Romans 13:11-14 Matthew 24:36-44 When we come to the season of Advent we begin again. We begin the cycle of our worship year, and we begin with waiting. Waiting accompanies beginnings in a natural way. We wait for the beginning of a new life through nine months of pregnancy. We wait for the beginning of a new school year. We wait for vacations, for promotions, for the release of a long-awaited movie or a new book from a favorite author. We wait for a response to our email. We wait for someone to return our phone call. We are always waiting. We wait for doctor appointments and dentist appointments. We wait for the furniture we ordered to be delivered. We wait. We wait for spring and then for summer. We wait for someone to notice us and offer us what we need. We just wait. We wait for the […]
Continue readingMonth: November 2022
Jesus Rules
Jeremiah 23:1-6 Luke 23:33-43 There was a time in my life when I declared myself sovereign ruler of my home, and the kitchen was my throne room. It was a wide open room in the back of the house, from where I could survey my domain. I had a clear view of who entered or exited the front or back door. I could see anyone coming up or down the stairs. I could stand at my counter peeling apples and maintain command over the household. I called out orders as I kneaded dough. I answered questions while I diced onions. And you can be certain, nobody was getting any forbidden snacks, or failing to clean up their messes, while I was in my place. For a time, when they were small enough, I actually extended my kingdom to anywhere I happened to be with my children. They were, the four of […]
Continue readingWhat Lasts
Isaiah 65:17-25 Luke 21:5-19 We have all known hardship and sorrow and loss, I am sure. Although we might not have known it the way Israel did. The Old Testament book of Isaiah tells us of the trials that Israel endured during the 6th century BCE when they were invaded by a powerful enemy – the Babylonians. The city of Jerusalem was protected by strong walls, but the Babylonian army was big enough, powerful enough to wear them down. They laid siege to the city, surrounded it, trapping the Israelites inside. No one could go in or out. The enemy waited. The people inside the walls went through all their food stores, and the Babylonians waited. They waited until the people inside were starving, and then they waited a little more. Finally, they attacked. They trampled, they killed, they set fires. They destroyed the holy temple. The temple that Israel had […]
Continue readingAll the Saints
Ephesians1:11-23 It is what we all dread, although we know it is inevitable. No one on earth lives forever, and the end will come for each one of us, even though we don’t know when. But one day the moment arrives. A loved one dies. It may come so much sooner than was expected that we feel like death has cheated. Or it may come after a long full life – perhaps even as a mercy. In any case, we grieve – for ourselves mostly. We are the ones who will carry the sorrow of the loss. But yet there is a will to be read. A last will and testament that our beloved has left behind. We are called to the reading and so we go. We sit down in front of the attorney’s desk – or counselor, we might call them – and wait to hear what has […]
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