November 30th: Deliver
Submission by Parks Gilbert
God delivered the ancient Hebrews from a number of perils: out of the hands of the Egyptians, from starvation and thirst in the wilderness, and back from Babylonian exile. They ultimately looked for a messiah to redeem them and rule them in a new and glorious age. Of course, we believe that God delivered salvation to the whole world, forever, in the person and life of Jesus Christ. In this season, we prepare for that delivery, and we eagerly await the celebration of Christmas Day. The idea of deliverance is especially poignant this year, where we yearn for freedom from a pandemic, racial injustice, an economic downturn felt more by some than others, seriously divergent views of what it means to be an American and of the direction our country is taking, and constant Zoom meetings. And these are just some near term concerns. Climate change and mass extinction, long-term and difficult to grasp threats, come to mind for me. We all have our list of issues. It would be nice to distract ourselves with deliveries from FedEx, UberEats, and Santa Claus, or better: Lyft delivering our family members from the airport, if we plan to celebrate together. Yet maybe we shouldn’t forget the good this year has delivered to some of us: a slower pace, more time outdoors, quality time with those in our households, reconnection with people we haven’t talked to in a decade, some serious conversations about the problems our country faces and work done to address them, and greater access to voting. Given this slower and less-scheduled Advent season, I see an opportunity to try to put all of the good, bad, and ugly of 2020 aside. Instead, for at least a few minutes each day, I would like to contemplate and hold in my heart the ultimate delivery: God on Earth in human form, given freely to us, out of His infinite love.
Submission by Abby Lowe
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the Kingdom, and the Power and the glory forever, Amen.
In the Lord’s Prayer we ask God to deliver us from evil. Hope for such delivery is part of Advent too. Advent is a time of waiting, in a sense we are waiting for delivery, which is coming through Jesus. Part of this may be delivery from evil, as stated in the Lord’s Prayer, but this could be delivery from other challenges we face.
An Advent tradition I enjoy at St. Georges is making Advent wreaths with EYC. I remember the very first time we came to St. George’s, nine years ago, it was Advent. I remember my brother and I having a blast constructing our wreaths. Now, nine years later, I have taken part in Advent wreaths sales as a member of EYC for several years.
When we light a candle each Sunday on our Advent wreaths, to me, it feels like we are getting closer to Christmas, and it feels hopeful, we are getting closer to a time – not only of Christmas treats – but also to a time of happiness and delivery from challenges. The light on the candles “delivers” us out of darkness and into light.