It’s good to know

 There are some things in life that are just reassuring to know.  For example, it is reassuring to know that on a wet day you have your umbrella with you, it is reassuring to know that when you are tired you have a comfy bed to sleep in.

It is reassuring to know that whilst we are in the period of Advent we still have two weeks until Christmas, lots more mince pies and more seriously lots more time to think about the great gift for which we are waiting to celebrate once more. 

I remember one occasion whilst travelling that was not as reassuring though.  Whilst walking around Prague with Ian, we were talking about the fact that when we go away we are really sensible, and careful what roads we walk on and the places we go to.  Just at this moment, a motorbike came screeching past nearly running me over – not so reassuring after all ! 

We all like reassurance and this is something that we have spoken in the words of the Magnificat this morning.  We spoke  the familiar words, of the prayer of Mary on hearing that she was to give birth to Jesus.  Words of praise; words which remind us that Jesus was not only going to, but actually has  turned  the world upside down with His revolutionary message that everyone counts, His message that the lowly would be lifted up, and the hungry fed with good things.

How reassuring that we worship God, who has turned the world upside down and brought us our salvation, with His revolution of love. That is, a world where we can know that the most important thing is the love of God which reaches throughout the world.

I read a speech once of Martin Luther Kings; it was after an attack on his life.  After this attack if he had sneezed four times he would have died instantly. He received a number of letters and telegrams, after he recovered from various important people, but the one letter he remembered the most, was from a little girl.  She wrote, “ I am a white girl, but I just have to let you know that I am really pleased that you did not sneeze four times.” He agreed, but he loved this letter, because it was reassuring to know that people cared.

Reassurance is good, we all need it, it is good and we can all give reassurance as well. The words that Mary spoke are not just reassuring words for us, they are words for us to share with others, they speak of a lifestyle that makes a difference in our world.  They speak of a life where the poor matter, they speak of a life where those in need are helped, and are loved.  They speak of the difference that Jesus makes. They speak of the difference which comes after the waiting of advent as we celebrate God breaking into the World as a baby.  They remind us that in our waiting we are still to show Jesus in our lives everyday to all those around us.

The words also speak of the difference that we as followers of Jesus, are to make as well.  So that our lifestyle, based on the lifestyle of Jesus, and His teaching, is one where the poor matter, one where those in need are helped and loved.

There are many people who have allowed themselves to show the hope of advent, the hope brought by Jesus, the hope of a world turned upside down, the hope of a revolution of love. Some of these have done incredible and well publicised things others have simply carried on spreading the love of God in their own community in a quiet way.

I may have told you this before but there was in the early twentieth century a young woman in service. She was not able to go out, and do obviously noticeable things for God, but she wanted the world to know the reassurance that God is with them, that He has a care for the poor, and help for those in need. So, she used to collect the newspapers when she was cleaning, and every night she would go through the family announcements, and pray for all those who had lost loved ones, for all those getting married, for all those who had just announced a birth.

It is reassuring to know that there are people who are going out and turning the world upside down for God, by showing His love. By caring for those who need care, by loving those who no-one else would love.  By doing whatever they can in their community.

What about us though?

We have thought of the words of Mary reminding us that when God came to this world he turned it upside down with the greatest revolution of all, the revolution of love. When God stepped into the World he showed us that we count, in His great scheme and not only do we count but we have such an important  part to play.

In advent people think of the second coming of Jesus and within this they think of the difference that will make. But in our waiting and considering we are not to sit idly by, we are to allow God to use us to show His love to all those around.  

What are we doing to turn the World upside down with the love of Jesus? We can all do our bit, by being the people that God has called us to be. This means, being the best we can be, for God wherever we are at this time.  

We may not do obviously noticeable things for God that will be told for generations to follow, but by being more like Him, by spreading His love around, we can be part of the revolution of turning the world upside down with the love of God. The message that God cares for everyone and He loves us all. So lets start being revolutionary where we are and in our way, as we reach out to people with love. May we use this advent, and every day to celebrate the fact that Jesus is with us, and we can share that with all those around. AMEN

Teddy bears and Dolly Parton. Advent 2 - stop and think.

 

I get to do lots of lovely things, and one of these is going into schools and talking to the children. I remember that I used to take a teddy bear into school with me who had a clerical shirt and collar. The teddy who came to school had often got too excited and missed out on things. I remember explaining that the teddy bear had got so excited that it was December they forgot to go to lots of lovely things happening. The children in school felt sorry for the silly teddy bear, but they also told me that it was important to pay attention, or for us today to stop and think.

In these weeks leading up to Christmas, life can be very busy. We are all preparing, spending time sending cards, checking on presents we want to buy, organising our diaries around seeing friends and family, and other Christmas activities. It never feels like a good time to stop and think as we are called to do in Advent.

As we stop and think, we can take moments to prepare ourselves for the birth of Jesus, to celebrate once again the amazing moment when God became one of us, and then we can also look ahead to Jesus coming again.

In the gospel reading today (Matthew 3:1-12) we heard of John the Baptist with his rallying call to repent and prepare the way for the Lord.

I always think that John the Baptist wouldn’t have been the kind of person that you would want to bump into on a dark night. He wore strange clothes and ate even stranger food. But he had a key part to play. His role was to get everybody ready, to stop people and make them think.

To be honest, the people to whom John the Baptist was speaking had been waiting a long time. For hundreds and hundreds of years, they had been waiting for God to come and change things. They had a promise that a Messiah, which also means anointed one, would come and make all things well. They were waiting, and whether they still believed that God was going to make a difference, seeing and hearing John the Baptist would certainly have made them stop and think.

I am not suggesting that we need a John the Baptist type person to come and make us stop and think this Advent. However, our readings this morning have reminded us that something incredible has happened. There is excitement and hope. This should cause us to stop and think, to pray. As we stop, we are taking time to think of what the coming of Jesus meant over 2000 years ago, what it means for us today, and also what it would mean for Him to return. What would change?

In our readings this morning, we heard of the way that the world changes with God. In the book of Isaiah (11:1-10) we heard of an incredible new way. We heard of the impossible happening, wolves and lambs getting on well, a toddler playing by a snake! This was a new world, a world that was healed. God broke into the world as people knew it, and the vision of Isaiah is a vision of a perfect world, of the kingdom of God when all would be well. God transformed the world by coming and showing us how we can be transformed to be more like Him. These words from Isaiah gave us an amazing vision of how life will be in the Kingdom of God, a vision that should make us stop, think, and wonder how we can show the way of God in our lives.

In the reading from the letter to the Romans (Romans 15:4-13) we heard of the way that we are to be transformed: people who live in harmony with each other, joined in glorifying God. People who welcome each other just as Christ has welcomed us.

This is amazing. We are to be more like God, to love each other and to let our lives be transformed, to live in harmony with each other by not complaining about one another, by going the extra mile to help each other, by being joined in our praise for God.

We prepare the way for Jesus by being like this, by loving, and by following His way.

The kind of behaviour that is being talked of should make other people stop and think as they see the ways of God reflected in us. In the reading from Romans, it says that we are to welcome one another just as we have been welcomed by Christ. This is the Messiah, this is Jesus. The one for whom people had been waiting had not only arrived, but they, and now we, are able to live like Him.

In our preparations during Advent, we are to stop and think. As we do this, we are to seek ways of getting closer to God – and they are to be ways that are lasting, not just until Christmas, but permanently. Advent represents the start of the new year in the Church Calendar, and it’s a wonderful time for us to make resolutions – perhaps to pray more, to read our Bibles more, to read a Christian book. We need to be continually fed by God, and to do that we need to make time for Him – time for quiet reflection, and time for study and being with other believers.

We have the Advent quiet day on Saturday, which is a perfect time to stop and think about what God is saying to us as we seek to be more like Him day by day.

I am a huge Dolly Parton fan, and I watched a programme sometime ago where she was interviewed about her faith. She is a Christian and was asked how she prepares for a show. Her answer was prayer, prayer to be a shining light for God, and to bring happiness.

This is actually a really good prayer. Imagine if this Advent and always we asked God every day to help us to be more like Him, and to bring His peace, love, and hope to others. Imagine if we spent time with Him trying to learn more about Him, and asking Him to help us to walk in His straight paths, to live in harmony with each other, looking forward to the time when wolves and lambs will be together and will be safe!

May the God of hope fill us with joy and peace in believing.