"Come, Lord Jesus - Come" | By Rev. Liz Miller
 
Today, we start a new season in the church year. During the first two weeks of Advent, we focus on the second coming… when Christ will return. But how many of us focus on the end of time during this holy, wonderful season as we prepare for the birth of our savior? In the last two weeks, as we get closer to Christmas, we focus on the birth of Christ… when he came into the world as a tiny baby. All of this has to do with God longing to save all people and to be a part of our lives.
 
In reading the scripture today, we should limit ourselves to the points that Jesus makes: 
  1. Christ will come again. 
  2. His coming will be swift and surprising. 
  3. He will divide people into two groups…those taken and those left behind. 
  4. We need to be ready.
We don’t need to worry about the details; we need to trust that our God has it all under control. If we are living our faith, we do not need to know the day and time because we will be ready.
 
We are told to be awake to watch or be on guard. Our preparation concerns spiritual rather than physical wakefulness. How do we get ready? What do we do? Jesus gives two answers. First, he tells us to use our God-given resources for God’s benefit. Second, Jesus tells us that feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, and visiting the prisoners are activities that we do for Christ. It all comes down to loving and serving God and loving and serving our neighbor.
 
Advent calls us to stay awake and not sleep through the opportunity life gives us to discover God and the things of God, to watch for, to pay attention to the signs of God’s unmistakable presence in our lives. We need to live in the present and leave the future to God.
 
Life is a constant Advent experience. Our lives are Advents of waiting to be healed, waiting to make things better, waiting to complete and move on; the everyday Advents of our lives are filled with fear, doubt, and struggle. Our Advents are ultimately fulfilled by the arrival of Christ, who comes to dwell in our midst, to establish his eternal kingdom, to walk and talk with us once more.
 
Advent also calls us to wait, and waiting is a wise teacher. The experience of waiting enables us to realize what we appreciate, value, and cherish; waiting teaches us how to be present and attentive to family and friends; waiting opens our vision and spirits to realize the love of God in the here and now. Advent marks the coming of our great hope, the Messiah Jesus, who comes to make our lives complete and fulfilled, to bring healing and liberation to those difficult times we all experience. May we welcome the Messiah this Advent, who fulfills our waiting and longing with hope that we may discover meaning and purpose in the days God has given us.
 
There's an old saying, "What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly." Advent gives us this wonderful reality; our intimate end leads us to a new and beautiful beginning that has no end. This is the Advent promise, from the birth of a child in a manger to his return in glory, we wait, and watch, and hope. Each of us can be one with God, one with one another. In the declaration of early church writers, “God became human to make us divine.” To give us a share in God’s own life; to make it possible for us to believe what is beyond belief, to hope against hope, to love as Jesus loved.
 
Are we ready to meet the child and the King? Then let our constant prayer be lifted on earth and in heaven: Come, Lord Jesus - Come!