The Art of Waiting
Pastor Jason I’ve been reading a wonderful Advent collection from the writings of one of my favorite German theologians Dietrich Bonhoeffer. And I want to share one of these devotions with you today. Many of us are experiencing some intense situations of waiting this Advent season – waiting on family to come home for the holidays, waiting through the journey of grief over the loss of a loved one, waiting on medical tests, waiting in hospitals, waiting for answers, waiting for strength and pace…and so much more. I found this piece encouraging within my own journey of waiting…and I pray it will encourage you as well today.
Celebrating Advent means being able to wait.
Waiting is an art that our impatient age has forgotten. It wants to break open the ripe fruit when it has hardly finished planting the shoot. But all too often the greedy eyes are only deceived; the fruit that seemed so precious is still green on the inside, and disrespectful hands ungratefully toss aside what has so disappointed them.
Whoever does not know the austere blessedness of waiting—that is, of hopefully doing without—will never experience the full blessing of fulfillment.
Those who do not know how it feels to struggle anxiously with the deepest questions of life, of their life, and to patiently look forward with anticipation until the truth is revealed, cannot even dream of the splendor of the moment in which clarity is illuminated for them.
For the greatest, most profound, tenderest things in the world, we must wait. It happens not here in a storm but according to the divine laws of sprouting, growing, and becoming.
– Excerpts from God Is In The Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor.
Isaiah 11: 1—4a
If You Missed Sunday’s Message…
Read or Listen to God With Us: Belong – John 1:9-14
God’s Word for This Week
John 1:6-8 – The true light that shines on all people was coming into the world. (CEB v.9)
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 – Don’t suppress the Spirit. Don’t brush off Spirit-inspired messages, but examine everything carefully and hang on to what is good. (CEB, v.19-21)
Psalm 126 – Lord, change our circumstances for the better, like dry streams in the desert waste! Let those who plant with tears reap the harvest with joyful shouts.
Isaiah 9:1-7 – The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. On those living in a pitch-dark land, light has dawned. (CEB, v.2)
This Week at Hood
Monday, December 11, 11:00 am – Circle Brunch at the home of Mary Lee Tart
Wednesday, December 13, 3:30 pm – Prayer & Inspiration
Wednesday, December 13, 6:00 pm – Choir Practice – (Last practice before the Cantata!)
Thursday, December 14, 1:00, 3:00 pm – Pastor Jason at the Cellar for Drop-In Conversation & Coffee (108 N. Wilson Ave.)
December 17, 11:00 am – Choir’s Musical presentation: God With Us; followed by church-wide Christmas lunch and visit from Saint Nicholas!
Coming Soon
December 24, 11:00 am – Worship
December 24, 5:00 pm – Christmas Eve Candlelight Communion
*If you have not already picked up a copy of the Advent Study Guide for your family, they are available at the church, just outside the sanctuary.