Had not the LORD been with us—When men rose up against us, then would they have swallowed us alive. // Psalm 124:1-3

I love the unique quiet after Christmas. The hustle slows down, and the New Year awaits us in only a few days, with new life and fresh starts in the air.

A year ago today, I felt this joy more deeply than I ever have. My adult brothers and I were back together in our childhood home with my oldest brother newly engaged. I spent time with my grandmother, whom I had struggled being apart from during college. I eagerly looked to the New Year, when I’d start my senior year and live in my first apartment.

Right after New Years’ Eve, this joy rapidly shifted with the sudden loss of my grandmother and other rising health concerns in my family. For weeks, it was one piece of bad news after another, and I only felt the fragility of the lives around me. It was all unexpectedly soon after just celebrating Jesus’ new life at Christmas.

In today’s Gospel, I imagine the stress of Joseph and Mary frantically leaving the danger of Herod. I always wonder if they cried together or tried to make each other laugh to help ease the fear, like my family did. The praises of the shepherds and Magi were gone, and now this vulnerable family of three was moving blindly through a time of unrest.

As the Psalmist writes, “had not the Lord been with us” when grief surrounded my family, our loss would have swallowed our trust and joy. When nothing felt steady this past winter, I clung to the simple Christmas message: God is with us. Almost a year later, this unexplainable peace still anchors me, as I cling to nothing but His presence near my still aching and healing heart.

Entering the dark night with no time to prepare, the Holy Family had nothing to cling to but their Baby Emmanuel, truly “God with us.” We rarely feel prepared for the suffering we face, but He is always prepared to journey by our side, present and steady as our Prince of Peace. How is your peace, sister?

[bctt tweet="Cling to nothing but His presence. // Aubrey Major " username="blessedisshe__"]

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