Author: Pastor Deborah

Advent 2: Matthew 3:1-12 and Isaiah 11:1-10
I hope you are enjoying your locally sourced Advent Devotional booklet. Last week the reflection was written by Dolores Ngatchou with a focus on where she found light in the darkness. This week you will enjoy an interview of Vivian Smith with a focus on growing in multiple ways. Our overall theme is “Where Hope Grows”. The truth is that hope grows in surprising places, in amazing conditions. You have watched it, I know. Sometimes it grows in places that seem inhospitable and difficult, but hope can be stubborn and strong. Hope for a change in a health condition for you or for a loved one. Hope for a child to turn around and walk a healthier path in life. Hope for a life that is filled with peace instead of discomfort and pain and fear. Hope in the face of difficult odds. Hope to make it to the United States through jungle and mountains and river and potential human danger. (point to the first Advent window). Hope is light piercing the dark days of our lives through the steady presence of a family member or a church family. (point to the second Advent window) Hope is a branch growing out of a stump, new life showing up to surprise you in a place you thought was dried up and dead.

Continue reading “Bursting Forth” →

Advent 1: Isaiah 2:1-5, Matthew 24:36-44
When we get to Advent, we are expecting the coming of Christ. Our minds jump to images of a mom and dad walking to Bethlehem to be counted in the government census, a baby in a manger, angels appearing to shepherds on the hillside. Our ears look forward to the familiar strains of “Silent Night” or “O Come All Ye Faithful”. We anticipate hearing from family and friends, special family gatherings and gift exchanges, special holiday foods. Our natural tendency is to jump right in and celebrate Christmas. Advent invites us to focus not only on Jesus’s first coming, in the form of a baby in the manger, but also on his second coming as described by the prophets of Old and New Testaments. This morning we look at both the visions of Isaiah and of Matthew regarding the Coming One. The message is one of transformation, of change and new life…
Isaiah opens with visions of what will come. We will be touching down on various pieces of the prophet Isaiah throughout our Advent journey this year. We begin with a look at the invitation to walk in the light of the Lord. Isaiah offers a vision of a day when all nations will stream to God’s temple, up to the mountain of the Lord. The Lord will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. The need for war will be over. Weapons of war will be transformed into useful tools for good. This is what it will look like to walk in the light of the Lord. Our first candle in our mega advent wreath represents the light. Continue reading “Out of the Darkness” →