Good Tuesday morning, my friends.
Two things about the devotional below strike me. First, I love the phrase "we share in the expectation of Isaiah, of John the Baptist, and of Mary". As you read Isaiah's prophecies of the coming Messiah, as we listen to John the Baptist's passion for the people of Israel to repent and return to God because he knows that Messiah is here among them, as we listen to the faith of Mary as a young teenager who has just been chosen as the mother of this Messiah, don't you just get a sense of the joyful expectation they must have been feeling? Second, the phrase "tragedy (is) all too common" brings to mind the events last week in Newtown, Connecticut. How could we possibly find peace, let alone joy, in the aftermath of such an event? The answer is only in truly trusting that "Jesus will bring everlasting peace when He comes again". The joy of expectation in the midst of tragedy.
For us, the lighting of the Advent candles represents the promise of the coming of Jesus, the light of the world. As the light of the Advent wreath grows, we share in the expectation of Isaiah, of John the Baptist, and of Mary for the fulfillment of God's promise to send a Savior. We look forward to the coming of Jesus who pierces the darkness of sin by the light of his love.As we pass the halfway point in our waiting this week, we light the rose colored candle of Joy, rejoicing that the Lord's coming is even more certain than the rising of the sun.In the first week of Advent, we lit the first candle in our Advent Wreath, the candle of hope. We light it again as we remember our hope that Christ, who was born in a manger in Bethlehem, will come again to fulfill all of God's promises to us. This hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.Last week, we lit the candle of peace. We are surrounded by a world in which there is precious little peace to be found at times. Wars, injustice and tragedy are all too common. However, because of our relationship with Jesus, the Prince of Peace, we are promised a peace that passes understanding. Christ brought peace when He first came to us, and he will bring everlasting peace when He comes again.Today, we light the candle of Joy. Even though we have walked in darkness, we rejoice that we have seen the great light of Christ. We rejoice that His light scatters the night and shows us the way to God. We rejoice that He lights our path even in the darkest times, and we rejoice that the darkness of the grave will be made powerless by the light of Jesus.
Grace and peace and JOY be yours in abundance,
Bruce
O God of Joy, Emmanuel, brighten your light within our hearts by the power of Your Spirit.
Help each one of us to be ready for Christ's return, whether He comes back today or years from now.
Fix our hearts and our minds on the things you have done and those you have promised to do so that we may have the joy you promised.
As we worship you, strengthen us so that we may always do your will and so bless you and the world you have made.
We pray in the name of our greatest source of Joy, the One born in Bethlehem.
Amen.
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