Refuge of exultation

Tuesday of the First Week of Advent

But all who take refuge in you will be glad;
   they will sing out their joy for ever.
You will shelter them,
   so that those who love your name may exult in you.
Psalm 5:13-14

I do not consciously start out to invoke a litany, but this is what it becomes, a growing recitation of friends, colleagues, and loved ones. Their names dance off the page of my journal, their presence circling the space in which I have centered myself in prayer.

I came seeking refuge, a place apart, some respite from a world that seems so full of trouble and disappointment. I intended to ask for help and protection, for others and myself. But because I have learned this practice, I began with gratitude, thanking Jesus for the encounters that bring me delight and laughter and hope.

The list pours forth, one name running headlong into another, the connections surprising and lovely. And as I pray each name, I realize how many of them also pray for me. We shelter together under the wings of love and in this place find safety and camaraderie and strength.

I have so many companions walking the Advent way with me. We lift our voices in exultation and expectation of the glory already on its way.


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