Advent Meditations 2007 Epworth United Methodist
Church Gaithersburg, Maryland  |
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Advent 2007 Expectation and Hope As God’s church, we once
again begin the season of Advent with a sense of expectation and hope. During this time of preparation, we always go
back in Biblical time to the people of Israel as they waited in exile for God’s
coming. Recently while visiting
Riverside Church in New York City, I was able to read several sermons of
William Sloan Coffin, their former pastor.
He described visiting Notre Dame in Paris on the first Sunday of
Advent. He said, “the stained glass
windows were enough to lift any sagging heart,” and also recalled seeing a poster there with
the words of a French mystic, Pierre Tielhard de Chardin: “The world will belong tomorrow to those who
brought it the greatest hope.” He then
challenged his congregation to “irrigate the community with hope, because
without hope, we are literally hopeless.” What a wonderful challenge
to the people of God, as we live in the midst of our own exile and that of our
world. In this Advent season, may we
irrigate our community with hope for we are reminded that when God acts, it is
not as expected. They expected a Messiah
to come as a refiner’s fire in judgment; instead they got a baby lying in a
manger. They expected darkness; instead
they got light. We have been given the
assurance of God’s amazing grace and are invited to share that joy to our
world.
A Blessed Advent to All
Rev. M. Sheila McCurdy
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Click on a date in December (December 2 through 25) to see the devotion for that day. The four December Sundays leading up to Christmas contain both the Advent Wreath Lighting Ceremony and the Meditation for that day.December 2007
Epworth United Methodist Church
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