Many of you know that I plan out my sermon themes a year in advance. When I came up with our Advent series a year and a half ago based on the theme of waiting, little did I know how important this topic would be for us now. As they say, the Holy Spirit works in mysterious ways!
Wait for it. That’s basically what we have been doing since last March. We have been waiting for when our world, our community, and our church will get back to some type of normalcy.
A week or two after we needed to close down our church building because of the coronavirus, I was speaking with one of our church members. And if you remember, at that time, we were being told that it would be another month or two, like by the month of June before we would be able to resume a more normal routine.
And this church member said to me, “Wow, I can maybe handle a couple of weeks of this, but I can’t get my mind around dealing with this for the next two to three months.” I remember responding in agreement. I just couldn’t imagine being apart from each other for that length of time.
But then around early to mid July, the cases started to spike all across the country. Even though some businesses had reopened, we knew that we were still far from where we needed to be in fighting this virus.
And then I started feeling some hope when they were saying that a vaccine was going to be available by the end of this year. But then, they said how it probably wouldn’t be until the summer when the vaccine will be available for everybody.
It was at that point, that I put up the white surrender flag and just accepted that there was no quick solution to help us get back to normal. I’m saying all of this because it feels like the Advent season of waiting didn’t start last Sunday. Advent started last March!
But really, if you think about it, we are always in a season of waiting, not just these four weeks leading up to Christmas.
In our II Peter scripture reading we read this verse… “The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance.”
II Peter isn’t referring to the end of a global pandemic. He’s thinking of that time in the future when there will be new heavens and a new earth. And this is what gives us hope during this time of waiting. A time is coming when God will make all things new.
Imagine what that time will be like when there will be new heavens and a new earth. Imagine that time when all of the problems of this world will cease and there will be only peace, joy, harmony, justice, equality, freedom, and unity.
II Peter is saying, that this is why we can have hope because God is leading us into that future. What gives you hope and patience during this time of waiting?
This past summer, I was thinking about this very question. The long months of the pandemic coinciding with the many protests across our country made it difficult to feel any hope during this difficult time. You can sense it in people’s eyes even when they are wearing a mask that all of this is overwhelming us. The pain and brokenness of our world has been too much to bear.
Where can hope be found when it seems like all around us is only pain, fear, and anger? That’s what I was asking myself one day this past July as I was getting ready for work.
And of all places, I was reminded of hope by watching the morning news. Imagine that! Again, God works in mysterious ways.
They were reporting at the funeral of Congressman John Lewis, civil rights leader and activists who died after a long battle with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. They were reading John Lewis’s farewell letter to our country which he had written shortly before he died. It’s a letter of hope. I know you might have already heard this or read it, but I think it fleshes out a little of what II Peter is telling us in this season of Advent.
John Lewis wrote, “While my time here has now come to an end, I want you to know that in the last days and hours of my life you inspired me. You filled me with hope about the next chapter of the great American story when you used your power to make a difference in our society. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself. Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble.
Though I may not be here with you, I urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life, I have done all I can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to let freedom ring. When historians pick up their pens to write the story of the 21stcentury, let them say that it was your generation who laid down the heavy burdens of hate at last and that peace finally triumphed over violence, aggression and war. So I say to you, walk with the wind, brothers and sisters, and let the spirit of peace and the power of everlasting love be your guide.”
Usually the news is just background noise but this time was different. I sat down and listened to the reading of his letter.
And I thought to myself, if this man who had his skull fractured by police back in 1965 while leading 600 peaceful demonstrators across a bridge in Alabama in support of equal rights and continued to dedicate his entire life to freedom and justice, then maybe I had a lot more to learn about patience. If this man kept hope alive his entire life through service to his country, than maybe I had a lot more to learn about hope.
Advent is a season that reminds us that even though we haven’t arrived to the place where God is calling us to be, to keep hoping because at the very heart and center of the compelling biblical narrative is that God will one day make new heavens and a new earth. That hope is deeply rooted throughout the scriptures.
When God sent Jesus into the world, it was a visible sign that God was keeping his promise. Jesus, the very embodiment of God was born into our world, died for our sins, rose again, and then promised that he would come again to renew all things.
This is one of the reasons why II Peter is encouraging us to stay patient because he knows that it’s easy to grow weary during this waiting period. It’s easy to become impatient. It’s easy to lose hope when we focus only on how far we need to go.
Advent is a time for us to keep hoping as we wait.
And as we wait, look for those signs of hope that are all around us. I see so much hope through our church.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll buy a recording camera for the sanctuary and offer a high quality online worship service each week.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll still help Habitat for Humanity to build a house this year and we’ll make a commitment to help build another one next year.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll provide weekly curbside meals to our community.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll offer online small groups through Zoom to help people in our church stay connected.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll continue to pay 100% of our conference apportionments because we believe that these funds will be used by our West Ohio Conference in missions and ministry throughout the world.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll still send out prayer requests every week and include the prayers from our outside prayer box.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll still make and deliver prayer shawls to those who are in need of some love from our church.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We have our church toys who are kind of taking over our church in a fun way.
Facing a global pandemic? No problem. We’ll still collect Festival of Sharing hygiene and school kits for people in need all around the world.
You are some of the most hope-filled people I know. Evidently you already received the memo from II Peter to keep waiting for new heavens and a new earth.
I think that over the past several months we have been learning that there’s a lot that we just don’t need in order to be the church.
We have one of the most beautiful church buildings in the area, and even during the several months that it was closed, we adapted and continued to be the church. Even though our shiny offering plates haven’t been passed through the pews since last March, your offerings continue to pour into the church every single week.
I can only think of one reason why you are such a tenacious bunch of believers. It’s the only way for me to describe why you are so patient and willing to stay the course.
We are an Advent people. We are a people of hope!
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