[Propertalk] Fwd: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Advent 1B

[Joe Parrish]

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-----Original Message-----
From: Judy <judy_boli at ecunet.org>
To: Propertalk <propertalk.topic at ecunet.org>
Sent: Sun, Nov 27, 2011 12:15 am
Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Advent 1B


Dear Friends,

Tomorrow’s sermon is entitled “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like
ChristMass!” or “First Things- First”and deals with the beginning of
Advent.  Here it is:

Happy New Year!  Today is the first Sunday in the four week season of
Advent; and with it we begin a new church year.  You notice, the color
is purple (blue is also used) for contemplation.  Advent (“adventus”
in Latin) means “coming,” and our focus for these four weeks is
getting ready for the coming of Jesus.  The focus of the first week is
“peace,” the second week is “hope,” the third week is “joy,” and the
fourth week is “love.”  You will notice that some churches interchange
“peace” and “hope.”

Speaking of comings- actually, there are two comings associated with
our Lord- his first (in Bethlehem many years ago and in our own lives
when we accept him as our Lord and Savior) and his second (which we
heard about in today’s gospel and also in our own lives when we die
and he comes for us personally).  We hear a lot of TV sermons about
the second coming, but Jesus himself said that the details, especially
the “when,” are none of our business.  In fact, as you recall from the
sermon two weeks ago, it’s as if God says to us: “MYOB.  Jesus is the
way, truth, and life- so live your life to the fullest, remembering
that you may die at any time.  Your next minute may be on this planet
or in eternity.”  With that in mind, let’s focus on the first coming
and how to get ready.  The prophet Jeremiah (33:14-16) promised in
God’s name that the Messiah was coming- a King who would establish
justice.  That promise was fulfilled when Jesus was born in
Bethlehem.  As you know, it’s his birthday we’re getting ready to
celebrate on December 25th, but if you wander through the mall or
watch the TV commercials- you’d never guess!  Did you see the TV news
clips on the day after Thanksgiving? I saw people grabbing, pushing,
and stampeding to get the exact sale item they wanted as a gift- all
in honor of the Prince of Peace!  A woman in Los Angeles pepper-
sprayed other shoppers to get what she wanted- she called it
“competitive shopping” and there were numerous parking lot robberies
and people shot!  I couldn’t believe it!  Did you hear about the
little boy who went shopping with his mother, ate, and was put to bed
so his mother could wrap the presents.  She heard noises in his
bedroom and thought she’d better check.  When she put her ear to the
door, she heard him asking God in his prayers, “Hey, God- is this what
you had in mind when you invented ChristMass?”  Good question!  Along
the same line- a little girl was barely surviving the christmas
jitters.  She knew Santa wrote down who was naughty and who was nice,
and she was afraid she was on the wrong list.  You see- she and her
mother had had a hard day!  Her mother made the mistake of taking her
into a toy story to purchase a present for her little sister, but
everything she saw was a “gimme.”  The little girl ended screaming and
kicking on the floor of the store in a full-blown temper tantrum.  Her
mother picked her up, strapped her in her car seat, drove her home,
fed her as quickly as possible, and put her to bed.  Out from the room
came a sorry little voice- “Mother, are you too mad at me to listen to
my bedtime prayers tonight?”  Back came the mother to hear her
daughter pray, “Forgive us our christmases as we forgive those who
christmas against us.”  Been there- done that!  I remember christmases
past in which I was so frantic to get ready that I forgot who I was
getting ready for.  What about you?  Money worries, shop-til-you-drop,
run up the credit card (or cards), cook, clean, yell at the kids (or
grand-kids), cards, parties, pig-outs, toys to assemble, decorate, put
up the tree- the list seems endless until you’re an exhausted nervous
wreck on ChristMass Eve.  You force yourself to church (or skip it
entirely- telling yourself you’ll make it next year) and Jesus’
birthday is the last thing on your mind.

Let’s do it differently this year.  Let’s use these four weeks of
Advent to center ourselves and really get ready for the one who is
coming at ChristMass- the one with the birthday.  But how?  Put God in
charge!
5.	Remember, this is the birthday of the Prince of Peace, therefore-
put God in charge of your choices and attitudes.  Let’s honor him- not
just with our lips and ChristMass carols, but in our lives by our
behavior.  There’s no greater gift we could give Jesus than to be his
peacemaker in our little part of the planet.  Speaking of gifts- what
a terrible sacrilege it would be for us to buy violent videos or games
or music as gifts celebrating his birthday.
6.	Put God in charge of your money.  God doesn’t want you afraid to
answer the telephone because creditors are calling at all hours of the
day and night.  Live within your means.  Don’t buy anything you can’t
afford.  Don’t buy anything on a credit card that you won’t be able to
pay for on the next billing.
7.	Put God in charge of the gifts you buy or make.  Gifts don’t have
to be expensive or numerous.  Did you notice the thought for the week-
“The person who dies with the most possessions is still
dead” (anonymous).  A gift from the heart means much more than an
expensive gift bought at the last minute because you “had to get
something.”  The best present I ever got was a hand-made card from one
of my children telling me how much they loved and appreciated me.
Don’t buy cheap stuff from the street.  Your purchase encourages
others to sin- remember “Thou shalt not steal.”  (Yes- all the way
back from the book of Genesis- we are our brother’s and sister’s
keepers.)
8.	Finally, put God in charge of your time.  Do you recall the episode
when Jesus went to the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha?  Remember
how Mary sat at Jesus’ feet learning from him while Martha worked away
in the kitchen.  Finally Martha couldn’t stand it any longer and came
storming out to Jesus.  “Master,” she said, “make my sister help me in
the kitchen!”  Jesus responded, “Martha, Martha- just one dish was
needed.  Mary has chosen the best thing and it won’t be taken from
her.”  Choose Jesus, not busyness.  How?  Maintain your focus- whose
birthday is it anyway?  Don’t miss church one Sunday this Advent.
Don’t neglect your prayer life.  The busier you are, the more you need
to start your day with the Lord.  Get your ChristMass preparations
focused on Jesus before things get out of hand.  Start ChristMass
preparations early and pace.  If you’re running short of time-
prioritize and eliminate what isn’t absolutely needed.  There’s a good
chance no one will even notice.  In terms of cooking, cleaning, and
decorating- keep it simple.  Most of all- don’t miss the Christ Mass
on ChristMass Eve, December 24th, at 8 PM- that’s what it’s all about.

I’m going to close with a true story from one of my internet friends
who is a Roman Catholic priest.  I’ve told it every Advent since I
read it.  He heard it on the radio and shared it with his friends.
There was a woman who was out christmas shopping with her two
children. After many hours of looking at row after row of toys and
everything else imaginable and hearing both her children asking for
everything they saw on those many shelves, she and the kids finally
made it to the elevator.  She was feeling what so many of us feel
during the holiday season- overwhelming pressure to go to every party,
every housewarming, taste all the holiday food and treats, buy that
perfect gift for every single person on our shopping list, making sure
we don't forget anyone on our card list, etc.  Finally the elevator
doors opened and there was already a crowd in the car. She pushed her
way in and dragged her two kids in with her and all the bags of stuff.
When the doors closed she couldn't take it anymore and stated,
“Whoever started this whole christmas thing should be found, strung
up, and shot.”  From the back of the car, everyone heard a quiet calm
voice respond, “Don't worry lady, we already crucified him.”  For the
rest of the trip down the elevator, it was so quiet you could have
heard a pin drop.

So- what is Christmas for you really- the gimmee, party, pig-out,
decorating time or is it Jesus’ birthday?  The truth is not shown by
what you say, but what you do- your priorities.  “First Things-
First.”  I hope the Crucified Christ-child is really first for you!
My prayer for us is that we not crucify Jesus again with our choices
this ChristMass.  May we not argue or complain.  May we not fight or
say cruel things to someone acting as if they’re our enemy.  May we
not spend more than we can afford or encourage our children to be
greedy.  May we not get so frantically worried or rushed that we don’t
take time for Jesus.  My prayer for us is that we make our
preparations joyful and  remember ChristMass is Jesus’ birthday and
Jesus is the reason for the season.  Amen.

For anyone who is interested, this sermon and updated African-American
wisdom statements are posted on our parish web site. The address is:
http://www.stpaulsepisag.com .

Blessed preaching.
Judy Boli
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Saginaw, Michigan

 
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