As the Dark Awaits the Dawn: Devotions for Advent from Trinity Lutheran Seminary Monday, December 15, 2014 Isaiah 9:1-2 But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness— on them light has shined. One of the darkest nights I can remember was the ill-fated night hike I led my youth group on at one of our Lutheran camps where I had spent the summer working. I was their fearless leader. They were my trusting youth group. (What was the church thinking?) It was dark. No moon. No stars. Any artificial light that was cast from the lodge quickly disappeared in the dense foliage of the woods. We could not even see our hands when we held them in front of our own faces. A short night hike turned into a pretty long one when we realized we (I) missed the cut off trail that led us back to camp. So…we did what any reasonable group of church friends would do. We told jokes. We sang songs. We said encouraging words to each other, “We got this. Just a bit further.” We held hands. And later, rather than sooner, we saw the lodge light and arrived unscathed to our destination and celebrated with a crazy group hug that landed us all on the ground. I retired from leading night hikes. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who first heard these words, the darkness they were navigating meant an absence of God in their lives. In Isaiah’s poem we hear that through a child God will bring about the fulfillment of promises so glorious that their accomplishment in our lives will seem like the difference between night and day. It was hard for them to grasp – a baby? This is often the way God loves us: with gifts we thought we didn’t need, which transform us into people we don’t necessarily want to be. In the word “Immanuel” we have such a gift: God with us. God no longer distant in the highest heavens; no longer hidden in the smoky darkness of the holy of holies in the Temple; no longer accessible only to the chief priests; a God we can look upon without fear, even, maybe especially, when we cannot see our own hand in front of our face. Come, Lord Jesus, and shine the light of your love in our hearts and in our world, so that none may feel that they travel life’s way without your presence. Amen. ~Karen Asmus-Alsnauer 86 - Worship Life Coordinator, Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, OH Hymn Text: Susan Palo Cherwien, b. 1953 Hymn Text © 1996 Susan Palo Cherwien, admin. Augsburg Fortress. Copyright © 2014 Trinity Lutheran Seminary, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Trinity Lutheran Seminary 2199 E Main Street, Bexley, OH 43209
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 17:10:45 +0000
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