"The Advent mystery is the beginning of the end of all in us that is not yet Christ." This quote by Thomas Merton is one of my favorites and I find myself revisiting it each year at Advent as we again walk into the 4 weeks of the church year that has us anticipating the birth of Christ. There actually are so may things in our lives that we anticipate - a hike in the mountains, the birth of a new grandchild, a raise or promotion, the weekend, giving a gift, the death of a loved one, gathering with our family. . . I could go on and on. Merton's words blow us away, though, and leave all the other things we have waited for seem so small. For his words tell us that our waiting is almost over. His words are exclaiming that in Advent, we are on a road that has a specific end - one where we will be filled with Christ. What will it mean for you to be filled with Christ? How will this filling play itself out in your life? These are the questions of Advent as we anticipate Jesus' birth on that holy night. These are the questions we ponder as we wait for Christ to, yet again, flood our lives with his grace, forgiveness, mercy and love.






My friend, Tracey, and sister-in-law, Susie, each just had babies within the past couple months. So, it's been a time of joy and of emotion and dreams realized. A time of endings, but also a time of beginnings. What each of these two women have in front of them are little lives - little lives that will grow and provide learning upon learning and epiphany upon epiphany as these moms watch their babies become who God created them to be. Ephiphany as a season of our church year is sometimes called a season of light. It's the time in the church year that puts the spotlight on Jesus. It provides the snapshots of his life that are filed away as proof of the moments where his divinity was clear. It's in Epiphany that we get our first real glimpses and begin to see Jesus for who He really is. He's born at Christmas and we know he is the Son of God, but we want to see more. In our humanness, we want proof. It's in Epiphany that God begins to back up God's claim about the divinity of Jesus. It starts out with the 3 Wise men bringing him gifts - not gifts for any old baby, no binky's and bottles, stuffed animals and snowsuits, but gifts fit for a King - gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The very next Sunday, we have Jesus' baptism by John the Baptist in the River Jordan, where the heavens are parted and a dove ascends and a great, Godly voice exclaims, "This is my Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him." Several weeks later, Epiphany ends with Jesus being transfigured on the mountain right in front of Peter, James and John. The season of Epiphany sheds light on what might have seemed dim before. It stirs our heart with divine surprises about who Jesus really is. It keeps us expectant about what this divine One will do in our lives and in the world.



Many of the different Synods in the ELCA have companion synods - synods around the world that we partner with and from whom we learn. Our synod, Rocky Mountain, has a companion synod in Madagscar - an island in the Indian Ocean - about 270 miles off the eastern coast of South Africa. Ones aspect of partnering with a companion synods includes sending delegations of pastors and lay people back and forth to create relationships, further the partnership and learn from each other in person. Today, as we think about the season of Lent, I want to share Susan's story. She happened to be part of a delegation that was in Tanzania, Africa, during the beginning of Lent.
No different than how many Christians begin the Lenten Season in the United States, Susan and her delegation found themselves at an Ash Wednesday service where each of the congregants were marked with ashes in the form of a cross on their foreheads - "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return." After the service, Susan, along with the rest of the delegation went on with their business and sightseeing, forgetting like we do about the black mark on her forehead. It was in the market where the most amazing thing happened to her. A Tanzanian woman walked up to her, staring at her face. Susan was a little taken aback, not sure what the woman was looking at - the language barrier making things a little uncomfortable between them as they just looked at each other. Finally, the Tanzanian woman took her finger and traced the sign of the cross that was marked in ash on Susan's forehead. With the ash that was transferred to her own finger, she marked her own forehead with the sign of cross. Without the benefit of words, these two women who live around the world from each other, had an amazing experience of unity and sisterhood and connection because of their common faith in Jesus Christ. During Lent, even as we're marked with the cross, we find ourselves journeying towards it, often in silence and contemplation, searching for our own experiences of unity and connection because of what Jesus did for us there.




The Season of Pentecost starts out with a bang. You remember the story. How the disciples were all gathered together in one place after Jesus has ascended to be with his Father. How a sound like a violent wind swept through the house where they were staying and how little tongues of fire then rested over each of them. How each of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and able to speak in languages that were not their own in order to be able to communicate with others the message about Jesus. Yes, the season of Pentecost starts out with a bang - a filling up, if you will, with the Holy Spirit. We wear red that day - vibrant red, fire-y red, Holy Spirit red. But Pentecost, the longest season of the church year, doesn't stay red for the next 27 Sundays. It shifts mostly to green - the color of growth, the color of new life as we Christians now filled with the Holy Spirit - now having been filled with that one big breath - resume our normal breathing. Taking in the Word of God, pouring ourselves out as a force in the world. Being filled with God's grace, extending that grace to people we meet. Being enlightened through Jesus' teachings, understanding that they create a mission for us to accomplish in the world. This is what the Season of Pentecost is about. It's about breathing - breathing normal breath in normal life. It's about give and take. It's about learning and teaching. It's about growing and helping others grow. It's about the Holy Spirit and about how the Holy Spirit infuses each of us with power to change the world in Jesus' name.