Let Us Go Now to Bethlehem. Todd Outcalt

I was a child, I could, and frequently did, sleep for twelve hours or more at a crack. My body craved sleep. Mornings were difficult. But as I have grown older and my life has been overtaken by routines, work, and myriad obligations, I have discovered that I often have difficulty sleeping. Mornings are a welcome respite, a quiet time, before the frantic pace of the day begins. Mornings are beginnings—a kind of new creation, when it is possible to start over, leave the burdens of the previous day behind, and embrace all the possibilities that a new day presents.

      I wonder if these are not some of the ideas behind the apostle Paul’s writing to the church in Rome. Here, the apostle asks believers to leave behind the darkness, to embrace the light, and to awake from sleep—a metaphor used throughout the Bible for everything from apathy to death. He calls upon believers to recognize that God’s salvation is near. These themes and ideas can come full circle as we journey through Advent.

      Consider, for example, the many distractions that pervade our lives. It is often difficult to see God’s helpfulness and interventions in our lives when our attentions are wrested away by worry, busyness, entertainment, disasters, fear, anxiety, or even the next big game on TV. When we move our attentions from these to cast our faith upon God, it can often be like awakening from sleep. The pall of darkness lifts. We see life in a new light.

      As a child, I could never figure out why my parents enjoyed the mornings so much; but now that I am older, I think I know. It is because the mornings offer us the possibility of a new order, a new creation, a new way to think about our lives—our worries and concerns. Instead of dropping back to sleep in the darkness of yesterday, we can embrace new paths of gratitude, hope, or joy.

      Today offers these possibilities and more. So, as you cast your faith into this new day, what do you see? What are you hoping for?

      Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for this new day. Yesterday is behind me. And I trust that you will walk with me through this day’s possibilities, hopes, and challenges. I offer you my best, and I trust that you will forgive me when I fail and lift me when I fall. More than this, give me joy and gratitude for this day’s wonders. Amen.

      ADVENT

       Day 5

       Harmony

      May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

      —ROMANS 15:5-7

      I have a friend who writes a popular series of novels about people in a fictional Indiana town called Harmony. Though lighthearted and hopeful, the novels deal, nevertheless, with the various trials, tribulations, and troubles experienced in this small town. Harmony, it seems, is anything but harmonious.

      In many respects, our Advent preparations are attempts to bring ourselves, our homes, and our relationships into synergy. We attempt to align our better angels with the sights, sounds, and company of heaven. We spend time decorating, conversing, and preparing for God’s intervention. And there is a spirit that exists in Advent that seems to enliven the generosities, joys, and helpfulness of humanity. In short, there is a greater willingness, it seems, to embrace the possibilities God places before us—possibilities of hope, compassion, and joy.

      There are new harmonies at play in this season.

      The apostle Paul envisioned harmony as one of the attributes of the Christian life. And for him, harmony best played out in the manner in which we welcomed others and demonstrated the hospitality of God. Instead of seeing others as outsiders, Paul invited the Christian community to embrace everyone with the love of God—bringing them inside the gracious embrace of Creator God.

      This is very much a part of our Advent preparations as we offer open houses, dinners, parties, and the warm hospitality of laughter and friendship. Congregations typically present children’s and musical programs that encapsulate these invitations and offer them to the communities they serve.

      This is the kind of harmony that draws others into God’s household. And when we invite others to share in our common humanity—even recognizing that we all share the same struggles, difficulties, hopes, and dreams—we discover that we have more in common than we at first realized. We are more alike than different.

      How might we demonstrate this harmony to others? What invitations might we offer that could warm the cold heart or embrace the lonely or the fearful? In demonstrating God’s welcome, we bring the whole world into harmony through the grace of Jesus Christ.

      Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for welcoming me and for providing your hospitality through those who have touched my life and helped make me who I am. Help me now to be a source of welcome and hospitality to others—and lead me into those paths that are in harmony with your will and your ways. I thank you for the gifts of this day. Amen.

      ADVENT

       Day 6

       Looking for Signs

      A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,

      and a branch shall grow out of his roots.

      The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him,

      the spirit of wisdom and understanding,

      the spirit of counsel and might,

      the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.

      His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.

      —ISAIAH 11:1-3

      A few years ago, I made a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago—the historic pilgrimage that millions of Christians and others have made over the centuries through northern Spain on the way to the traditional burial place of Saint James. The Camino is marked, for hundreds of miles, by signposts containing an image of a scallop shell. Official pilgrims on the journey also wear a scallop shell as they walk to indicate their destination and yearnings.

      These signposts along the way are important markers. Often, when one encounters a fork in the trail or when walking through busy intersections of cities, it would be easy to lose one’s way without these signs along the way.

      All of us, at one time or another, have longed for signs from God. Sometimes we even pray for signs—for those clear and obvious indications that we are on the right path or that we are making the correct decision at some juncture in life. However, if we are honest with ourselves, we most commonly discover that God’s signs are not obvious. They are not like signposts on a trail. God’s signs are not lightning flashes or burning bushes. They are not miraculous interventions that pick us up or place us on another path.

      The words of Isaiah the prophet may be of some comfort to us here. Isaiah envisioned God’s sign as being embodied in one who would demonstrate the spirit of God, the delight of the Lord. Wisdom, understanding, might . . . concepts that might also help us as we journey through an Advent pilgrimage toward the one who we believe embodied these signs of God.

      Asking God for signs to direct our way is not nearly as important as following the one who is God’s sign—Jesus the Christ, the babe of Bethlehem. Like the shepherds of old, we might discover that God will direct us to the Lord when we are able to say, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place” (Luke 2:15).

      Indeed, Advent can be a time of hope and salvation. The Lord is our sign.

      Prayer: God of wonders, it seems I am always