Dear Fellow Children of God,
Have you heard the sarcastic prayer, “Lord, I want
patience. And I want it NOW!”? In a way that prayer is a prayer for our
times. We all need the ability to wait,
to be patient. But, we truly lack patience! We do NOT like to wait! I’m not sure that
patience has ever been a natural inclination of human beings. But, with the speed of our lives today, our
patience seems to have grown less and less.
Microwave ovens have heated and cooked food more quickly for the last 50
years. With cell phones we can be in touch
with people instantly. With the internet
we know the news as it is happening. Our
world has gotten faster, and our patience has almost disappeared!
That might be one of the reasons why Advent is one of my favorite seasons of the
year. Advent looks forward to the coming of Jesus. So Advent is a time of . . .
waiting. Advent is a time of patience.
Do you know Psalm 130?
The older I get, the larger my list of favorite Psalms becomes. But, Psalm 130 is one of my favorites, and it
speaks what we need to hear for Advent. Consider
verses 5-8 of the Psalm. (But, at home you might want to read the whole Psalm.)
“5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his
word I hope; 6 my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the
morning, more than watchmen for the morning. 7 O Israel, hope in the
LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful
redemption. 8 And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.” Waiting is another definition of
patience. And this Psalm identifies what
we wait for. We “wait for the Lord!”
Sometimes we get
the mistaken impression that Advent is the time of waiting for Christmas. Advent does lead up to the celebration of the
birth of Jesus. But, today Christmas is
such an extravagant holiday, that the celebration can hide the one who whose
birth we celebrate. Christmas can hide
Christ.
Advent gives us time
to consider our misplaced priorities, and time to repent. That is how John the Baptist called people to
prepare for the coming of the Savior.
Advent is a time we can grow to understand just how much we need our
Lord, how much we need His wisdom, His guidance, His love, His grace, His
forgiveness, and His salvation. As take
time to consider our need, then the gift of Jesus becomes more important. We need Jesus so much that . . . He is WORTH
WAITING FOR!
Christians have historically
understood this need to wait, and yet we still forget that need in the
moment. Advent wreaths require 4 Sundays
to light all the candles in order to finally arrive at the lighting of the white
Christ candle. Advent calendars have 24
doors before a person reaches the Christ door, the Christmas door. Again, Advent is a time of waiting . . . for
Jesus!
The Psalmist
begins Psalm 130 with the expression of his need. “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!” The trials of this world lead us to realize the
depths of our sin, and the heights of God’s love. Jesus is exactly what we need, and waiting
helps us to understand our need.
So with the
Psalmist I say from my heart, “5 I wait for the LORD, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope; 6 my soul waits for the Lord more than
watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. 7 O
Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is steadfast love, and with
him is plentiful redemption. 8 And he will redeem Israel from all
his iniquities.”
A blessed Advent season of waiting for Jesus to each
of you!
A Child of God, Waiting for Jesus – Waiting for
His Forgiveness, His Love, and Redemption!
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. Perhaps you
wondered about the title on my devotion last week. The title of my e-mail, for a while the title
of my Facebook Post, and the title of my article in the Frontiersman read, “Do
you Desire to Be Unique – Lie as a Christian.” I did not want to encourage you to lie. But, I even received a phone call from Alaska
asking if I had changed my beliefs.
Well, here’s my story, and I’m
sticking to it! My computer is growing
old, and some of my computer keys are
not working well. Others are not working
at all. Among the keys which are
sticking are the “F” and the “V.” So, just because I strike the key does not
mean that the letter shows in my document.
When I typed the title for the devotion, my “v” stuck. So, my title said “Lie” instead of “Live.” I hope you took a second look, and then
perhaps you had a good laugh. One of
those who called from Alaska told me, “Don’t talk to me about a sticking F and
V.” I laughed at her scolding.
However, if you look closely, I’m
sure you might find another “typo” or two in other e-mails of mine. J
ESPECIALLY FOR
MEMBERS AND FRIENDS OF FIRST LUTHERAN CHURCH.
SPECIAL HOLIDAY
WORSHIP - Special Advent and Christmas worship services will be offered at
First Lutheran Church in Gainesville, as follows.
·
Wednesday, December 6 - Open Arms Children’s
Christmas Program at 6:00 p.m.
·
Wednesdays, December 13 and 20 – First Lutheran
will use Holden Evening Prayer at 6:30 p.m. to consider the Advent theme
of “Hope.” Sermons will include a skit
by First Lutheran members.
·
Sunday, December 24 - Christmas Eve Day we will
celebrate Advent 4 in our regular Sunday morning service at 10:00 a.m.
·
Sunday, December 24 - Christmas Eve worship will
be held primarily with children in mind at 5:00 p.m..
·
Sunday, December 24 - Christmas Eve candlelight
worship will be held at 6:30 p.m..
·
Monday, December 25 – Christmas Day worship will
be held at 10:00 a.m.
FIRST LUTHERAN
CHOIR - The First Lutheran Choir is
practicing for Christmas worship on Wednesdays after Advent worship. COME AND JOIN THE CHOIR IN LEADING FIRST
LUTHERAN IN PRAISING THE LORD!
READ THROUGH THE
SCRIPTURE? Today’s Light Bible – Pastor Rockey is inviting you to
join him in reading through the Bible starting January 1, using the “Today’s
Light Bible.” This Bible leads a person
through Scripture in 2 years and includes daily devotions. It may be purchased online at CPH or at
Amazon. Here is a link to purchase this
devotional Bible. https://www.amazon.com/Todays-Light-Devotional-Bible-Fryar/dp/0758643519/ref=sr_1_1?crid=18IZZOYD5KP0Z&keywords=today%27s+light+devotional+bible&qid=1701895876&sprefix=Today%27s+light+devotional%2Caps%2C432&sr=8-1
MEMORIALS AND
SCHOLARSHIP FUND - If you would like to make a donation in memory of Pastor
Robert Besalski, the Besalski family asks that you either make a donation to
First Lutheran Church, or to Lutheran World Relief. This information was supposed to be included in
the obituary in the Gainesville Sun.
However, it was omitted when the obituary was printed. Donations to First Lutheran will help fund a Besalski
Scholarship for Church Work Students.
P.P.S. FISHING
J - This week I spent time with friends, and golfing
with friends, and did NOT make it fishing.
I hope to fish a number of times in the next week. J https://photos.app.goo.gl/dxhYHEVbRFm8K7uq9
*******
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as full-time senior pastor of St. John
Lutheran Church in Palmer, AK. I was
writing a weekly devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the
Pastor." When I retired many asked
me to continue writing these devotions.
So I have continued writing.
However, with life's changes I now call this weekly devotion
"Journeys Through Life as a Child of God." Since I am no longer senior pastor at St.
John, I felt it right to only send this message to those who asked to receive
it. (Currently I am serving as Vacancy
Pastor for First Lutheran Church in Gainesville, FL.)
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan
Rockey
Child
of God
Husband,
Father, Son, Grandfather
Vacancy Pastor, First Lutheran Church, Gainesville, FL
Pastor
Emeritus, St. John Lutheran Church, Palmer, AK
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the
Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that
is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 a)
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