Devotion for the Wednesday of the First Week in Advent

THEME FOR THE WEEK: HOPE

Devotion for the wednesday of the First Week in Advent

READING: 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (NRSV)

¹³ But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. ¹⁴ For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. ¹⁵ For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. ¹⁶ For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. ¹⁷ Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the Lord forever. ¹⁸ Therefore encourage one another with these words.

REFLECTION:

This festive holiday season can be a very difficult if you have a loved one or dear friend who died recently. Holidays, especially during the first year after experiencing the death of a loved one, can be particularly painful. As you look around, it can seem like everyone else is having a good time celebrating, while all you can do feel the pain of loss and loneliness. If a dear one died near Christmas, even if the death occurred years ago, the holiday can bring back difficult remembrances of the separation that was experienced in death.

So what does Paul mean when he writes that he does not want us to grieve as those who have no hope. We must grieve—grief is a process we have to go through after a loved one dies. I think Paul means that as Christian believers, our grief has a different character. We grieve because we deeply miss the shared life we experienced here on earth. Our dreams and plans for our life on earth have been shattered. Yet even in our grief, we have the hope of again being re-united with the person we love. As Christians, our grief is for our temporary separation—our hope is grounded in Christ’s resurrection and the promise of the resurrection of both our loved one and ourselves. Yes, grieve we must, but as Christians, our grief is tempered with the sure and certain knowledge that our separation from our loved one is temporary. We will again be re-united.

Paul also reminds us to be mindful of those around us who are grieving. We are to encourage them with the words of hope in Christ Jesus. If someone around you is grieving in this holiday season, allow them space to grieve, as they are definitely experiencing a change in their life here on earth. Their holiday season, this year, is definitely different than in past years. However, gently comfort them and remind them of the hope that we have in Christ Jesus—that hope that we will be re-united.

PRAYER:

Pray for all those who are grieving the loss of a loved one in this festive season. Pray that our hope in Christ might reach them through their grief. AMEN