Mark 13:24-37 I saw a t-shirt recently that said, “I miss precedented times.” I have to agree; this year, “unprecedented” has worn out its welcome. But here we are in the season of Advent – a season that tells us to expect unprecedented things. The sun and moon will go dark, stars will fall from the sky, the Son of Man will come in the clouds, and no one knows the day or the hour. Every year it feels a little strange to begin the Advent season, because it’s a thing that most of the world doesn’t recognize. To most people, this is the Christmas season, or maybe the Thanksgiving leftovers season. It is the time of the year when the church is the most out of sync with the world around us, because we are waiting for Jesus – in a world that detests having to wait for anything. […]
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In the Waiting
Matthew 24:36-44 Jesus is coming. Are you ready? And as I ask this question, you might be thinking of all your lists. Shopping lists, baking lists, card lists. You might be thinking of your calendar dates– concert dates, dinner dates, party dates, arranging flights or picking up folks at the airport dates. You might be squirming in your pew as you realize just how not-ready you are. I sometimes feel like I need to apologize to the church for Advent. While our heads are full of Christmas, the church is saying, let’s talk about something else, because it’s not Christmas yet. This is jarring. Because everywhere else you look, Christmas is in full swing. On TV, on the radio, in the stores, everywhere you go. The culture is at least a month ahead of us on the calendar. It all comes so early and lasts so long, we feel […]
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