Well, it’s Advent again. So what?
In answer to that question – I have nothing new or flashy to offer. I don’t have a catchy new program idea; music you’ve never heard; a video that will really grab your attention – nothing. Except this…
For thousands of years, people in need waited for God. They waited for the long, awaited promise of a Savior, to come. They waited for the Scripture to come true – that God would “dwell” among God’s people again – and in so doing bring grace, hope, and peace that “passes all understanding.”
It was a long wait – but eventually – He came. In the most surprising of ways, He came.
The Word lived and dwelt among us and when the evil in the world tried to destroy him, and seemingly did on a cross of execution, He defeated them – again – just as He did in the beginning.
Ever since then, the world has been waiting again. Waiting for another holy coming among us.
That is what Advent is all about. We take a few weeks each year to quietly, patiently, lovingly wait for Christmas morning – and we affirm our willingness to wait until He comes again in glory and honor – once and for all.
This season, like every Advent/Christmas season, you will see a lot of glitz and glamour on display. A lot of ads are going to be screaming at you from your television and computer screen to buy more – and more – and more.
I would invite you do something else. Buy a little less, rush a whole lot less, sit down with your loved ones – or with someone who has no loved ones – and just wait.
Wait for God to come in the most unexpected and beautiful of ways.
He always has, he always will. Come, Lord Jesus, come.
AMEN.
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By Paul Simrell
The Reverend Paul W. Simrell has served for over thirty years in a variety of congregational and institutional settings. He is a recognized minister with standing in the Virginia region of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada and is nationally endorsed by the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) for specialized ministry in both pastoral counseling and chaplaincy. Ordained in 1982, he has served congregations in Kentucky, Texas, Florida, and Virginia. He currently serves as the pastor of Elpis Christian Church, a small, historic congregation located just a few miles west of Richmond, Virginia. Elpis is the Greek word meaning “expectant hope.” He also serves on the associate clinical staff of the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care, Richmond, Virginia, both as a pastoral counselor and a ministerial assessment specialist, specializing in executive, clergy and relationship coaching. He is a graduate of the University of Florida and Lexington Theological Seminary and has done advanced clinical training in chaplaincy and pastoral counseling at the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky, Children’s Medical Center and Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas and the Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care in Richmond, Virginia. He is a Certified Pastoral Counselor, an ACPE Practitioner, and a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors. He is a Certified Facilitator of the Prepare-Enrich relationship assessment and skills-building program and served as a volunteer chaplain for over twenty years with the CJW Medical Center campuses in Richmond, Virginia. His avocational interests include playing the piano and drawing. He is very happily married to his wife Elizabeth Yeamans Simrell, a free-lance writer, who is also a Certified Facilitator for the Prepare-Enrich program.
Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton
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IGW3 - In God's Word, In God's Will, In God's Work 