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. . . As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord . . . Joshua 25:15b
Advent 2 Yr B
Prepare
Prepare
Have you noticed how nature prepares differently for this season than we do?
Animals do stock up on food, but not to eat to excess. They are planning ahead for the long winter's night. Trees shed their leaves and slow their growth to survive the winter.
It would seem a natural process then for us to follow suit. There is less sunlight and less warmth, inviting us to snuggle up and hunker down. Yet in spite of the longer nights and shorter days, there is an air of expectation around us. Something is coming, and it is Light, Love and Peace. The Earth invites us to slow down, become still and reflect.
So naturally, we bake, decorate, spend more and drive more. As we rush around, it's easy to forget what we are preparing for.
For many, preparation, expectation, and celebration do not come easily. This time of year can feel heavy. We are struggling with the state of the world and of our planet. A sense of loss seems to have touched everyone. Since Christmas present will never be like Christmas past, why even bother?
This is the question I ask myself. In order to wait, prepare and contemplate, I would have to slow down. And I fear that grief and loss might catch up with me. I know I am not alone in these feelings, yet I feel like I have "missed the boat" or gone "off track".
In his blog, "In search of a new Eden," Justin Coutts offers a different perspective:
"If you find yourself mourning for the state of the world,
then you are mourning with Christ.
Do not fight the sadness, do not run from it.
Be at peace with it. Be comfortable in it. . . ."
The Psalmist weaves his lament into worship. He complains and expresses his sorrow, as he asks for help and puts his trust in God.
So perhaps preparing for Advent includes bringing our pain, loss, and brokenheartedness to God, in whom we find comfort and joy.
"Be at peace with it. Be comfortable in it. . . ."
"Be at peace with it. Be comfortable in it. . . ."
© 2022 Kristen P Spangler
Introduction
Introduction
This Sunday is our first introduction to John the Baptist. How strange to us in modern times is he—a wilderness kind of guy, eating wild berries, shouting at folks (sometimes). Yet, he is foretold by the Prophet Isaiah as the voice that cries in the wilderness. Our admonition is to prepare for the coming of the Messiah, our God. Come, Lord Jesus!
Isaiah 40:1-11
Isaiah 40:1-11
A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. . . .”
From Sermon4Kids: “John told the people to make a highway in the desert for their God. He told them to make the crooked ways straight and to make the rough places smooth. John wasn't really talking about building a highway upon which Jesus could travel. He was really talking about the hearts of the people. He was calling people to prepare their hearts to receive Jesus so that he could walk among them and live with them. ”
Scripture: December 10, 2023—Advent 2—Isaiah 40:1-11 (image); 2 Peter 3:8-15a (image); Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13 (image); Mark 1:1-8 (image). A visual and audio journey.
Collect: Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Reflection: The prophet Isaiah announces good news: God comforts and strengthens a wearied and exiled people in preparation for their homeward journey. Mark’s Gospel announces the good news of God in Jesus Christ: God comes to turn the world right side up and baptize us with the Holy Spirit. As we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Messiah, what is the beginning of God’s good news in your life, and how will it change the way you approach this season of expectation and hope?
(excerpted from Feasting on the Word Worship Companion: Liturgies for Year B, Volume 1 © 2014 Westminster John Knox Press)
Eye Candy:
“In the wilderness prepare the way” by Jan Richardson;
“John the Baptist“, teak wood relief door panel carved by Cornelius Manguma;
“The Preaching of John the Baptist” by Pieter Breugel the Elder
Ear Worm:
“Jesusfreak” by DC Talk (heavy metal);
“Prepare the way of the Lord” from Godspell;
“Prepare the way of the Lord” by Barbara Furman and Darian Krimm
Brain Food:
Cartoon from agnusday.org;
“Wilderness God” by Janice Scott;
“A way in the wilderness”, self-guided retreat from edge of the enclosure weblog
Parables:
“Jesus” (1999, TV miniseries, TV-PG), cousins sitting around the campfire, Review;
“Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace” (1999, PG), does Qui Gon Jinn recognize Anakin, “The struggles between good and evil run a zigzag course, and we never know where or when they will erupt”,Obi Wan leaves in body but remains in spirit, is Anakin the Moses figure?, “Shmi Skywalker is the strong supportive mother”, Review 1, Review 2, Review 3;
“Gladiator” (2000, R), “Proximo is John the Baptist character”, bringing out the best and worse, Review 1, Review 2
For families: Study guide and activities (former guide); Group activities; Snacks; Kid video.
For children: Activity; Bulletin; Craft.
For middlers: Activity; Bulletin; Craft.
For youth: While you are waiting . . . do something, anything as a Jesus-follower. The message in our epistle lesson this week is clear that we aren’t simply to wait on some pie-in-the-sky future world but rather to hasten Jesus’ coming through our actions and actively seeking peace. What do you think this looks like? How can you wait and act at the same time? If Jesus is waiting for all to come to him in repentance, what is our role in serving God and loving our neighbors? What one thing can you do this week to hasten Jesus’ reign?
(excerpted from “Prepare, reorder, and prioritize“ at the Stewardship of Life website.
Today is the first of the Advent Sundays centered on the ministry of John the Baptist as the forerunner of the Messiah. We hear Mark’s account of the beginning of John’s ministry and message. John is presented as the last of the Old Testament prophets and the one who embodied the role foreseen by Isaiah as the messenger to prepare the way for the coming of the Christ. He used the traditional Jewish ceremony of renewal and repentance—baptism—but promises that the one who is coming will immerse people in the Spirit of God.
Our first reading is the passage from Isaiah quoted by Mark concerning John the Baptist. This comes from the time of the end of the Jewish people’s exile in Babylon and was an exhortation to them to return to the land of promise now that they had been freed by the Persian king, Cyrus. This second Exodus is filled with the promise of God’s love and care for the people.
The second reading from 2 Peter looks toward the end of time. The writer is concerned with how we live in this time in anticipation for the time to come when the Day of the Lord will be revealed.
We live in the time in between Christ’s first Advent and his second Coming and we gather in the Eucharist as people immersed by Baptism into God’s Spirit. We are called not only to celebrate God’s presence as our shepherd but also to be messengers who, like John, announce the coming of God’s kingdom. We do this by proclaiming the Word, by celebration of God’s sacramental presence, and by lives of peace and growth in the grace and knowledge of our Lord.
From The Rite Light: Reflections on the Sunday Readings and Seasons of the Church Year. Copyright © 2007 by Michael W. Merriman. Church Publishing Incorporated, New York.
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