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December 2023

Dear friends,

Grace and Peace to you in the name of our risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

As I type this message, I notice that we are halfway through our Advent season journey. We have spoken about this season of Anticipation, as we have looked for the coming of our Lord in the History, Mystery, and Majesty of his arrival. We remember the coming of our Lord in history when he arrived as the Christ child, we look for the coming of the Lord in mystery at the communion table and in the guise of our neighbor in need, and we look to the coming of our Lord in Majesty when he will make His triumphant return in glory. In this season of Advent we could modify the Mystery of Faith that we pronounce every Sunday, into a new Advent faith statement, “Christ has come, Christ comes, and Christ will come again.”

One thing that has stuck out in my mind during this Advent season is the word  Immanuel/Emmanual which translates to “God with Us”. Surely you have heard this word before, it appears in both Isaiah and Matthew; and it is in the title of the popular Advent hymn  that we are singing each week as the Advent candles are lit, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.

Think about that phrase for a moment, God With Us.

What does it mean to you? What does it mean for you? God With Us.

As we prepare to celebrate the coming of the Christ child on Christmas day, we remember that God chose to be God With Us. God came down in the Incarnation and truly chose to be human like us, and human with us. That’s what we remember in the History of Advent.

And, as we look ahead to the Majesty of Advent, we know that we will see God With Us when he comes again in glory.

But, let us not forget in the Mystery of Advent, we have God With Us right now. God With Us in our joys. God With Us in our sorrows. God With Us in our highs. God With Us in our lows. God With Us in our stability. God With Us in our messes. God With Us in our clarity. God With Us in our crap. God has made God’s home among mortals, and God is a God With Us no matter what we are facing. Don’t let yourself forget that, and don’t let others forget it either.

Christ has come, Christ comes, and Christ will come again.

Your Sibling in Christ,
Pastor Robert