The LINK: 12/01
To the family, friends, and members Congo-Pres,
Peace to you in this advent season. And hope and joy and love as well. Those are the themes of advent these next four Sundays, where we wait for Christ’s arrival. The word “advent” means waiting. We remember with the the church when Christ came to make his home as one of us, as God become man. He was the one they were waiting for. For us, we wait and look for Christ’s arrival. The Nicene Creed, the second oldest statement of faith that the global church has put out, puts it like this: he shall come again in glory, to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. As we look to Christ’s arrival, I think you can say no more, and no less than that. Anything more is speculation for entertaining novels and movies.
In the in-between, Christ comes to make his home in our lives today. Christ came to be with us and so he is. In this season of advent, we have two ways that we’ll focus on and remind ourselves that I want to invite you to consider joining us for.
The first is our no-rehearsal children’s Christmas pageant. All children, whether those in your home or your grandkids or neighbors or friends, are welcome to join us for Sunday worship on Sunday, December 14. They’ll be invited to take a costume piece and will call them up as we tell the Christmas story to include them as well. We’re serious: no rehearsal necessary!
The second is our Longest Night Service, on Sunday, December 21, at 3 p.m. As the days keep getting shorter, this can be a tender time for peo-ple. Whether you might be going through grief, through struggle, or just feeling fear about our world, we have this service that testifies to Christ being the light in the darkness, no matter what. The service will have ele-ments of lament, of prayer, and song. If you know someone who is going through a hard time, perhaps this could be something to invite them to.
We’re not at Christmas yet, but we live with Hope, and with peace, and with joy, and with love.
Looking forward to seeing you, this advent season,
Pastor Adam