Advent 2C (RCL), December 6, 2009
Leslie C. Ferguson, Seminarian
Malachi 3:1-4; Psalm 126; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6
“Prepare the way of the LORD, make his paths straight… and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”
Luke 3:4b-6
A long time ago I vividly remember hearing my defensive line coach tell me, “Struggle in preparation prevents undue perspiration later,” and “if you aren’t willing to prepare you won’t prevail on game day.” I bet he never guessed that he would make it into a sermon later in his life; I know that I didn’t believe I’d remember that statement so vividly almost 30 years later. Maybe his line of thinking is part of the reason that I can look at preparation with dread.
I wonder how John the Baptist felt when he realized that he was the prophet who would prepare the way for the Lord that was predicted by Isaiah. Imagine – preparing the way for the Lord! I wonder if he was anxious about the monumental nature of that task. The bible never says but by all appearances John starts off in his calling as a prophet without trepidation. Given our world-situation, I wonder if a modern-day John the Baptist would be as calm and steadfast as John in first century Palestine.
But life is about preparation, we can’t get away from having to prepare. Right now, we are all too familiar with preparation at personal levels: teachers, parents, and students are ensconced in preparations for final exams and the end of a semester; our religion is marching through the season of Advent in preparation for Christmas; our society is pushing through a season of preparation with Thanksgiving right behind us and Christmas bearing down on us; and this Church is preparing for the coming fiscal year: new vestry members, new budgets, and new pledges; all to equip us to do the work of God in our world. But there is a less obvious yet more pertinent preparation in our midst – there are two families who have prepared their children for baptism; prepared them for full inclusion in the Body of Christ. This preparation signals a change of life and hopefully a change of view.
Many people, me included, feel some anxiety about the amount of planning and preparation that is occurring right now. It is said that the holiday season is the most stressful and anxiety producing time of the year. Many folks dread preparing for things because of the anxiety produced by the unknown, the test that is looming ahead, the desire to get things right by our power and through our preparation. Our dread and the quantity of things we’re making decisions on, coupled with the unknowns in our society today can cause anxiety to run rampant in our lives. As Ed Friedman said in his book Failure of Nerve, too much acute anxiety can lead to emotional paralysis; physical exhaustion; lack of clarity; and failure of nerve.
But preparing doesn’t have to be as anxiety riddled as we have let it become. But where can we take our cues for the decisions we have to make on a daily basis? We can take a cue from the Hope and Smiley families who have brought (will bring) William, Emma, and Jack into our family today. Their baptism and the ritual of the church reflects on what we believe it means to live as a member of the Body of Christ; to live in covenant with God through our affirmation of the relationship we have with God through Christ; the kind of relationship that trusts God to lead us where she wants us to go.
In baptism at their presentation, the candidates and sponsors affirm their faith in the saving grace of God. It is this saving grace that provides our strength and helps lessen the hold of anxiety on our lives and our bodies. The candidates and sponsors help us remember where our power comes from when they pledge to “renounce the evil powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God; ” sometimes viewed as anxiety and fear. And strive for peace by putting “their whole trust in God’s grace and love. ” But it doesn’t stop there; we, as a community, affirm that we will do “all in our power to support them in their life in Christ ” that also means each other in the Body of Christ. Likewise, we affirm with every baptism we participate in that we will strive to live our lives after the life of Christ, not as anxious members of an over-prepared society but as members of a trusting and loving community of faith.
So, what decisions are plaguing us personally today? What about as a community of faith? We are looking at a new year with many sources of uncertainty and anxiety. We are in the middle of our annual stewardship campaign in the midst of the competing interests of Christmas and Thanksgiving. We are staring at the bottom of one of the worst financial crises in our collective history. And yet we feel the sense that there is more that we should be doing to help others who are less fortunate than ourselves. We, as a church, have said that what we have isn’t really ours and that we have been put here at St. Anne’s, at this time, to make a difference in our community, our state, and our world. We affirm this with every baptism and in every celebration of the Eucharist in our confession of faith. So where do we turn in our days and hours of need? I suggest that we need to look at our communal lives through the eyes of faith and with an eye on our baptismal covenant that we just (or will) recited. Therein is the key to help us know that we are making the right decisions for God and the furtherance of God’s plan.
As we affirm in the baptismal ceremony we are not the ones whose power will help us succeed in the important relationships and decisions in our life. Most know that they need help to reach their full potential. Now, I won’t downplay the place of preparation, that is essential in achieving our goal but I subscribe that it’s not our personal strength that allows us to prevail in God’s work. The baptismal promises made by the parents and godparents say it all: “I will with God’s help.” Yet, it doesn’t stop there. Our baptism reminds us that our community is responsible to support us to make a difference in our world.
Our participation in the Body of Christ demands we make a difference; have a change of heart; and return to God’s fold. But we cannot expect to make a lasting change in our life or the world simply by relying on ourselves; and we are getting closer to realizing true change when we lean on our community to help. But the real power to effect real change comes through our dependence on God’s help.
What important decisions are we preparing for? How are we focusing on our preparation as we look for refinement in our solution and clarity of thought? Our refinement comes from trusting God to provide the direction we need. Our clarity comes from testing our decisions against the “refining fire” of scripture in relationship with our community. Our fulfillment and peace come from working together in community to effect real change in the world to bring about the Reign of God.
Only with God’s help can we comprehend the answers to the tough questions we are asking; the critical steps in our personal and communal lives that we are preparing for. Only with God’s help can we lessen our anxiety so we can make the decision that best fits God’s plan for our personal and communal lives. When we come to God, realizing that it is God’s strength and not our own, in prayer and humility are we able to be the people we promised to be in our baptismal covenant, as ones who seek and serve Christ in all others and love our neighbors as ourselves.
In faith and trust we find the key to the tough decisions of our life; the place where we find calm in the storm of preparation. May we continue to see and sense the presence of God in our lives and decisions during this season of preparation of Advent.
Amen!
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