Rejoice, Rejoice

Advent Day 26

Fourth Thursday in Advent

December 22, 2011

Reading: Zephaniah 3:14 (NRSV)

¹⁴ Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem!

Theme: Rejoice, Rejoice!

Reflection:

What does rejoicing look like to you in the context of the celebration of Jesus’ birth? Our celebration of Christmas has many layers to it. One layer is our Christmas celebration as a Christian community. We rejoice, as we celebrate Christmas in church, following the meditative Advent season. When the Advent light grows stronger and the Christmas tree is decorated and finally lit, I think each of us, present in our CLC community, feels a particular joy at Jesus’ coming. Each of us is touched when we hear the good news of Jesus’ birth come from the mouths of our Sunday School students in the Christmas pageant.

Yet Christmas in our culture has many other dimensions. We rejoice as we gather our family together around home, hearth and Christmas tree. We rejoice when we thank a store clerk for her service in this busy frantic, season. And there is yet another layer of celebration in the public, more secular Christmas gatherings and parties in towns, communities and businesses.

I think we can be full of rejoicing and celebration of Jesus’ birth in any of these layers when we keep the reasons for Jesus’ coming in our hearts and minds. A neighborhood Christmas party can help you connect with friends and neighbors, living out Jesus’ command to love your neighbor. Perhaps that party is also chance to listen to one of your neighbors’ recent difficulties, or maybe it is a chance to re-connect with someone with whom you have lost touch.

It is only when our multi-dimensional Christmas celebration creates stress and bad feelings that we need to realize that we have lost the sense of rejoicing. If trying to buy that last gift causes us to cut off other drivers or snarl at store clerks, then perhaps we need to step back and re-evaluate the meaning of Christmas, and re-gain the sense of rejoicing.

Christmas celebrations are among the most meaningful and tradition laden in our culture. If you associate a particular food or tradition with the celebration of Christmas, and it raises a sense of joy in you, give to glory to God. If your family always decorates your tree at a particular time, and the tree decorating helps ground the spirit of Christmas in you, rejoice! Enjoy all the special things that you love about the Christmas season and use them as a way of giving thanks to One whose coming we celebrate.

Prayer: Rejoicing God, we give you thanks for the coming of your Son, and we give you thanks that we are able to rejoice at his coming in so many ways. Ground us in your Son’s love and help us to use the special traditions of this season as a way of giving glory to you. Amen

Spirit Rejoicing

Advent Day 25

Fourth Wednesday in Advent

December 21, 2011

Reading: Luke 1:46–47 (NRSV)

⁴⁶ And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, ⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior

Theme: Spirit Rejoicing

Reflection:

“My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” Here is Mary, singing these lines as part of her song, sung after her cousin Elizabeth greets her, upon her arrival at Elizabeth’s home. Mary, young, unwed, and pregnant is rejoicing. Mary has complete faith that God has blessed her by choosing her to be the Mother of God’s Son. Mary’s faith gives her the courage that God will help her overcome any and all obstacles that occur as a result of her pregnancy. Mary’s song speaks of her trust in God and the apparent peace that this trust gives her.

In this late Advent season, my spirit is also rejoicing in God, my Savior. The sense of Christmas and the joy of the coming of the newborn Savior is upon me. And, somehow, between God and me (with a lot of help from Andrea Green—the church secretary), we have managed to finish nearly everything has be done to celebrate Christmas!!

I know in my heart that God always helps me to finish everything that the church needs done, but somehow that doesn’t let my head rest. Like many of you in this busy season, the to-do lists have been humming in my brain for the past weeks. For the past two weeks, the humming has been so loud that it has sounded like hive of bees had taken up residence in my head. I pray that someday, my trust will be as complete as Mary’s and the resultant peace will calm the humming in my head!!

But even with my incomplete trust, God has walked alongside of me these past weeks and seen me through! I can see the glow of the four Advent candles, and this light gives me the assurance that the God’s light is indeed coming into the world. We are reminded one more time of the miracle of Jesus’ birth, which we will soon celebrate. My spirit is indeed rejoicing in God my Savior.

Prayer: God of miracles, if it be your will, give me please, just a fraction of the faith and trust that Mary had in you. Amen

Sing a New Song

Advent Day 24

Fourth Tuesday in Advent

December 20, 2011

Reading: Psalm 33:2–4 (NRSV)

²Praise the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.

³Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

⁴For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.

Theme: Sing a New Song

Reflection:

Some of you know that my husband John is a Christmas music aficionado. He has been collecting for years, and now having an iPod and access to iTunes has given him totally new opportunities to acquire different renditions of Christmas carols. We usually play Christmas music in our house from the time Thanksgiving is over, throughout December and the entire Christmas season, until Epiphany. Even though we play Christmas music frequently during the season, each late November, the music is NEW again. Because we play this music for only a short season each year, it is special music that somehow helps to create the aura of Christmas.

It is hard for me to think of Advent without thinking of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel” and “Messiah.” There are certain German Christmas carols that just mean Christmas to me. I find it nearly impossible to sing “Lo, How a Rose E’re Blooming” in English. When the music is played, I revert to German, and suddenly in my mind, I am standing next to my grandmother in the church of my childhood.

Music has the power to evoke powerful memories and thoughts in each of us. For people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, music is often their last contact with their memories. People who don’t recognize their relatives may be able to sing “Silent Night.”

Music is an important component of devotion and worship. It is a means of giving praise to God. In addition, words set to music have a way of enhancing the meaning of Biblical texts that surpasses mere oral reading of the passage.

We are in that transition time from Advent to Christmas. Savor these days and enjoy the music of the season (preferably not “Grandma Got Run over by a Reindeer”). Let music be a form of worship and praise to God for you in these busy days. Sing along with the radio, your iPod, or whatever musical device you use. Give praise to God with the CD, iPod, iTunes, iSymphony or even your low tech voice! Make a joyful noise to the Lord. “Soon and Very Soon, we are going to see the Lord!”

Prayer: God of Glory, lift our spirits with song and help us to give praise to you with whatever musical instruments and devices are available to us. Amen

A Sign

Advent Day 23

Fourth Monday in Advent

December 19, 2011

Reading: Isaiah 7:14 (NRSV)

¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.

Theme: A sign

Reflection:

In the same way that most of us like prophecies about the future, we also like signs. If we can’t know for sure what is going to happen, at least a sign would give us some clue as to the future.

In the original context of this 7^th century B.C. Biblical passage, Isaiah spoke God’s word about this sign to King Ahaz, the King of Judah (the Southern Kingdom). This sign was an indication for him that the two Kings whom he feared would not be successful in an attack against Judah. Kings often asked prophets for signs from God about their potential success in battles.

Because the word Immanuel means, literally “With us is God”, in the centuries after the 7^th Century B.C., this text from Isaiah was often interpreted as God’s promise of a Messiah, God’s special anointed one. From a Christian context, looking back into the Hebrew Scriptures, this passage from Isaiah is viewed a God’s prophecy of the birth of Jesus. In his Gospel, Matthew uses this quote, translated slightly differently, to reveal the birth of Jesus. (Matthew uses the less common translation of the Hebrew word for young woman; Matthew translates this word as “virgin”)

²⁰ …An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” ²² All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: ²³ “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” (Matthew 1:20–23).

Matthew quotes Isaiah to show that Jesus is the fulfillment of this sign spoken about by Isaiah, that Jesus is indeed the Messiah, “God with us” !

In this latter part of the Advent season, when we have been waiting and watching for a sign—a sign that the Messiah will be born, this sign from Isaiah is particularly hopeful for us. We wait for Christmas Eve, when we will hear the story of the birth of God’s Messiah, Jesus Christ. We wait for the hope that this Gospel (Good News) brings us. We long to know and experience “God with us”. We want the reassurance of hearing the treasured story, yet one more time, that God did indeed send a special baby. We long for the holy night when we will hear the story of how God’s own son came to live among us, a very human baby, born in very human and very poor circumstances. The virgin is with child, and soon, very soon there will be a baby born in Bethlehem, the baby whose very birth name means that he will save his people. The Lord, himself will give YOU a sign and send His Son to YOU.

Prayer: Emmanuel, God with us, we also pray for signs. We pray for signs of your presence among us. We pray for signs of hope in a troubled world. We pray for signs that Your Kingdom, the world envisioned by Your Son, will indeed come. Amen

The Servant of the Lord

Advent Day 22

Fourth Sunday in Advent

December 18, 2011

Reading: Luke 1:38 (NRSV)

³⁸ Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Theme: The Servant of the Lord

Reflection:

How many of us have heard Mary’s words: “Here I am the servant of the Lord” and wondered at her faith. She has just been given ‘mission impossible’ by the Angel Gabriel—the task of carrying God’s son—as an unmarried teenager. Her amazing response is: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Her faith is so strong that she willing submits to the role that God asks of her.

I don’t know that I could respond in the way Mary does. I think that I would be tempted to don my size 7.5 ASICS running shoes to get out of town. “Not me God, I’m not up to this; I have other plans for my life. My dream wedding is coming up, and I don’t want to be pregnant for it. Can’t you find some other Mary, one who is willing to do this. I know someone, maybe I could fix you up with her.”

And so it goes with many of us. When God calls you to do something, whether it is to teach Sunday School, to write a devotion, to sing in the choir or to serve on the Church Council, do you find yourself looking over your shoulder to see if maybe, just maybe, you overheard the call intended for someone else. Do you find all kinds of excuses why you’re not the right person. If Mary is a typical example, God often calls us to do things that are far out of our comfort zones. God often sees things in us that we don’t see in ourselves. God also supports and guides us when we do reach beyond our self-imposed boundaries to do God’s work.

Pray that when you hear God’s call to action, you, too, can answer: “Here I am, the servant of the Lord.”

Prayer: Challenging God, when I hear your call to service, help me to see myself in the ways that you see me. Help me to realize that you will be there to “bear me up” when I meet challenges in your service. In your son Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

Name Him Jesus

Advent Day 21

Third Saturday in Advent

December 17, 2011

Reading: Matthew 1:20–21 (NRSV)

²⁰ But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Theme: Name Him Jesus

Reflection:

Naming a child is one of the great dilemmas that new parents face. What does the name mean? How does it sound with our last name? What persona will this name create for this new baby? In Biblical times, naming a child had even more significance. For the Hebrew people, a child’s name was not just a label, or the way he/she was called. The name was the essence of the person. Children were typically named after a relative who was no longer living. Some of the relative’s identity was thought to be transferred to the child.

The angel tells Joseph that the child to be born to Mary is to be called Jesus (the Hebrew version of this is Joshua) because he will save his people from their sins. Jesus’ name, given before he was born, gives his identity as the Savior. His name is derived from a Hebrew verb (yasha) which means to save, deliver or liberate.

Imagine Jesus, growing up from a young age, aware that his name means that he is to save his people. Even for a child whose is both human and divine that is a large responsibility to put on small child. Jesus’ identity was shaped by his name, and the community’s awareness of what his name would have signified.

As we come ever closer to the celebration of this child’s birth, let us thank God for sending a Savior to us—the young child who bears the responsibility of saving us.

Prayer: Loving God, we thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus—the One who Saves. Help us to realize the magnitude of your gift and to express our gratitude in love. Amen

Son of David

Advent Day 20

Third Friday in Advent

December 16, 2011

Reading: Matthew 1:1–2 (NRSV)

¹ An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. ² Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,

Theme: Son of David

Reflection:

What does it mean that Jesus is the son of David, and why did Matthew think it was so important to point this out in the first verse of his Gospel? Later in this same chapter of Matthew, the writer also points out that the child to be named Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. ²⁰ “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’ ” (Matthew 1:20-21)

There are two streams of information in these two quotes. First, Jesus is the “son” of David, and second, that he was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Obviously, Jesus is not directly David’s son since there are 28 generations between David and Jesus (Matthew 1:17). However, Jesus is in David’s lineage. Being in David’s linage is important as Hebrew prophecies have consistently predicted that God’s promised Messiah would be a descendent of David. By beginning his Gospel with Jesus’ genealogy, Matthew immediately signals to his readers that Jesus, whom he calls the Messiah has the right credentials. Additionally, by listing Jesus’ family, Matthew points out that Jesus was truly human, with a human family.

By letting his readers listen in on the angel’s announcement to Joseph that Mary’s son was conceived by the Holy Spirit, Matthew also signals that this very human baby is also divine. Before Matthew even relates the birth of Jesus and the arrival of the wise men from the east, he has revealed to his readers the paradox of Jesus’ identity. Jesus is both fully human and fully divine.

In this Advent season we have the gift of Matthew’s Gospel which reveals to us, the one for whom we pray. We call out “Come Lord Jesus, Come”, and we pray for God to come among us in a human form that we can recognize and who can identify with our struggles, but who yet has the divine power to save us.

Prayer: Come, Lord Jesus, Come. Come and be our brother. Come and be “God with us,” leading us, guiding us, and saving us.

Seeking Prophets

Advent Day 19

Third Thursday in Advent

December 15, 2011

Reading: Luke 7:24–28 (NRSV)

²⁴ When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who put on fine clothing and live in luxury are in royal palaces. ²⁶ What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ ²⁸ I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

Theme: Seeking Prophets

Reflection:

Jesus asks the people why they have been going into the wilderness seeking John the Baptist. For millennia, people have been attracted to prophets. People today still seek prophets. What is our fascination with prophets? What is it we hope to learn? Most of us are uncomfortable with uncertainty. We would rather deal with any defined situation, even one that is uncomfortable or unpleasant, rather than wallow in uncertainty. Uncertainty has a way of driving us nuts. For instances, the time spent waiting for results from medical tests is an extremely painful time for most of us, because we just want to know! If we know, then we will figure out a way to deal with the diagnosis.

One of the reasons we seek prophets is that we hope that they will help us understand the future. We sense their connection to God, and we believe they speak God’s word to us. Many times we go into our own version of the wilderness looking for someone who will help us see what is to come. Our own dilemma is to discern who is a prophet of God and who is a false prophet.

Unfortunately for us, the prophets who offer the most certain answers, a certainty that we would like to hear, are the ones who are most likely to be false prophets. Think of the several “prophets” in the past couple of years, who have predicted, with certainty, the date of the end of the world. Jesus told us that we could not know the time or place that the end would occur. Consequently, anyone who claims to have this inside information must be a false prophet.

The people who sought future certainty by following John were not given that certainty. All John could promise was that there was one greater than him who would follow, who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Those of us who seek future certainty by following prophets will also be disappointed. The only certainty that we are given is found in the love of God through Jesus Christ. God does not promise us any particular future, what God promises is that God will not abandon us. The one whom John prophesied has come--born in the manger, does come daily into our lives--as our Savior, and will come again in the final days. Emmanuel, “God with us”, fulfills God’s promise of accompanying us.

Prayer: Come, Lord, Jesus Come! Be with us. Walk alongside of us. Come into our lives, daily, to give us the strength and wisdom that lets us deal with the uncertainty with which we live. Amen

Doing all Things

Advent Day 18

Second Wednesday in Advent

December 14, 2011

Reading: Isaiah 45:6–7 (NRSV)

⁶ so that they may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is no one besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. ⁷ I form light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe; I the Lord do all these things.

Theme: Doing all things

Reflection:

This is a passage which gives us a fragmented glimpse into what God is like. As humans we have a very limited comprehension of God—because any attempt to fully know God, is an attempt to cut God down to human scale. We hear in God’s own words, in this text, a sense of the full breadth of God. And frankly, what we hear is difficult to comprehend.

Even if we understand the meaning of all the words, their scope eludes us. (I had to look up the meaning of weal—it has two very different definitions. The first is: ‘a red swollen mark’; and the second is; ‘that which is best for someone’.) I presume the author of this text meant the second one, implying that God does the full range of things from that which is best for someone to that which creates grief.

Reading this passage in The Message translation (a translation that attempts to help us understand, in contemporary English, what the original listeners heard) gives additional insights into God’s nature:

Isaiah 45:6–7 (The Message)

⁶ So that everyone, from east to west, will know that I have no god-rivals. I am God, the only God there is. ⁷ I form light and create darkness, I make harmonies and create discords. I, God, do all these things.

We simply don’t have the scale and depth to understand how God can do all things. My own theology teaches that God does not deliberately set out to hurt us, but that because we are given free will, we do have occasions where things go wrong or we are deeply hurt. It is difficult to reconcile a God who does all things with a God that doesn’t set out to hurt us. I don’t have an easy answer.

In Advent, we hear many things we don’t full understand, but ultimately have to accept on faith. We hear of a baby being born to a woman well past child-bearing age; we hear of a woman who conceives by the Holy Spirit, and we hear of angels announcing these births. None of these things can be discerned with human logic. Perhaps this passage from Isaiah is just one more passage that reminds us of God’s greatness and our smallness.

May your Advent devotions give you a glimpse of the God, who is so great that we can’t comprehend God, and so loving that God’s own Son is sent as a gift to us.

Prayer: All powerful and omnipotent God, keep me humble by continuing to remind me that you depth and breadth exceed my comprehension. Amen

Humble and Lowly

Advent Day 17

Second Tuesday in Advent

December 13, 2011

Reading: Zephaniah 3:12–13 (NRSV)

¹² For I will leave in the midst of you a people humble and lowly. They shall seek refuge in the name of the Lord— ¹³ the remnant of Israel; they shall do no wrong and utter no lies, nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouths. Then they will pasture and lie down, and no one shall make them afraid.

Theme: A People Humble and Lowly

Reflection:

I think that very few of us would typically like to think of our ourselves as humble and lowly. We might be OK with humble, but lowly just doesn’t fit most of our self-images. In fact, such an opinion of ourselves might result in our being labeled as having “low self-esteem”! We are more likely to favor descriptions such as self-confident or assured or poised.

Why does the prophet Zephaniah claim that God will leave a people lowly and humble? The remnant of Israel, to whom Zephaniah is referring, are the people left after the Babylonian invasion, exile and return. They had been a proud people, who at one point had been world leaders in the Middle East. Their pride resulted in a haughty self-confidence that led them away from God and God’s laws. Their wealth was no longer shared or used responsibly, and they began to worship the gods of neighboring countries rather than the ONE GOD.

After their experience in exile and their return, facilitated by God, to their homeland, the remnant of Israel have been humbled. They no longer have their swagger or self-assurance, and they have returned to a dependence on God. They have been humbled and are now able to think of themselves as lowly.

In this Advent season, perhaps we, who like to think of ourselves as self-confident, should reflect on the humbleness and lowliness of the one for whom we wait. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is born in the animals’ feeding trough, because there was no room for his lowly parents at the inn. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus refers to himself in saying “I am gentle and humble in heart.” (Matthew 11:29) Jesus’ mother Mary also refers to lowliness twice in her song in Luke: “For he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;” (Luke 1:48) and “He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;” (Luke 1:52) Coming from Jesus and Mary’s mouths, the words humble and lowly have taken on a new respect.

Perhaps, we who profess to be followers of Jesus need to look for the role of humbleness and lowliness in our own lives. Perhaps in waiting for Jesus, we will learn how to be the servant of the one who served others.

Prayer: All powerful God, help me to depend on you and take refuge in you, rather than depending on my own self-confidence. Help me to be your servant, lowly and humble. Amen

Giving Service

Advent Day 16

Third Monday in Advent

December 12, 2011

Reading: Psalm 72:11–12 (NRSV)

¹¹May all kings fall down before him, all nations give him service. ¹²For he delivers the needy when they call, the poor and those who have no helper.

Theme: Giving Service

Reflection:

May all nations give God service. What does service to God look like? Is it worship, respectfully coming on regular occasions to give praise and thanks to God? Is it doing community service in the name of God? Yes and Yes!

In the Gospels (Matthew 22:37-40 and Luke 10:27), Jesus tells us: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” We can serve God by honoring, loving and worshipping the Lord, and by showing, love, respect and service to our neighbors. The two are inseparably linked. Loving God, frees us to love our neighbor, and serving neighbor without loving God may turn into self-serving service, rather than a God-grounded love of neighbor.

In this Advent season, as we watch and wait, preparing for Jesus to come, preparation of our hearts opens us to full spectrum of service to God. The Christmas season is also a time when service to neighbors is desperately needed. As Charles Dickens writes in “A Christmas Carol”, this is a time when “want is keenly felt.” The secular Christmas season is a terribly difficult time to be poor in our culture. The media continually display extravagant “Christmas” celebrations, reminding those “without” just how little they really have.

Keep both aspects of service to God in your Advent preparations. Spend time in worship, prayer, meditation and praise to God. Then, look on your neighbors through Jesus’ eyes and heart. See where there is need and pray about how you might meet that need.

Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, help me to serve God through worship, prayer, and praise to God and through meeting the needs of my neighbors in God’s name. Amen

Rejoice Always

Advent Day 15

Third Sunday in Advent

December 11, 2011

Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NRSV)

¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray without ceasing, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Theme: Rejoice Always

Reflection:

Those of you who will be in church this morning, will have a double dose of this passage, as it is also one of the texts for the day and figures in my sermon! But maybe this time of year, it doesn’t hurt to be reminded that we are to “rejoice always.” In both the Advent season and the secular December season, we can use lots of reminders about rejoicing.

In the early church, the third Sunday in Advent was designated ‘Gaudete’ Sunday (or Joy Sunday). Advent, at this time, was marked as a very penitential season, almost like Lent. The color of the season was purple and Advent candles were purple reminding worshippers of the need for penance. On the third Sunday in Advent, the readings on this Sunday were more joy-filled and often included the text from Thessalonians we are using this morning. On this Gaudete or Joy Sunday, the one pink candle on the Advent wreath was lit, giving worshippers a break for joy in the middle of the penitential season. This tradition continues in the Roman Catholic Church today.

In the mid-20^th century, the Protestant churches changed lectionaries (the cycle of readings) and hence, no longer celebrate Gaudete Sunday. The focus of Advent also was modified to emphasize hope rather than penance (keeping Lent as the penitential season). That is why we use blue candles in the Advent wreath—blue being the color of hope. Having said this, in the middle of the Advent season, JOY is still a welcome theme.

By this time in December, I have been rushing around—with Christmas shopping, wrapping, writing cards, trying to attend festivities and keeping up with all the things that have to be done at church in Advent. Each of you, may also have a non-stop to-do list. Sometimes it is hard to remember to feel joyful in the midst of the freneticism. I have to stop, take a deep breath, and remind myself what Advent and Christmas are all about. God wants me to be joyful and hope-filled. I am anticipating the greatest gift ever given—the gift of God’s own Son—given for me and for you. I can be joy-filled while I watch and wait for Jesus to come.

Rejoice always. Ok, always may be difficult—but keep on rejoicing. If you have trouble rejoicing, try the praying part. Frequent praying will help keep the focus where it belongs and the rejoicing with flow along.

Prayer: Gracious God, fill my heart with joy at the gift of Your Son. Help me to pray always and follow the prayer with rejoicing. Amen

Seeing and Not Seeing

Advent Day 14

Second Saturday in Advent

December 10, 2011

Reading: John 16:16–18 (NRSV)

¹⁶ “A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me.” ¹⁷ Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying to us, ‘A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸ They said, “What does he mean by this ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.”

Theme: Seeing and Not Seeing

Reflection:

In this Advent season, we pray “Come, Lord Jesus Come”. But when Jesus does come among us, how will we know it? Will we see Jesus? Will we be living in the “little while” when our eyes are opened and Jesus’ presence is visible to us? Will our eyes be opened to the presence of “God with us” and will we be able to see, or will there be so many things distracting us that we will not be able to see Jesus?

In the Gospel of John, seeing is equated with believing. If you don’t believe, then you are not able to see. If you believe, trust, and have faith, then your eyes are opened, and God enables you to see.

When you trust and believe, you see Jesus in many ways. Yesterday I saw Jesus in the face of the young cashier at Ocean State Job Lot, who asked me for a donation to the Newport Food Pantry. She explained that the donation could be conveniently rung up with my purchases. And then she told me, shyly, that she volunteers at the food pantry in her spare time. I don’t know what her religious traditions are, but I know that Jesus was alive and well, working through her for the least among us. I saw Jesus in her, and I heard his mother’s words in her voice: “And the hungry will be fed with good things.” You know, this young cashier thanked me for the donation. I should have thanked her for her witness. My eyes were opened, and I was able to see.

Prayer: In this Advent season, Lord help me to pray “Come Lord Jesus, Come”, and open my eyes that I might see “God with us” in all the walks of life. Amen

Your Redeemer

Advent Day 13

Second Friday in Advent

December 9, 2011

Reading: Isaiah 48:17–18 (NRSV)

¹⁷ Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord your God, who teaches you for your own good, who leads you in the way you should go. ¹⁸ O that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your prosperity would have been like a river, and your success like the waves of the sea;

Theme: Your Redeemer

Reflection:

The prophet Isaiah named God as “Your Redeemer” when speaking to the Israelites back almost six centuries before Jesus was born. We have been taught that Jesus redeems us from our sins, but God was being called Redeemer before even Jesus came to earth. For the Hebrews, a redeemer was someone who purchased a person out of trouble. An older brother, for instances, might redeem his younger brother by paying off the debts of the younger one and keeping him out of debtor’s prison or slavery. When Isaiah spoke of God as Redeemer he was prophesying that God would “purchase” the Israelites out of exile in Babylon and return them to their homeland.

But notice what else the Redeemer does in this passage. The Holy One of Israel reminds the people that the Lord teaches and leads them also. God will not just free the people from exile, but teaches them for their own good and leads them on the path they should go. Isaiah is promising a full service God—one that not only frees people from slavery, but then continues to lead and guide them in starting a new life.

In this Advent season, we look toward Jesus’ coming, the one whom God sends to redeem and save us. One of the texts that we often read in Advent is the “annunciation” to Joseph found in the Gospel of Matthew. When the angel of the Lord comes to Joseph to tell him about the baby that Mary is carrying, Joseph is told that the child has been conceived in the Holy Spirit, and that Mary will bear a son. Joseph is also instructed to name the child Jesus, “for he will save his people from their sins.” Jesus’ very name, which is the Greek version of the Hebrew name Joshua, means ‘one who saves’.

God continues the saving work that was begun with the people Israel, by sending God’s own Son Jesus, the one who will save. God continues to lead you and guide you with the Law—the commandments—that God insists that you pay attention to. But the Gospel, or Good News, for you is that God also recognizes your weakness and sends his Son, Your Redeemer, who helps you and saves you when you slip into trouble.

Prayer: Redeeming God, I thank you that you save me when I get into trouble. I thank you for the gift of your Son Jesus, whom you sent to save all your people, including me. Amen