Greetings Glen Mar,

Happy Thanksgiving, and I pray that you had a nice holiday yesterday! As I said last week, there is so much to be thankful for here at Glen Mar.

This coming Sunday marks the first Sunday of Advent and the beginning of a new liturgical year. The first Sunday of Advent is typically celebrated as the Sunday of “Peace.” We will light our first candle as a reminder to seek Christ’s peace in a world saturated with violence. As disciples of Christ, we must remember that we are ambassadors of peace, as we represent the Prince of Peace, who we anticipate coming on the liturgical holy day of Christmas.

With that said, over the next few weeks, I would like to talk a bit about Advent and what the liturgical season is calling us to observe. You see, so many of us think of Advent simply as a countdown to Christmas. Too often, we think that Advent is solely about anticipating the baby Jesus being born, and it certainly is, but there is more to Advent than just this.

During Advent, we anticipate Christ’s coming in “History, Mystery, and Majesty.” This week, we will discuss the way we mostly contemplate Christ’s coming: in history. We recall the story from Luke’s Gospel, chapters one and two, that relays the announcement to the Virgin Mary that she will give birth to a child, and she and Joseph’s trip to Bethlehem for the census. Of course, we also recount the narrative of how there was no room at the inn when they arrived, and so the Son of God, whom we know as Jesus, was born not in a hospital or a bed, but in a manger surrounded by animals, welcomed by shepherds, and draped in swaddling cloths.

We remember this story because, as Christ’s followers, it is our story. It is where our story, many of us Gentiles (non-Jewish people), first clearly intersected with God’s story. It is through the historical Jesus that we were invited into the family of God! We remember how God sent his only son to save the world through him, not to condemn it (John 3:16-17). God offers us peace through the birth of Jesus.

This historical Christmas story is good news and reminds us that even as we see wars, rumors of wars, violence, and evil around us, there can still be peace because Peace was born on that first Christmas night in similar circumstances. Perhaps the best news is that Jesus, our Peace, still lives today, and because he lives, we can face tomorrow with that peace. As he lives, so shall we live.

So, let us look forward with great expectation of how God will meet us this Advent at Glen Mar Church.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Chris Dembeck