Christmas Presence

Even though our reading this morning comes from the 40^th chapter of Isaiah, there are many scholars who refer to this as the beginning of a new book called Second Isaiah because there is a shift in the tone of the book and the events in the lives of the Israelites.  The first 39 chapters deal with their despair because they are living in Exile.  Nothing about their lives seems to be going the right way.  Perhaps they could identify with us here and now, with the newly named recession, the highest unemployment rate in 20 years, the decline in the stock market, the housing and mortgage crisis, bailouts, the 5^th year of the war in Iraq, the healthcare crisis, the list could go on and on…it seems like the news is filled with all bad news, nothing seems to be going the right way.

But then we have this morning's reading to turn things around and offer the Israelites and us some comfort, some hope.  Listen now for the word of God through the prophet, Isaiah:

 

Comfort, o comfort my people, says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,

and cry to her that she has served her term,

that her penalty is paid,

that she has received from the Lord's hand double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:

"In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,

            make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be lifted up,

            And every mountain and hill be made low;

            The uneven ground shall become level,

            And the rough places a plain.

Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,

            And all people shall see it together,

            For the mouth of the Lord has spoken."

A voice cries out, "Cry out!"

And I said, "What shall I cry?"

All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field,

The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;

            Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades;

            But the word of our God will stand forever.

Get you up to a high mountain,

            O Zion, herald of good tidings;

Lift up your voice with strength,

O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,

            Lift it up and do not fear;

Say to the cities of Judah,

"Here is your God!"

See, the Lord God comes with might,

            And his arm rules for him;

            His reward is with him,

And his recompense before him.

He will feed his flock like a shepherd;

            He will gather the lambs in his arms,

            And carry them in his bossom,

            And gently lead the mother sheep.

 

As David said last week, we have started a new year.  Advent is the official start of the church year.   Our reading today continues that theme; it is time for a fresh start, a new beginning for the Israelites.  Their fresh start begins as our new church year begins – preparing for the coming of the Lord, confident in the comfort that comes with the presence of God on earth.

The prophet Isaiah is told by a heavenly counsel to prepare the way of the Lord – he is given instructions for a pretty dramatic preparation – smoothing out the rough places, leveling uneven ground, lowering the mountains, raising the valleys - making a clear path for the coming of our King.  And this wasn't just a word for Isaiah.  If you were paying attention, you heard something else that sounded similar in what Bonnie read from the gospel of Mark: "the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.'"  In Mark, it is John the Baptist who is preparing the way – proclaiming repentance for the forgiveness of sins in order to make the path straight and help people prepare for the one who is coming after him.

How do we prepare for the coming of Christ, the coming of God's real human presence?  How do we prepare for Christmas?  

We put up Christmas Trees and lights and inflatable snowmen.  We spend countless hours and money we may not even have to search for the perfect gift for everyone on our list.  We line up at 5:00 in the morning to get the best deals; we push and shove to get the new must have toy or gadget.  A security guard was even trampled to death at a Walmart by customers trying to take advantage of door buster deals on Black Friday.

I worked at a mall in high school, and we all dreaded Black Friday.  I know that the term Black Friday is most often used to refer to the fact that retailers get so much revenue that their accounts are in the black – that they are turning big profits, but we would use it to also refer to the mood of the day – it just seemed to be a dark day – people were largely rude, mean, and unhappy.  I clearly remember one woman who came in the store, plopped a rock with an engraved college logo on the counter and said to her friend, "Sigh/grunt – now I can mark Bob off the list."  It was that moment in my senior year of high school that I realized that something about the way our society celebrated Christmas was just not right.  Where was the Christmas spirit there? 

It seems to me that we all lose sight of what it's really all about.   We stress ourselves out trying to find the perfect gifts, but what for?  Our passage gives us a line that may be familiar to you, "the grass withers, the flower fades – and I'll add: clothes go out of style, gadgets become outdated, toys get broken, money comes and goes – but the word of our God will stand forever. With that in mind, I propose something different for Christmas this year…

Check this You Tube Video

This is a promotional video produced by The Advent Conspiracy.  A few ministers got together two years ago and had this great idea to do something radically different to prepare for the coming of Christ, and it's been gaining momentum ever since.

I'm not saying that all Christmas traditions are bad or that you shouldn't buy any gifts this year, but I do challenge all of us to begin to think differently about why and how we celebrate this holiday.  It is wonderful that this season brings families and friends together for fellowship.  I love that there is a stronger spirit of giving and generosity at Christmas than at other times of the year – these are two of my favorite things about Christmas.  But I think the single most important thing we do during this Advent Season, as the video said – is to Worship – Christmas began with worship.  This of course includes what we are doing now – gathering in God's house to sing, pray, praise, listen, and coming to the Table for communion.  But I believe worship is more than that – we can worship God in everything we do throughout this season – spending more time in prayer, more time serving – just spending more time with God and honoring God by how we celebrate.  There are many ways to honor the birth of Christ even through your gift giving:

The most obvious to me is God's Gift Shop – this is the way that Russ and I have decided to celebrate Christmas this year.  We will choose gifts from the catalog to honor our loved ones – a window for Habitat for Humanity for Russ' dad, the contractor, school supplies for DSS for his step-mom and my sister, both teachers.  And there are some gifts we may give that are not in the catalog – a donation to the March of Dimes for Russ' brother and sister-in-law, a cause they care about since they had a premature baby and a donation to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for my aunts because my grandmother, their mother had Breast Cancer. 

You can give your time – a promise to take a grandchild out to the movies or to the park.  A gift certificate for a back rub or doing someone else's chores for them – mowing the lawn or taking out the trash for a month.  I used to do this all the time when I was growing up – I'm not sure why I ever stopped and felt like people needed a "real gift."  I remember giving my parents coupon books for things like breakfast in bed – pancakes were my specialty.

You could also still give tangible gifts in a new way.  Have you ever shopped at a fair trade market?  This is a store where the people who make the items (coffee, pottery, clothing, etc.) earn a fair, living wage for their work.  You can get some really amazing handmade gifts at these stores while ensuring that the people who created them have a life of dignity.

You could even make things yourselves – use your God given talents to create a special one-of-a-kind gift for someone.  Again, this is something children understand – putting their hearts and souls into the perfect hand-made gift for their parents, while adults forget the value of creating – why do we feel like a gift we make isn't good enough?  I know last year, we received the best homemade bread, cookies, and candy from members here…and I can tell you for sure – we are really glad that they shared their talents – what wonderful gifts to share!

Or even just decrease the number of gifts you buy.  Maybe everyone actually only needs one gift from you – I know this is especially hard for grandparents, and I'm pretty sure my parents will not be able to stick to this, no matter how many times we tell them that Taylor really doesn't need anything.  Perhaps instead of giving every member of your family a gift, you all draw names, so that you only give and receive one gift instead of five or more.  I have a friend who says that her son only gets three gifts – one from his parents, and one from each set of grandparents. Their philosophy is that Jesus only received three gifts, so why should he get any more. 

This all may sound ridiculous to you.  It's very counter-cultural for sure.  But that's what the life of faith is all about.  How ridiculous does the preparations for God's presence sound in Isaiah?  Raising the valleys, leveling the mountains, straightening the crooked places – those are pretty radical steps to take to prepare for God's presence.

And on top of that, the heavenly counsel gives us a pretty radical message that we are supposed to spread.  In a world that worships many gods, especially the "god" of consumerism at this time of year – in a world where people trample over their neighbor to get the best deal, we are to go to a high mountain, and proclaim that God is here!

We have good tidings – good news - from God to receive and to give – Comfort, comfort my people.   How can we speak words of comfort and assurance to anyone who feels separated or abandoned by God – how can we let them know that God's presence is real this Christmas? When people cannot even afford clean water or food or shelter for their families, and certainly not Christmas gifts – how can we let them know that God is here? You have already generously filled the space under our Christmas tree with gifts for people in our community who have fallen on hard times.   You have already sent overflowing stockings to the Thornwell Home for Children.  Many of you have already made donations through God's Gift Shop. 

But what more can we do?  How will the world know that Christ's presence is real?  During this season when people who never darken the door of a church put up trees and lights and buy gifts, how can we, the followers of Christ, remind the world what Christmas is supposed to be?

As the video asks us do to – enter the story of Christmas.  Be a part of the conspiracy.  Knowing that God's presence is real, coming in true human form in Jesus Christ, and guided by the Holy Spirit, celebrate Advent in a new way.