Grace and peace to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
From Philippians 4:4-7 we read:
4Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Phil 4:4-7
There is an old story about a young preacher who returned to his home congregation to deliver a sermon on a significant anniversary of the parish. He wanted everyone to know how learned he had become since he was the little boy that had grown up in that church.
And so he preached and he preached. He covered everything from Genesis to Revelation.
He covered topics related to philosophy, theology, ecology and eschatology. His words included things like stewardship, philanthropy, governance and administration. At the end of the service he stood out in the narthex greeting the congregation. People said all the appropriate nice things to him. He saw his second grade Sunday School teacher, and she simply shook his hand. She didn't say a word. Finally he couldn't contain himself any longer and said, "Well, how was the sermon?" She looked at him and thought for a minute and said, "It was like the peace of God." A big smile came to his face and then she said, "It was like the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding."
We come together on this day in worship so that God who gathers us, speaks to us, feeds us and sends us might shape, transform and mold our lives into something useful and practical for the furthering of the reign of God. It is clear from the lessons that "kingdom coming" needs to flow out of us in response to God's law, mercy, grace and love.
We hear pretty clear, concise and simple instructions on how to do this from the words of St. Paul who wrote, 4Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.
In other words, "REJOICE, squared or to the second power." And the reason for rejoicing, the cause for celebration is because the Lord is near.
A great way to gain insight into a text is to read it in various translations. One translation is called THE MESSAGE by Eugene Peterson. Listen to these words,
4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!
6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson
Let me repeat, "It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life." That's really what Advent is all about. We've been talking about how to move beyond the "crush" of the season to focus on the "crèche," namely the "reason for the season." Rejoice might have certain connotations for us. We might feel, you know there is too much stuff going on in my life right now that I don't feel I can REJOICE. But, think, imagine, "try this on for size" "Celebrate God all day, every day." In other words, one needs to move from thinking or being stuck on self, to being focused, centered on Jesus. Peterson encourages us, "don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray." Often when I visit homebound members, they lament that they aren't as involved as they once were. I encourage them to pray. "Let petitions and praise shape your worries into prayers." WOW, talk about faith formation. We hear in this set of passages, "letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down."
Advent is about making time, taking time to mark time. It is not about "doing time" or even "killing time" but rather to 5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him!
A person who reveled in him and who revealed him was St. Lucy. You can learn more about her life and death by
http://www.newsweden.org/luciahistory.htm
Amen.
Sing Joy,
rtg
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