Tuesday, December 24, 2024
by Flynn Bucy
As we say, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” Not as common a phrase but equally as true is “adoration is in the heart of the beholder.” Seeing with eyes that behold and hearts that open gives us a perspective that allows us to experience the specialness of the advent season anew.
We all know this time of year can become more for scrambling than celebrating. The annual routine of Christmas activities and responsibilities can often cause us to miss the chance to see just how special the advent season can be—in the eye of the beholder.
We are celebrating the coming of the Christ on Earth and singing how we adore Him. This is a special time of year in our lives and the life of our church. And with our eyes and hearts focused on the underlying mystery of the Divine incarnating, we can make it special anew.
Monday, December 23, 2024
by Gregory Stanton
"The Wise Men"
Bible stories tell us truths that transcend history and are deeper than words. As you consider this cherished story, think about these truths.
-Among the first people to worship Jesus were Zoroastrian professors from Iran. [Perhaps an Assistant Professor, an Associate Professor, and the Chair of the Wisdom Department.] They weren’t Jews or Christians. Christianity hadn’t been born yet. Jesus’ name means “he will save people from sin.” Jesus came to save all people, not just people who believe the right doctrines.
-The wise men followed a star. A map would have been more useful. But following a star – even a star that moved – took faith. The wise men didn’t have a GPS. But they had faith. They found Jesus.
The wise men brought Jesus precious gifts – gold, incense, and costly perfume.
-The tyrant King Herod ordered the wise men to tell him where Jesus was born. But they knew not to trust the King. They didn’t go back to tell Herod. They returned to Iran “by another way.”
-Mary and Joseph were warned to escape with Jesus to Egypt because Herod would hunt them down and murder Jesus. They became refugees.
-Angered that the wise men didn’t obey his orders, King Herod ordered all the male children aged two and under in the Bethlehem region slaughtered. He ordered a genocide. Jesus and his parents escaped from a genocide.
If you knew Jesus was coming, how would you search for him?
If you knew Jesus was a refugee from genocide, would you welcome him?
If you knew you were going to meet Jesus, what gifts would you bring to him?
Sunday, December 22nd, 2024
by Lisel & Bill Wilson
Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. -Genesis 2:9
We moved to a condo from our home of 32 years. The condo developer planted one of each of the most common trees in Northern Virginia right outside our window. Each one is on a slightly different time schedule, with different colors and responses to conditions. Watching them go through their annual lifecycle is a joyful experience. A Garden of Eden right here in Northern Virginia.
It’s the sound of the wind blowing through the trees that gives us the sense of nearness to God. As author Lawrence Kramer once wrote,“Sound directs our passage through time. It shapes our orientation to the future moment and also to the moment when the future stops.”
The “Ringing In” of Christmas starts with a single bell then the sound of the bells moves around the circle, faster and faster to a peak. Finally, Patrick plays the first chord of “Joy to the World,” bringing us to one of those moments when time stops and you can feel and hear the wind.
Listen for your own sounds of Christmas! Yes, they are there waiting for you to hear.
Saturday, December 21st, 2024
by Lee Rainie
“Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
‘Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
The Lord will come with vengeance,
With terrible recompense.
God will come and save you.’” -Isaiah 35: 4 alt
My 11th Commandment is: “Everyone needs – and shalt be offered – an editor.”
I think the English folks who translated the Hebrew ignored that commandment and butchered this text. And it turns out that the Hebrew meaning of this Isaiah passage isn’t about retribution and “terrible recompense.” It’s not God’s version of, “Payback is hell.” Could anything sound less Christ-like?
Indeed, the Google machine tells me that Hebrew has no word for “terrible.” And the ChatGPT-4o machine tells me the real glossary for this passage is: “Vengeance” isn’t revenge-based. It really is about restoring balance and righteousness. “Recompense” isn’t eye-for-an-eye “justice.” It really is more like a restorative justice that is proportional and built around compassion. So, instead of reading this as a passage about punishment, it is, in fact, a prophecy about God wanting to restore things to their proper and sacred order.
How might God do that? Well, through us, the beloved community, ministering to each other and those around us. That’s where the “save you” part of this passage comes in. The Hebrew isn’t so much about God eliminating problems as it is about how communities care for those who are struggling.
As Jill Duffield puts it: “We already are children of God. We already are fishers of people. We already are makers of peace. We already are doers of justice, loves of kindness, those who walk humbly with God.” We just have to embrace that and act like that is true.
Friday, December 20th, 2024
by Rev. Blair Moorhead
When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.” (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, “Follow me.” -John 21:15-19
In our passage today, Jesus asks Peter to tend to Christ’s sheep and then reminds Peter that he, too, will need tending to later in life. This is a strange passage on any given day. Reading it less than a week before Christmas makes it feel even more odd.
Yet the truths buried in this seemingly incongruent text show that we all need each other. There will be times when we are tenders and times when we must be tended to.
As many of us prepare to gather with loved ones this season, we witness this reality up close: some of us host, some of us need hosting. Some of us are in a position to give, some of us need to receive. We have older loved ones who need tending, and some of us need to be tended to as well.
We take this responsibility seriously, for as Jill Duffield says: “How we feed and tend reflects in whose name we care for one another.”
How we receive food and tending also speaks to our values and our faith in our Creator. “Pray that I might have the grace to let you be my servant, too,” says The Servant Song, one of my childhood favorites.
This season let us embody that grace as we tend and as we are tended to. Let us reflect the love of Christ as we give and receive.
Thursday, December 19th, 2024
by Warren Lewis
For a period during his ministry, Jesus sent out his disciples, two by two without him, to preach and do healings. He instructed them to take nothing for the journey except a staff, shoes, and a single garment.
What a radical concept! When we go on a journey, we never travel this lightly. Instead, we try to anticipate all that we will need during the journey and pack accordingly. The downside of this approach is that, during the journey, we are weighed down by “things” and less able to be spontaneous when unexpected opportunities arise.
We entered this life with nothing, and will leave it perhaps with shoes, a single garment, and some jewelry. We live this life not alone, but with the companionship and help of others (two by two). Maybe Jesus is telling us to live this life with a focus on loving and helping others, and on spreading his message of forgiveness and redemption, rather than a focus on acquiring and being weighed down by “things."
Wednesday, December 18th, 2024
by Rev. Emma Horn
One of my favorite characters in scripture to introduce folks to is John the Baptist. I love that he not only gives us one of the great Biblical insults when he calls the Sadducees and Pharisees a brood of vipers, but also his dietary and clothing choices make him such a fascinating character for folks to learn about. Let’s be honest, more than once I have invited folks to try crunchy freeze-dried bugs and honey as we learned about John the Baptist and had them touch a piece of leather or camel hide to enter into his story.
Perhaps the challenging and timeless message from John the Baptist is not his interesting wardrobe or dietary choices but the call to attention and the timeless message of a call to repentance and preparation of the coming of the Savior. Each time we read about John the Baptist, we are called not to passive just listen but to actively do the hard and beautiful work of repentance and preparation for the birth of the Savior. “His message runs counter to what those in power want to hear. John does not cozy up to power. John points away from himself and toward Jesus. Hie does not shy away from proclaiming a difficult word… John’s outward appearance reveals an inward commitment to do God’s will no matter what the cost.“ (Advent in Plain Sight, p.68)
In today’s devotional in Advent in Plain Sight, Jill Duffield asks, “In this Advent season, how are you called to repent? What does repentance mean to you?” (p.69) Perhaps the beauty and the challenge of the story of John the Baptist is that the work of repentance is not easy work that can be finished in one church service or Sunday School lesson but instead is work that we intentionally are called into every single day of our lives. The work of preparing for the Savior is not something that can be confined to one season, but work that we are called into our whole loves. Like John the Baptist, this work calls us into something deeply unexpected but also powerful. The challenge given by John the Baptist is good and hard and beautiful all at once.
Tuesday, December 17th, 2024
by Lynley Ogilvie
For as the loincloth clings to one’s loins, so I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, says the Lord, in order that they might be for me a people, a name, a praise, and a glory. But they would not listen. -Jeremiah 13:11
Any reference to loins sounds both risky and outdated, so let’s think of this instead as God’s desire to be “as close as a belt wrapped around our waist.” The underwear in Jeremiah’s story symbolizes an intimate relationship with the divine that allows us to open our hearts fully to all that God loves. Whether boxers or briefs, the idea is to keep God front and center in all that we do.
One of the hypothermia volunteers asked me today if the guests need fanny packs (she had some to donate), because how else could they keep track of the items that are most important and precious to them. Is that the modern equivalent of Jeremiah’s loincloth — a fanny pack to carry daily essentials? What do we put in the pack, and what does that say about us? In addition to a wallet, keys and a protein bar, what else would you include? Is there space in there for God?
Can you think of anything small and lightweight that you could carry to remind you of God’s love? A prayer? A beautiful feather? A small stone from the last women’s retreat?
I sometimes write a prayer or a message to myself on a Post It note and put it on the dashboard of my car. Every time I get in the car, I see it and try to focus for a moment on the message. It helps keep me centered as I navigate Beltway traffic, client meetings, errands and disturbing news stories.
What message would you write to yourself, that would keep you coming back to God?
Monday, December 16th, 2024
by Martha Whitney
“God pours contempt on princes,
And looses the belt of the strong.
God uncovers the deeps out of darkness,
And brings deep darkness to light."
- Job 12:21-22
Job is the prototype of the eternal question: Why do bad things happen to good people? The first two lines here suggest God brings the downfall of the strong. The second two are the words of a man, beset by calamity beyond imagining- loss of family, health, fortune- who proclaims that God brings reversal of unimaginable despair, darkness. How does Job come to this idea? Is it just something he hopes is true? Does he really believe this? If he does, how did he come to such hard-won insight? Is it through thinking? Humility? Grace?
In Job’s seemingly defeated state, his friends come to comfort him. It should be said that they came and sat with him for seven days and said not a word, “for they saw that his suffering was great.” After a week, they suggested various explanations for his condition, all of which somehow blamed Job. He rejected their words as false and not helpful.
Have you ever wanted to comfort someone and did not know what to say? Has someone tried to comfort you and offered words that hurt or were meaningless to you at the time? In either/both cases , what did you say?
Have you been in pain and someone helped you? Who helped you? How?
Job comes to know that God is beyond his ken, wholly other and yet, when God appears to Job and questions him, Job comes to a clarity that leads to some of the most beautiful poetry in the Bible, acknowledging the vastness of God and God’s generative energy and scope, and most importantly, a Presence. That Presence is enough for Job. Have you had a momentary glimpse of the unfathomable grandeur of God? If so, how does it affect your life? If not (yet), how might you make yourself open to The Holy One?
Sunday, December 15th, 2024
by Lee Rainie
“Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
and faithfulness the belt around his loins.” – Isaiah 11:5
If there is a foundational Advent prophecy, it’s Isaiah, chapter 11. It foretells the arrival of the Messiah “from the stump of Jesse” (that is, David’s dad) and then describes a world that is the exact opposite of the world then – and the world now. It’s not hierarchical and organized around power relationships. It is not arranged for the benefit of those with the best weapons and those most focused on gaining advantage. The mindset of humans is the opposite of cynical, striving, and acquisitive.
The Isaiah-verse is quite literally an upside-down universe. Wolves and lambs live side by side. Leopards and goats cavort. Toddlers can stick their hands in viper’s nests and “they will neither harm nor destroy.” The Savior who commands it will be wrapped in a belt of righteousness (in its Greek root, “right relationship” with God) – and clothed in faithfulness.
You could say, “That’ll be the day.” A system organized this way seems a marvelous, miraculous, outlandish, other-worldly fantasy land. It’s the kind of place that might spring from a child’s beautiful imagination.
Isaiah had that covered, too. He prophesied that “a little child will lead them.” The call of Isaiah – and Advent – is to remember that child-inspired righteousness and faithfulness and act on it … as crazy as that seems.
Saturday, December 14th, 2024
by Martha Whitney
“They will hunger no more, and thirst no more;
The sun will not strike them,
Nor any scorching heat;
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd,
And he will guide them to springs of the water of life,
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” -Revelation 7:16-17.
Who is “they”? Is it not all of us, all people of every tribe, nation, sect, religion, or no religion; everyone on the face of the earth? Revelation assures us that our physical wants will be met [hunger, thirst, climate]. It also promises to meet all our human and spiritual needs, that we will be guided to ”the waters of life.”
What do you need most right now? How might you find it? Would you turn first to worship or elsewhere?
The verses from Revelation offer an opportunity and a challenge. What image comes to mind? What emotions do you feel as you think about such a scene? For that kin[g]dom of God to be realized, don’t we need to look hard at the reasons today for the conditions that will be relieved? Where do you see hunger, hunger for food; for companionship; for meaning? What part of that emptiness can you fill?
Christ, the Lamb, will lead us all to the springs of the water of life. How does that promise strike you? It seems we will be lead but we must drink. How will we know the waters? How do we seek them in the here-and-now?
Friday, December 13th, 2024
by Rev. Emma Horn
Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. -2 Timothy 1:4
What are the memories that you are longing for this year? What do you recall from this year that brings tears to your eyes? Our text for today, 2 Timothy 1:4 speaks to how Paul longs to see Timothy, recalling tears and speaking of the hope of joy. In today’s devotion, Jill Duffield lifts up memories of decorating the Christmas tree and of a place where tears and joy are both present for her.
For me, some of my core Christmas memories involve remembering family members who are no longer living and how their little quirky behaviors and traditions defined Christmas for me for so long. These moments are a balance of joy for what was and tears for what never will be again.
I remember my Uncle TC, whose Christmas tradition was to fall asleep laying on the floor in front on the fireplace and snore loudly, regardless of the conversations swirling around him. I remember my PawPaw, whose role at holidays was not just to sit at the head of the table, but also to snap the fresh green beans that were essential to every meal. I remember my Aunt Betty, who we would always visit a few weeks before actual Christmas and how for a long time I thought that peppermint ice cream was a thing that only existed at her house. Most of all I remember my grandmother Rose, who loved Christmas with every fiber of her being. She decorated every inch of her house, constantly wore cute Christmas wear, and even carefully counted the number of presents and stocking stuffers to make sure that they were exactly even every year. I remember many years of these beautiful traditions as well as the more difficult last Christmases shared with each person when disease or age kept them from living into these familiar traditions.
While I have shaped new Christmas traditions with both my biological and chosen family, there are still times each Christmas season where my tears may appear and I long deeply for those traditions. Maybe it is seeing fresh green beans a the table, an open floor space in front of the fireplace, seeing peppermint ice cream at the store, planning my December wardrobe or when I am counting presents to make sure that they are exactly even. Each tear is a memory. Each tear is love for that person.
As these next few days remind us that tears are to see Advent in Plain Sight, I connect deeply with what Jill Duffield wrote in today’s Advent devotional, “I am reminded of all the saints who shaped my life and my faith…all of whom envelop me in a spirit of love that brings with it tears of joy”. Friends, may you know your remembered tears are holy and may you find spaces to share those memories that bring them to your eyes.
Thursday, December 12th, 2024
by Corinne Magee
In her reflection, Jill Duffield wrote, “I learned not to let my feelings show. To do so reveals weakness, vulnerability.” I have never been able to control my emotions. I cry when I am sad, when I am angry, when I am happy, and when I am moved by the sunrise or a beautiful piece of music. My tears certainly reveal my vulnerability, but not my weakness. I don’t think that anyone, despite my tears, sees me as a weak individual.
Expressing your emotions is good for your mental health but is even better for personal relationships. Others might be embarrassed, may sympathize, and may even empathize, but opening yourself up to them allows you to connect.
Wednesday, December 11th, 2024
by Rev. Aaron Fulp-Eickstaedt
May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy. Those who go out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, carrying their sheaves. -Psalm 126:5-6
How do we encourage those still sowing in tears, yet to reap in joy?
May those who sow in tears, reap with shouts of joy. Those words for today from our Advent devotional book are not so much a promise as they are a plea. A number of scholars posit that Psalm 126 came out of Judah’s experience of exile in Babylon, a time that surely shook the faith of the gathered community.
Grief has a way of doing that. Nicholas Wolterstorff wrote with raw honesty of this experience in his book Lament for a Son: “How is faith to endure, O God, when you allow all this scraping and tearing on us. You have allowed rivers of blood to flow, mountains of suffering to pile up, sobs to become humanity’s song—all without lifting a finger that we could see. You have allowed bonds of love beyond number to be painfully snapped. If you have not abandoned us, explain yourself.”
Knowing that no satisfying explanation could be forthcoming, Wolterstorff continued, “We strain to hear. But instead of hearing an answer we catch sight of God himself scraped and torn. Through our tears, we see the tears of God.”
For those who have not yet reaped shouts of joy from the tears they have wept, perhaps the notion that God weeps with us can help us find a measure of comfort while we wait. In the meantime, we do well to honor our sadness and to know that at the end of every dark night there comes the sunrise.
Tuesday, December 10th, 2024
by Rev. Blair Moorhead
Again I saw all the oppressions that are practiced under the sun. Look, the tears of the oppressed--with no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power--with no one to comfort them. -Ecclesiastes 4:1
What is our Christian responsibility to responding to the tears of the oppressed?
On Day 3 of Advent Week 2, we are still deep in the midst of flowing tears. Today we encounter the tears of those who are oppressed and without power in the book of Ecclesiastes. And Jill Duffield asks us: What is our responsibility when we see the tears of the oppressed in the world? She links that to the even tougher question: Are we willing to participate in the good news of great joy for all people, even if it costs us something?
This is a hard season to ask anything of anyone. It’s a hard time to read (in a devotion that is supposed to be a pause from the world, no less): give more, when many of us feel at our wits’ end. We may wonder: what can I give when I am tired, depressed, overwhelmed, and so behind on all that is expected?
Here’s one way to approach that question. I have many pastor friends who are also professional coaches. They are amazing at supporting church workers and others in navigating their calls. One question they like to ask is: What is YOURS to do?
What is yours to do? And especially at this time - what is yours to do right now? Could it be a donation? Could it be a prayer? Could it be a shift at the hypothermia shelter or elsewhere? What is yours to do, and what is yours to do today?
What we do know is that good news requires something of us - it may cost us something. What we need to discern is what that is, and what that is right now. Affix your oxygen mask first, then respond to the needs of the world. The good news - the good news that requires something of you - is: you are needed.
Monday, December 9th, 2024
by Steve and Janet Parker
“Hear and give ear; do not be haughty,
for the Lord has spoken.
16 Give glory to the Lord your God
before he brings darkness
and before your feet stumble
on the mountains at twilight;
while you look for light,
he turns it into gloom
and makes it deep darkness.
17 But if you will not listen,
my soul will weep in secret for your pride;
my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears
because the Lord’s flock has been taken captive..” -Jeremiah 13:15-17
These are anxious times. Our anxiety drives us to follow leaders who assure us they have the answers, who offer us easy solutions, and who paint life – no matter how messy it is -- in black and white terms. Is this the pride Jeremiah is talking about? Are we so busy naming others who have been taken captive that we don’t see that perhaps we also have been taken captive? Is staring at the speck in their eyes preventing us from being aware of the log in our own eyes?
If Jeremiah were with us today, would he only be warning those we disagree with? We believe God’s bitter tears are for everyone. But Jeremiah’s point is not to predict our doom. Instead, he invites us to discern God’s word in a world drowning in a cacophony of other voices. Advent is about hope and longing and anticipation, and the joy that can come after accepting hard truths and repenting.
Sunday, December 8th, 2024
(originally scheduled for Saturday, December 7th)
by Corinne Magee
Today’s reflection on Paul being dragged from the temple asks, “Have you ever been excluded from a place where you’d hoped to be welcomed?” In 1972, I came to Washington on a three-month internship for a congressman from Minnesota. My husband, Jim, and I met in DC, were married in Minnesota and returned to DC in 1973, where I began looking for a job as a research assistant on the Hill, while he finished law school. Walking into the office of a senator, I asked if there were any positions available, and was told by the senator’s administrative assistant, “In this office, the men do the research and the women do the secretarial work.” The comment brought to focus how many gates were closed to me as a woman. Since that time, I have striven to open those gates and keep them propped open for the thousands of women following behind me.
There are still gates closed to many women in the church. In June, 2024, the Southern Baptists debated a change in their constitution to explicitly state, “While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor/elder/overseer is limited to men as qualified by Scripture,” which passed in 2023, but needed a second passage to be ratified. Meanwhile, the Baptists voted to disfellowship a Virginia church that had a woman serving as pastor for women and children. Interestingly, the New Testament passages supporting this position are from letters written by Paul, such as 1 Timothy 2:11, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.” Paul’s writings, influenced by a society in which women were disenfranchised, ignore the actual relationship between Jesus and women. Mary, the sister of Martha, was encouraged to learn at Jesus’ feet (Luke 10: 38-42) and Jesus freely spoke with the Samaritan woman (John 4:1-26). Mary Magdalene, Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Susanna, and many other women traveled with Jesus and the Twelve and supported his ministry. (Luke 8:2-3). Fortunately, Presbyterian Church USA opened its gates to the ordination of women in 1956 and 38% of its pastors now are female. It is a step in practicing the inclusiveness that Jesus taught.
Sunday, December 8th, 2024
by Lee Rainie
“Oh Lord God of hosts,
how long will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears,
and given them tears to drink in full measure.” – Psalm 80: 4-5
The poet of this anguished psalm speaks to the reality of every holiday season. We have lost dear ones; some are sick; some are bone weary of caregiving; some know for certain there is trouble ahead in their communities; some see their livelihoods at risk; and some, like the hearers of this text, are subjugated by conquering militaries.
Restore us … restore us … restore us, the psalmist prays. The writer speaks for folks who want their kingdom back. They want to be saved from their plight. They’d love for God to rewind the clock. But who’s ever had a prayer like that answered?
The anticipation we experience in Advent seems to me to come from a different place in the heart. Not the place that yearns for former glory. It is a place that knows suffering and loss and still seeks grace. Despite our losses, it is a place in the heart that stirs at the music of a soaring cantata. The will to restoration comes from that pained place in all our hearts that says, “We will press on knowing that God is with us – Immanuel.”
Friday, December 6th, 2024
by Rev. Blair Moorhead
“One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, at three o’clock in the afternoon. And a man lame from birth was being carried in. People would lay him daily at the gate of the temple called the Beautiful Gate so that he could ask for alms from those entering the temple.” - Acts 3:1-2
Have you ever experienced being unable to bring anything less than your best self to worship? Why do we think that we have to have it all together to come to church?
With these questions, the author of our Advent devotional - Jill Duffield - is giving us an early Christmas present. She is reminding us that God does not need us to be perfectly coiffed, with ironed clothes on Sunday morning (or on Tuesday, December 24th). God just wants us. Grumpy, frumpy, however we may be. She is giving us a gift in reminding us that God loves us as we are.
When I was a child, getting ready for church was always a huge production. We had to wear tights and dresses as little kids, and once we were older, the rule was: was no jeans at worship. You can imagine the tantrums that ensued. The message I received was not that God wanted me however I was, but that I needed to be a certain way to worship. It was not until well into adulthood that I dared to wear jeans to church. But only black jeans - ones that could look like dress pants if you weren’t paying attention - of course. Blue jeans took even longer. I’m still a work in progress.
The way we show up to church is not and should not serve as a closed gate. Please come to church however you are feeling, whatever you are wearing, in any way you need to show up. God loves you in all your manifestations. And Immanuel welcomes you the same way.
Thursday, December 5th, 2024
by Rick Johannsen
Immediately after the suffering of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see “the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven” with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
‘From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near.So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates.Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. -Matthew 24:29-35
In our Advent devotional text for today (Matthew 24:29-35), Jesus quotes from the Old Testament about suffering and darkness, and even stars falling from heaven. He goes on to imply that when you see these things you will know the end is near. Not a very uplifting message for Advent! However, thanks to participation in the Immanuel Men’s Bible Study group that meets every Tuesday morning, I’ve recently learned another interpretation of what Jesus was saying to his followers here (and in the same words in Mark 13:24-31): That after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection his followers would suffer, feel enveloped by darkness, and be so persecuted they would feel like even the stars were falling from heaven.
We know, in retrospect, this is exactly what happened in over the next 30-40 years during the first Roman-Jewish war that culminated with destruction of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem around 70 AD. So, in these verses that seem apocalyptic, maybe Jesus was simply trying to prepare his followers for hard times to come, and not prophesizing about the end of the world as we know it today. In fact, as pointed out by one of my brothers in Men’s Bible Study, it was during those same hard times leading up to the destruction of the temple that the followers of Jesus were gathering, loving, serving, praying, and forming the the community churches that are our legacy today. Isn’t it great we give ourselves permission to ponder different interpretations of scriptures!
So, is the end of the world near? I think not. At Immanuel and many other churches, Christians believe the Kingdom is already here and there’s no sense waiting around for the end of the world to come. Jesus Christ lives and has entered into our hearts. Now we carry on the ministry regardless of any dark times we may feel the world may be facing. And that, I feel, is an uplifting Advent message!
Wednesday, December 5th, 2024
by Rev. Blair Moorhead
“For if you truly amend your ways and your doings, if you truly act justly one with another, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, or shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not go after other gods to your own hurt, then I will dwell with you in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your ancestors for ever and ever.” -Jeremiah 7:5-7
Preparation requires something of us. So says Jeremiah, and so implies our advent devotion today from Advent in Plain Sight. Before we can enter our house of worship or make room in our hearts for the coming incarnation of God’s love, we must prepare with righteous actions.
How?
The preparation Jeremiah suggests is hard work. We must look out for those on the margins, bring justice, and seek to comfort those who are struggling. Yet, our own Advent at Immanuel offers opportunities to do all these things:
- We can attend the Blue Christmas service on Thursday, December 4th at 7pm in support and solidarity with our community members experiencing grief and challenge this season.
- Volunteer at the hypothermia shelter to bring warmth and a smile to our unhoused neighbors.
- Deliver Tag Tree gifts to support families who need extra help this holiday.
As we prepare our hearts, our actions lead the way. We remember our commandment to love others as we prepare for love incarnate to be born again on Christmas.
Tuesday, December 3rd, 2024
by Rev. Emma Horn
Almost every phone call with my mom begins the same way. She starts by saying “This is the day that the Lord has made,” to which my response is always “Let us rejoice and be glad in it.” There are days when this call and response is shared joyfully and begins a conversation about the wonderful events of the day. There are other days when the response is harder to say - when rejoicing and being glad is the farthest thing from my mind. On especially hard days, I want to respond, “But is it really?,” questioning the fact that the impossibly hard days are days that the Lord has made. Eventually, after much repetition, no matter what my day has been like, my mom eventually persuades me to say the response, which grounds me in that spirit of rejoice and gladness.
Our text for today, Psalm 118, recognizes that struggle all too well. While this is, without a doubt, a Psalm of praise, verses 10-13 and 18 speak of hard things even in the midst of the praise. There is something so beautiful in the fact that even the original author of this Psalm acknowledged that we can have deep trust in God and still have moments when things feel overwhelming difficult.
One of the questions for reflection that Rev. Dr. Jill Duffield asks in today’s devotional is “Have there been times in your life when you have entered the 'gates of righteousness' and given thanks to God?” For me, this question is answered with a resounding yes. Each time my mom (or others!) reminds me that this is in fact the day the Lord has made and that we are called to rejoice and be glad in it, I enter the “gates of righteousness” and give thanks to God, even if it is reluctantly at times. I’m thankful for these folks, as they remind me of this deep truth that yes, even terrible, heart-breaking days are days that the Lord has made. Rev. Dr. Duffield phrases this good news in this way, "This day - whatever it holds, whatever we encounter within whatever walls we find ourselves - is, in fact, a day that the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. This day, no matter the content of it, is permeated and bookended by the Lord’s steadfast love. Living in this truth and promise prompts us to praise God and creates the gates of righteousness in every place and time.” (Advent in Plain Sight, p.12)
Friends, may it be so. Amen.
Sunday, December 1st, 2024
by Rev. Blair Moorhead
‘How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.’ -Genesis 10:17
We are entering through the gate and into the realm of Advent.
This season you are invited to take a moment each day to draw near the divine. To center yourself, to center your heart and mind. To pull your concentration from the holiday to-do list and take a moment ponder the coming of Christ.
What helps you do that?
Is it a set time every day with a cup of tea or coffee? Is it catching a moment wherever it presents itself in the harried pace of December? Is this how you might choose to unwind at the end of a long day, with a reading and a prayer?
You are encouraged to find those moments so you can feel, like Jacob, that God has opened the gate and invited you near.
(from Reflection Question in Advent in Plain Sight Day 1: Gates, Genesis 28:10-22)