCourage. I thank them for being on this journey of life with me – for doing life with me.
The two figures, walking intimately on a winding path, embody a profound spaciousness in their shared existence. They don’t appear driven by a rigid direction or a singular goal, but rather by the very act of walking together as the round winds. This openness to the unknown path ahead creates a vast internal and relational space – a readiness to receive and live God’s love in the process. Here too the light rays aren’t as focused as the previous image – it has become much more diffuse. The light now surrounds and illuminates all things. It no longer is focused, but shares its brilliance with everything else around.
This Advent, I pray that God’s love makes its dwelling in me. I pray for the grace to move from cautious self-preservation into this spaciousness He has created, so that I may extend welcome to others through a shared presence. I pray for a spaciousness that isn’t just empty space, but a fertile ground for possibilities – mirroring the expansive love Christ calls you and me to embody in our communities, relationships, Church, and the world. Lord, grant me grateful joy that opens Yourself to embrace me and many more.