But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” Luke 1:31-33

This coming Sunday marks the first Sunday of Advent. Advent is a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

We feel like we have been doing a lot of waiting these past several months, don’t we? Waiting for this Covid season to pass; waiting for postponed surgeries to be rescheduled; waiting to properly grieve the loss of a loved one, waiting to see loved ones face to face; waiting to hug loved ones again.

We have been waiting.

But during Advent our waiting is different. Our waiting is not tinged with frustration or sadness but rather our waiting is marked with the anticipation of Hope!

There is a wonderful old Christmas hymn called In the Bleak Midwinter based on a poem by an English poet named Christina Rossetti. It was penned in the late 1800’s.

In the bleak mid-winter

Frosty wind made moan;

Earth stood hard as iron,

Water like a stone;

Snow had fallen, snow on snow,

Snow on snow,

In the bleak mid-winter

Long ago.

Our God, heaven cannot hold Him

Nor earth sustain,

Heaven and earth shall flee away

When He comes to reign:

In the bleak mid-winter

A stable-place sufficed

The Lord God Almighty —

Jesus Christ.

We celebrate Jesus being born in the darkest time of our life, coinciding with the darkest time of the year.

And that is exactly when the Light of the World would want to enter into our lives. So that we can remember in the midst of the darkness, that it is in Him all dominion and authority rests. We are reminded that after the sometimes interminable waiting — there is Hope. There is life. There is Light that will break through the darkness.

And He Shall Reign Forever and forever. Amen.

What are you waiting for?

Join me this Sunday as we begin an Advent series entitled: Do Not Be Afraid!