The gift of imagination

On the eve of Christmas, we might take a few quiet moments, remember some of the great Christmases past and allow our imagination to come to life.

Through our imagination, we can travel many miles and see an army of sights without even leaving our home. Imagination is the key that unlocks the door to discovery.

Imagination allows the hand of God to work in and through us, and not allow the stress and anxiety of these last moment activities get to us and ruin the deep real meaning of the peace and love of Christmas.

Our Gospel of the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth shows us Being Before Doing and to leave the doing to God, in order to be true to who God wants us to be. Mary is receptive, but not passive, and allows God to work in her.

As we have received freely, so are we now called to give freely and share with others from the heart what God has given and does for us. The words of the Responsorial Psalm might be the best words to pray and reflect upon in these final hours, and let our imagination go to work on a faith level.

“Lord, make us turn to you, let us see your face and we shall be saved.” Now is the time to pause and stop the struggling, and find peace in quiet imagination and reflection. How great it might be for others if we, like Elizbeth in the gospel, just brought out the blessedness of others.

The very gift of being is so much taken for granted. It might really require not only our imagination but a deep realization. This is the importance of the person we are either doing for, rather than worrying about buying or doing for that person.

A boy’s hand became stuck in his mom’s expensive pottery jar.

To help, a neighbor said to the boy, “Stretch out your fingers,” and the boy replied, “Then, I’ll lose my shooter marble.”

Finally, the boy agreed, and his hand came out and so did the marble. The mom’s jar was saved and so was the marble, and all rejoiced.

Sometimes we hold onto our gift so tightly that it keeps someone else from using his or her gift. We need to link our gifts together, and using even the imagination and encouragement of the neighbor to stretch out our fingers to bring great joy.

Just imagine if in the next days you really allow the Lord Jesus to take over in your words, thoughts and actions — to clothe yourself with him so others can see the Lord alive in our time and to show tender compassion, gentleness, extraordinary patience and quiet love. Can you imagine what God will allow to happen in and through us then?

Nothing is too small to be in God’s service. You are the one who can make the Lord present. It may just be a little lowly use of imagination that will lift up and uplift the joy and hope of others about your home.