Friday, December 14 – Memorial of St. John of the Cross, priest and doctor of the Church Isaiah 48:17-19; Psalm 1:1-4, 6; Matthew 11:16-19 OR 1 Corinthians 2:1-10; Psalm 37:3-6, 30-31; Luke 14:25-33 Michael Overdorff, ‘19 God has given us all a map to his Kingdom. God himself leads us to eternal salvation with him. If we follow in the path of the Lord we will not wither in his presence and we will be forever with God. In Matthew 11:16-19, we see that people do not react appropriately to the circumstances. They played flutes but no one danced. John was accused of being possessed by a demon. Jesus was called a “glutton and a drunkard” and was cast away. God gave us a pathway to his Kingdom and even sent us his own Son to guide us to him. God is with us every day, right beside us, and yet we still fail to acknowledge his greatness and his presence. This Advent season, allow us to prepare for the coming of Jesus and let everyone greet him appropriately and recognize him as our pathway to heaven.