Our Advent theme this year is “A Savior Made Known.” On this first Sunday in Advent we celebrate the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that she would give birth to the Messiah. The long-awaited promised King from David’s line was coming! God was sending his promised Savior, and more than that, he would be called the Son of God. “For no word from God will ever fail!” May our hearts be filled with awe, joy, and hope as we celebrate Gabriel’s announcement coming true in our lives in real time.
The end of the Lord’s Prayer is not a request; it is a statement – a recognition that the kingdom, the power, and the glory are God’s forever. Those are not mere words, however, nor are they separate from our lives today. In Ephesians 1, the Apostle Paul ties the kingdom, the power, and the glory to the ascended Christ, and then he brings it right back into the church. May our lives reflect and embody God’s kingdom, his power, and his glory forever. To God be the glory.
Prayer is an act of drawing near to God, but there are times when we feel like God isn’t returning the action. We may be praying boldly, faithfully, persistently and rightly, but there is no perceptible answer. These times can rock us with doubt or even guilt. Is God listening? Does God care? Is this somehow my fault? There is no easy answer to difficult times, but we can be certain that God indeed hears and cares. When God’s plans are not our plans and God’s timing is not our timing, God calls us to trust.
The elections this week (and all that led to them) revealed our hopes and anxieties in new ways. It does not take an election, however, to reveal our hearts. Illness, finances, relationships and so much more can lay our hearts bare. Psalm 33 speaks into every part of our lives, calling us to unleash our praise to the God who is upright, faithful, righteous, just and loving. God actively governs creation, social and political structures, our lives and our salvation. May we rejoice and put our hope in God, and may God surround us with his unfailing love.
Jesus taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Would God ever lead us into temptation? Why would Jesus tell us to pray this? As we dig deeper into this request, we find it is one that Jesus himself prayed for himself and for us. Trials and temptations are unavoidable, and God’s guidance and protection are vital. We soon see this is a precious request for those who are committed to follow where God leads. May God kindle our prayers and our lives as we draw near to him.