I had the radio on as I was driving around yesterday, and John Lennon’s song “Happy Christmas” came on

  • The song begins, so this is Christmas, and, being a church professional, my first thought was, no, this is Advent (alright, it really wasn’t – my first thought was, that’s a good song – but work with me a little today)
    • But it did get me to wondering where Advent came from
    • Turns out, that Advent originated back in the 3rd or 4thcenturies, no one is really sure, and it was originally a season of fasting to prepare for being baptized at Epiphany
    • So how many of us are going to be fasting the next few weeks?
    • Of course not, and Advent morphed into more of what we have now, the four weeks leading up to Christmas, with both an end times focus and a Christmas focus, sometime in the 6th century (even back then fasting wasn’t that popular an idea, I guess)
  • And let’s face it, this is Thanksgiving weekend
    • And we’re still eating turkey leftovers
    • And we’ve done Black Friday and Small Business Saturday, and we’re getting ready for Cyber Monday, with hopefully something left over for Giving Tuesday
    • And we have decorations to put up if we haven’t already, and more shopping to do, unless you’re one of those amazing people, like my wife, who are already done shopping, and there are gatherings to plan and meals to prepare and cookies to bake and the list goes on and on
    • Thinking about the end of the world – probably not so much
    • That whole reading from Luke today – it’s probably not really resonating with us today, in the midst of everything else
  • I thought maybe we could update it a little, make it connect a little more with what we are really all focusing on right on
    • How about – there will be signs in the stores and in the malls
    • Distress among shoppers confused by the sales and the crowds and the rush to get things done
    • Or maybe – when you see the lights and Santa and Rudolph, when you see the trees decorated, when you hear the songs and the carols being sung
    • Then stand up and raise your heads, because you know that the kingdom of God is near
    • Or how about – heaven and earth will pass away, but my word, and the fruitcake, will not pass away
    • Really, how can we make this little season of Advent, which is meant to be quiet and reflective, a time of preparation and waiting and hoping, fit into our genuinely busy, loud, chaotic lives
    • How can Advent compete with The Christmas Holiday Season?
    • It can’t, unless we want to let it do so
    • Unless we make an effort to let Advent have some space
    • Unless we make the effort to let Advent have some time
    • Unless we make the effort to let Advent have a say
    • Advent can never overpower The Christmas Holiday Season – we have to make the effort to let it sneak in, divert us, calm us, comfort us, heal us, relax us, teach us, and enrich us
  • And to do that, we need to keep in mind the very central, most basic point Advent wants us to remember – God comes
    • In the midst of craziness and chaos and confusion
    • In the midst of hustle and bustle
    • In the midst of getting things planned and getting things done
    • In the midst of incessant noise
    • In the midst of enforced happiness and suppressed sorrow
    • In the midst of all that life offers us, throws at us, and deals us
    • In the midst of whatever, in the midst of everything, in the midst of anything
    • God comes
    • God is present
    • God is here
    • God came in the past, in the history of Israel, in the incarnation of Jesus
    • God comes now, in word and sacrament, in prayer, in love given and received, in joy and in sorrow, in every moment of our lives
    • God will come again, at the end of all things
    • God comes, over and over, again and again
    • God comes, when we look for it, when we least expect it
    • God comes, in big and obvious ways, in small and subtle ways
    • God comes, in church, in our homes, in the mall, in the school, in the hospital, in the streets
    • God comes, in places of strife and violence, in places of peace and security
    • God comes, to rich and poor, men and women, young and old, to folks of every color, to folks of every creed and religion, to all folks everywhere regardless of who or what they are
  • I heard somebody say this week that the end of the world is the thing you can’t see beyond
    • The thing beyond which there is no hope, beyond which there is nothing
    • Which means the end of the world can happen to us long before the actual end of the world happens
    • But Advent reminds us that there is always something beyond what we see, because God is always with us
    • God always comes to us, in the midst of whatever, beyond whatever
    • Beyond the struggle and strife, beyond the chaos and confusion, beyond the stress and the anxiety – God comes
    • A meaningful Advent is possible for all of us
    • A meaningful Advent is not meant to be a killjoy to the month long celebration of Christmas
    • A meaningful Advent can awaken us to always be looking for the God who comes to us always
    • A meaningful Advent can awaken our longing for all the surprising ways God comes to us
    • Advent reminds us that Christ is near
    • That the kingdom is near
    • Christ is here
    • The kingdom is here
    • God is coming to us
    • God has already come to us
    • Be alert
    • Look for all the ways God comes to you, every day
    • Advent says, look
    • Watch
    • Be ready
    • God is coming to us
    • God is coming to you
    • So this is Advent
    • Amen.