God With Us

Advent Series 2

Linda Murphy Jan. 13, 2009

The children have lit three candles, which provide great light for the people who have walked in the darkness.  Have you had time during this advent season to embrace the journey from darkness to light? 

I was surprised at the woman’s advent retreat with the number of woman who acknowledged that Christmas time is a difficult time for them. Perhaps it is someone sitting next to you. Perhaps it is you.

Prior to advent starting, we were lead through a series that talked about the one thing that keeps us from a journey with God…. The one thing that is now stopping you from embracing the road to Bethlehem.

The first Sundays of advents litany talked about fear making heavy the heart. In James teaching  he provide us with hope that we may be searching for God but God is searching for us, in fact  we are not lost,  God has already found us.  Wherever we are, God is with us.

The second Sunday of advent the litany talks about guilt clouding the darkness; Andrew brought John the Baptist into the picture with a solution to guilt……….  repent. John was not the only one is the desert but   the magi were in the desert, Mary and Joseph were in the desert and Mary’ had her own desert journey of being pregnant and unmarried. Andrew asked us what do we want to hear from the lips of God.

So God has found us and God has something to say to each one of us.    We are waiting with anticipation to hear what God wants to say to us, but maybe in our waiting we have kept ourselves to busy to hear what God wants to say to us.  Maybe like today’s litany reading we are filled with cynicism that nothing matters no one really cares

Its like the pirates’ code ever one for themselves don’t trust anyone.

Lets talk about anticipation.

When was the last time that you were filled with so much anticipation that you actually thought you might burst before the anticipated event arrived?   For me that would be  Like when my sons returning from camp after being away for several months.    Or Joel coming home on Friday which is   144 hours and ten minutes  away. Maybe for you it was a time when you were expecting a visit from an old friend or a present from someone special.

These experiences often describe time as slowing or standing almost still – far from the reality of time continuing forward. The best example of this for some of you might be the time you had a child traveling with you or remembering what it felt like when you were a child on a trip somewhere. The inevitable “Are we there yet?” was sure to be a part of the journey. Our journey to Bethlehem could be like those anticipated moments

Jesus has found us, and we are waiting to hear the something from the mouth of God.  We need to sit back and take time to hear what God has to say.  We need to rest in the anticipation and not miss the moment

Do you ever wonder why John the Baptist lived in the desert?  Was he waiting,  anticipating,  perhaps?  But I think the desert allowed him a space that was free from Christmas hymns, shopping and baking.

I like thinking about the desert as a metaphor for life. The darkness, scorching, frightening, desert.  Or is the desert as a place where we can go to rest, to listen, and anticipate the God who is with us who has words for us,  were we can wait with anticipation for God , or just be.  We all have those desert experiences.   Some of them are unsettling some of them bring us to peace

The darkness of the desert can be difficult.

Pain grief consternation, even despair need not diminish us. They can augment us by adding to the breadth and depth of our experience, by enriching our spectrum of light and darkness by keeping us from impulsively jumping into action before the time is ripe, before the fullness of time.

The Isaiah passage says.   

The desert and the parched land will be glad and the wilderness will rejoice and blossom Like the crocus,  it will burst into bloom it will rejoice greatly and shout for Joy.

I think the Philippians passage represents that desert experience of  shouting for Joy.

The Philippians passage is written by Paul while he is in jail,  we can only speculate what this desert experience might have entailed.   But what does Paul write?   rejoice let your gentleness be evident to all,  The lord is near Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to god and the peace which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

In the mist of being in jail perhaps facing martyrdom Paul was able to wait with joy and anticipation.

Joy comes from our perspective rather than our performance. Our joy is based in our confidence in God's love, God's ability, and God's wisdom. We rejoice because we knows  God is with us. This one fact could changes the way we view everything else. Joy deepens as we progressively snuggle into the arms of the creator.  

In the book the Shack, a little girl of six has been kidnapped.   She is experiencing her own desert and Jesus says to  the little girls father that

 “I can tell you there was not a moment that we were not with her, She knew my peace and you would have been proud of her.  She was so brave.  Was it an easy journey, no, but she was aware of Gods presence and love.  In the darkness God has found us and the light can come in if we allow the voice of God to speak to us.  God is with us even if we are not aware of his presence.

Paul roots his joy, not in denial or escapism, but in God’s love in every situation, even prison and the prospect of death. “Nothing can separate us from the love of God” . . . “God will complete God’s good work in our lives.”  We can rest in the love of God. God is with us.

Paul gives us a promise. Because God is intimately present in every moment of life, urging us toward healing relationships, we can experience God’s shalom, God’s dynamic wholeness, in every situation. As Isaiah proclaims, “surely God is our salvation, I will trust and not be afraid.” And, Paul adds, if you follow the practices of relationship with the intimate God, “the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Jesus Christ.”

Paul not only shares a vision, but also presents us with a pathway to promise  . . . to the experience of God’s peace, wholeness, and beauty in all circumstances.

“Rejoice in God always; again I will say, Rejoice.” That’s the promise, and the path goes through practicing prayer, gentleness, and spiritual affirmations.  It is difficult  to do that if we do not find time to be in the presence  of God.  I encourage all of you to continue the journey to Bethlehem and find time to do those practices that allow you to be found, and hear God

There is no recipe card that tells us how to wait to hear from God.   We all need to examine our life and find time to acknowledge and anticipate that we are In the presence of God the almighty. Stephen is at St bend this weekend for a silent retreat that is what works for him.  I am not as deliberate as Stephen but I try to live into the presence being mindful of what I am doing.  As I ride my bike to work or ride the bus I try to engage in the miracles that I don’t always recognize, Blue sky’s, snow falling a friendly face

I want to say that the good news is that God is with us . Anticipation Lifts the heart desire is created to fulfill perhaps not at once more likely in small stages.  We are all on our own journey.

Like pregnant woman Their journey begins nine months before the birth but each day they are conscious and aware of the life already present. They know because there are changes in moods and attitudes. They experience changes in clothes and sizes as their bodies accommodate the developing child – a very real presence.

But during the whole pregnancy, their wait includes a real knowledge of the life that they are bringing into the world. They need to change to make room for this child. Their identity and life are being examined and molded

Maybe you will consider that Advent actually inviting us to use this time to let go of the things that keep us from knowing God in every moment, to see “forgiveness of sins” and repentance as freedom to experience God in a new way

God wants to be with us, God has found us Gods loves us and we can be freed from what ever keeps us from god if we take the time to  wait and rest and anticipate the mystery of  the presence of God,

I want to close with this poem, by

Kenneth Caraway has a  poem You Gotta Keep Dancin

There is no box

      Made by God

      Nor us

But that the sides can be flattened out

      And the top blown off

      To make a dance floor

      On which to celebrate life.