Scripture: Isaiah 63:7-9 •Psalm 148 • Hebrews 2:10-18 • Matthew 2:13-23
I hope you have enjoyed this Advent, and the beauty of the coming of the Christ child. Matthew and Luke give us nativity narratives with wise men and shepherds. Matthew and Luke also tell us about Herod. Make no mistake, times were brutal and oppressive when Christ became the Word incarnate. Stories about the birth of a special precious baby - any precious baby - give us great joy, but we are poignantly reminded in Matthew's gospel that God came to us in the midst of great suffering in his account of the Slaughter of the Innocents: "A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud
lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled,
because they are no more."
If Jesus saves, which is the meaning of his name, why do children suffer and die, and mothers and fathers weep? Consider The Rev. Pam Fickenscher's "Remembering Rachel: The Slaughter of the Innocents," and, after 9/11, the Oklahoma City bombing of the federal building, the unabomber, Colorado, Connecticut, the Boston Marathon, and countless other shootings, The Rev. Dr. James E. Lampkin invites us to "The New Normal." In the midst of storms, what is our hope? Our consolation? Our salvation?
Scripture: Isaiah 7:10-16 • Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19 •Romans 1:1-7 • Matthew 1:18-25
As we await the birth of the Christ Child this Advent, we read Matthews account of Joseph's dream. Think of what Joseph must have been thinking and going through when learning that his betrothed was carrying a child not his own - especially at that time and place.
What did Joseph do? Look at what it takes to be able to do what he did. It is hard to put ourselves in another time, another culture, and we know "the rest of the story." What do you think you would have done? Consider The Rev. Dr. Janet H. Hunt's "Just What a Dad Does," and The Very Rev. Samuel G. Candler's "Believe in the Dreams of the Person You Love."
May God protect you and yours, and give us what we need to have faith, trust and to believe as we celebrate the coming of the Lord.
Scripture:
Isaiah 35:1-10 •Psalm 146:5-10 or Luke 1:46b-55 • James 5:7-10 • Matthew 11:2-11
What do you think when your idea of what God’s will is, or
what should happen does not happen – when your expectations are not met? This
week, while in prison, John the Baptist sends a messenger to Jesus to ask if he
is the “one who is to come, or should we look for someone else.” What is hope,
and are our hopes misplaced? What was Jesus’ reply to John, and to us? See The Rev. Dr. Amy E.
Richter’s “Expecting the Unexpected Messiah.”
What should we be hoping in and for? What is God doing in
our lives? Consider The Rev. Daniel P. Matthews, Jr. “What’s the Plan?”
Can we choose how God will bless us? How are we called
to face the unknown? Read Sara Miles’ account of Mary’s experience of God, the
Father, and the Holy Spirit, and her response in “My Soul Proclaims: Submission and Subversion in Mary’s Magnificat.”
