First Sunday of Advent 1, December 3, 2006
Year C: Jeremiah 33:14-16, Luke 21:25-36
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Fairfield, CT
Loving God, you call us to be your stories in the world. We come before you seeking to be touched by your story. Open our lips to share our stories with one another and to bring comfort, inspiration, joy and laughter to each other. Amen.
Happy New Year!
Okay, so New Year’s Day is almost a month away. But Advent does mark the beginning of the Church Year, so it’s an appropriate greeting. And in our multi-cultural society, it’s a greeting we use several times during the course of a the year. There’s Chinese New Year in March, and Rosh Hashanah, in the Fall. And those aren’t the only times a “new year” begins. Many corporate and government fiscal years begin on July 1st. And what about birthdays? Or anniversaries?
We have many ways of marking time—the sun, the moon, tides, watches, calendars. And we have a variety of ways of to keep our calendars. Wall calendars, pocket calendars, personal organizers, PDAs, even our cell phones. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly we can fill these things up. Here, let me show you mine. I actually prefer to use a paper pocket calendar and some index cards—more flexible. All right, it’s a little small for you to see, so I’ve enlarged a portion of it so you can see it better. [Bring out flip chart with page that says “Jesus is coming!”]
Since I use the “Christian Pocket Diary” published for Episcopalians, the 2007 calendar actually begins with the first Sunday of Advent. So in my calendar for today I’ve written, “preach at St. Paul’s.” [Put up the Post-It that says “Preach at St. Paul’s.” With each Post-It, the “Jesus is coming!” message becomes more and more obscured.] On Tuesday’s I mentor an Education for Ministry Seminar. [Three “EfM” Post-Its.] Wednesday is Saint Nicholas Day, the day I traditionally decorate my home for the season. [Put up “St. Nicholas Day—Decorate.”] Next weekend I’m getting together with friends for Brunch to celebrate and exchange gifts. [“Brunch with L, M & R.”] And let’s not forget Rob’s and Nicki’s ordination on the 16th! [“Rob/Nicki Ordination St. Paul’s.] For Christmas, I’ll be at my brother’s, and I usually go down a couple of days before to share in all the family stuff. [“PA for Christmas.”]
As many of you know, I work in the Office of Children’s Ministries and Christian Education at the Episcopal Church Center in New York City. Since we’ve started Advent, and everything for Advent, Christmas and even Epiphany is done, you’d think there was time for a short break. Not a chance! We need to finish proofreading the updated Easter Lesson Plans before the middle of the month. [“Easter Lesson Plans Due.”] There’s the Lenten guide to get to the graphic artist for layout. [“Lenten Guide to Graphics.”] Then we have both the building and department Christmas Parties. [“815 Christmas Party.”] One of the things about working for a church organization is that we can actually call it a Christmas party. [“MYP Christmas Lunch.”] Oh, and we have a new boss. Bishop Katharine, our new Presiding Bishop, is holding small group meetings so she can start to get to know the staff. [Meeting with Bishop Katharine.]
Then there are things that you wouldn’t think I’d need to write down, but if I don’t put them in the calendar during busy times, they don’t happen. [“CHURCH.”] So just to make sure I get here for worship on the next two Sundays…. [“CHURCH.”]
Did I mention the neighborhood Christmas party? [“Neighborhood Party.”] Or the Community Center’s Festivus? [“Festivus.”] And let’s not forget shopping for gifts. [Three “Shopping.”]
I don’t know about you, but I’m tired just looking at this. And I’m still sure I’m missing something.
When I met with the children this morning, we made an Advent Calendar. Every day of Advent, you open a little door and there’s a message, a saying, or a small gift, depending on your calendar. Since this shows the Advent portion of my calendar, let’s see what happens when we open this door. [Turn the page to reveal a new page with “Jesus is Coming!” written on it.]
Oh my stars! to paraphrase one of my grandmother’s friends. Oh my stars, Jesus is coming and I haven’t cleaned the bathroom!
As if preparing for Jesus is some sort of one time task or event. As if Jesus himself were on a human timetable. Well, Jesus may not be keeping a personal organizer, but it’s in our nature to mark the passage of time in concrete ways. Jesus knew this. “Look at the fig trees,” he tells the disciples in today’s reading from Luke, “as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near.” And the Church knows this. The liturgical calendar shapes the flow of our lives as Christians by taking us through not only the life of Jesus, but also through the passages of our own lives—birth and death, grief and sorrow, joy and happiness.
And so it is Advent. A time of preparation and waiting as we approach the celebration of the birth of our Savior. In the busyness of the season, it is difficult to remember that. So I’ve made myself a little reminder—a pocket Advent calendar, if you will—and I’ve brought one for each of you as well. On the one side it has the days of Advent marked out, and instead of opening a little door each day, simply flip the card over and see the message. Jesus is coming! I don’t expect that any of us can just wipe our calendars clean and spend the next three weeks in fasting, prayer and reflection. But maybe, just maybe, with this little reminder, every day we can find five minutes to sit, breathe deeply, and listen for God.
“Be ready,” Jesus says. “The day is coming,” says God through Jeremiah I’m not ready yet. Are you?
