The Word became flesh and blood,
    and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
    the one-of-a-kind glory,
    like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
    true from start to finish. (The Message)

This, of course, refers to the unique, unrepeatable event we call ‘the Incarnation’, in which God entered the world as a Man, in the Person of His Son, Jesus. But, inspired by Eugene Peterson’s rendering of verse 14, I do want to suggest that there is a sense (and it is a limited sense, but a real one) in which Jesus moves through our ‘neighbourhoods; in our bodies, and people can see something of His glory in us. There is a sense in which every sermon can be ‘made flesh in believers, and be walked out of church into the world in our bodies.

Why not, presuming you are able, take a prayer walk around your neighbourhood soon, praying for the homes you pass; praying by name for the people you know? Ask that your neighbours will come to see the reality of Jesus in you, and in the lives of any other Christians the Lord has planted in your area.

PRAYER: Lord, cause me to shine with your light in the place where you have set me down