We are heading into the season of Advent and Christmas. Advent is the time before Christmas when we prepare for the arrival of the Christ child. The person of Jesus has already arrived historically, but we prepare ourselves to receive a new, spiritual, Christ child that will be born to us again. A child of light and love that will be born within us, that we will nurture and grow in the new year as it awaits on the horizon.

It takes time to prepare for a new baby to arrive. We don’t just wake up and be ready to receive a new child into our homes and families. There are months to make our homes and our bodies ready to embrace this gift coming to us. In the same way, we don’t just wake up on Christmas morning and magically become ready to truly receive a new Christ child born to us. During this time of Advent, the time of waiting and preparing, the time leading up to Christmas, we make ourselves ready to receive such a wonderful gift.

We may ready our homes with decorations. We may give more to people in need. We may attend church more or read a special daily Advent devotional. We may incorporate an Advent candle lighting and reading each week. We may try our best, despite the busyness of the season, to pause and look at a fire in the fireplace or the lights on a Christmas tree, surrounding ourselves in light, as we reflect on the coming light of Christ.
In this time of preparation, we make ourselves more open to notice the signs of the season. Even in the busyness of parties, gift giving, special concerts, plays, and music celebrations, there are signs that the Christ child is coming. These are even signs themselves.

Instead of providing a reflection here each week, I invite you to reflect on the weekly scripture. We will turn our attention to the traditional focus of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love through the season. This practice is an invitation to receive these gifts that the Christ child brings, and hopefully you will notice signs of each of these gifts around you throughout the season.

For this first week of Advent that begins on Sunday, December 3, the scripture is Mark 13:24-37. As you read the scripture, look for signs of hope. What word, phrase, or image represents a sign of hope to you?
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Mark 13:24-37[i]
The Coming of the Son of Man
24 “But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light,
25 and the stars will be falling from heaven,
    and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
26 “Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. 27 Then he will send out the angels and gather the elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

The Lesson of the Fig Tree
28 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

The Necessity for Watchfulness
32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Beware, keep alert, for you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. 35 Therefore, keep awake, for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening or at midnight or at cockcrow or at dawn, 36 or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

Reflection Question:
Where did you see signs of hope? There are no right or wrong answers.

Action: Explore, perhaps in a journal, why this word, phrase, or image is a sign of hope for you.
Action: Be a sign of hope for someone this week.  
 
[i]New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition (NRSVUE). Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. All rights reserved worldwide.

Deuteronomy 8:7-18

​This scripture passage is a warning to the Israelites to not forget about God as they enter into “the good land” that was promised them. They just made it through the wilderness where they struggled and survived many challenges like hunger, thirst, extreme heat and cold, lack of shelter, and being lost. Their faith experienced a lot of ups and downs even when they experienced miracles. They questioned, doubted, and accused Moses for putting them in this situation when things got tough. When they reached Mount Sinai, they came around and vowed to trust God as they entered into a covenant together. Yet, not long after, their impatience won out, and they tried to create a worship experience that ended up breaking their covenant with God. Nevertheless, the time had come for them to go to the land of Canaan.
 
Canaan was “the good land,” a prosperous land with lots of resources. Compared to the desert wilderness they had been in for forty years, where they had known strife and struggle, living in this land would seem as if their troubles were over. All of their hard work to survive and their perseverance would pay off. Moses reminds them that God is the one who is bringing them into this good land. “Your own hand” did not bring you to this place of prosperity. When things are good, don’t think that you made this goodness happen.
 
When things are going well, we think that we are bringing about the good, and we may barely pause to thank God because we think we are the ones making this happen. But when things aren’t going well, we are quick to turn to God and pray for God to work things out. When we’re in the trenches of life, we feel out of control and powerless. Yet, Moses reminds us that we’re out of control and powerless in prosperity too. Yes, God works through us, to do good, but it’s God whom we should thank instead of ourselves.
 
This scripture is a good ego-check during this week of Thanksgiving. We will pause in gratitude for our blessings. We will gather with family and friends around the table to give thanks for the bounty of food and drink filling our tables. Let us not forget that these gifts come from God. No matter how hard we worked or the long hours we worked to provide for such abundance, let us not say to ourselves, “My power and might have gotten me this wealth.” For it is God who gives us power to get wealth (v.18). God holds the power in the bad and in the good. God is the one who is bringing us into “a good land,” a good place, where we can humbly thank God for consistently being present in our lives. 
 
Reflection questions:
What “bad land” is God bringing you out of?
What “good land” is God bringing you into?
Have you seen God’s hand in both?
When have you prayed for God’s help, then forgot to thank God when you received it? How can you remember to thank God in the good times too?
Where do you need to check your ego?
 
Action: Make a list of good things that you know are gifts from God, that you couldn’t have manifested for yourself. Thank God for these every day.  

Matthew 25:14-30
The Parable of Talents

As we dig into this story, let’s begin with the context. This parable follows the previous parable of the ten bridesmaids, and it begins with “For it is as if…” in the NRSV translation. Other translations specifically say, “And, the kingdom of heaven is also like this…” This connector phrase is important because it tells us that Jesus isn’t finished with his stories about the kingdom of heaven/God. Another one follows, so we should be looking for the kingdom of God in this story.
 
That’s where I have a hard time again. Mainly because many of us have been taught this parable through an American lens, where everyone has the freedom to earn or invest in making more money. We like to think that is the case, but our system has similarities to the hierarchical system in which this story takes place. Jesus tells this story when Israel is under Roman occupation, so the Master is most likely a wealthy Roman or even symbolic of the Emperor.
 
The Master “entrusts” his property to his slaves and then leaves. Many translations refer to the property as talents, coins, denarii, a wide range of valuable assets that can be increased. The amount is ridiculous and certainly more than the slaves could imagine. It would have so many zeros today. The slaves might get lured in to this opportunity to invest more money that they’ll ever see in their lifetime. The Master doesn’t tell the slaves to invest his money, but it is implied because of the context. Within the Roman system, the wealthy had slaves or servants who worked for them and their sole purpose was to make their Master wealthier.
 
Two of the slaves didn’t get anything out of it except praise and a promotion. They didn’t get to keep any of the money they raised. They got more responsibility because they “proved” they were trustworthy. They “entered into the joy of their master,” (v.21,23) which probably meant they weren’t going to be banished into “outer darkness” (v.30) with pain and suffering like the third slave who didn’t increase the Master’s money.
 
The third slave knew the system was rigged and decided not to be a part of the competition between the slaves. Out of self-proclaimed fear of the Master, this slave buried or hid the Master’s money. He didn’t spend it or save it for himself. He knew it wasn’t his, so he kept it safely to return it to its rightful owner. Remember, Jesus said in another teaching, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s” (Mark 12:17). When the Master returned, he said, “You have what is yours,” v.25). Some translations don’t explicitly say this; they imply it, but sometimes the implications are overlooked. This is a key point to this parable, and I like this phrase being said. The Good News Translation said it this way: “Here is what belongs to you,” or the New Living Translation, “Here is your money back.” He gave it back to Caesar.
 
The third slave knew that what was entrusted to him was not his. It was his Master’s, so he wanted to make sure he returned what belonged to someone else. He did not want to take what was given to him and capitalize on it, whether that was for himself or his Master.
 
How is this representative to the kingdom of God? The third slave refrained from the competitive nature of the system. He did not feel the need to prove his abilities in this way. He no longer was complicit to the broken system he was placed in. He understood that he was not a ladder climber, nor his purpose was to make the rich richer. His purpose was to take a stand, even at personal risk, to create a better system of love.
 
With this understanding, who do you think the third slave is? How does that change your understanding of the parable? And, how does that change your relationship with money?
 
Reflection questions:
What harmful systems do you find yourself in that you want to change?
Can you apply this parable to the state of the church? In what ways?
What is yours solely?
 
Action: Commit to working against being complicit in a harmful system. Take one step this week in making that happen.

Matthew 25:1-13
The Parable of Ten Bridesmaids

Jesus was a great storyteller and used stories (parables) as sermon illustrations when he was preaching and teaching. Sometimes Jesus’ parables are difficult to understand because we are far removed from the culture in which it was written.
 
You may find it helpful to know some details about first-century Jewish wedding culture, which is this story’s context. Before the wedding feast, the groom goes to the bride’s home. The bridesmaids keep watch, and when they see him coming, they light their lamps to welcome him. The wedding takes place at the bride’s house, then the whole wedding party processes by lamplight to the groom’s house for the banquet.
 
However, in this story, the bridegroom is delayed. Like all weddings, there are snafus that don’t go according to plan. While the bridesmaids are waiting for him, they fall asleep. When the groom arrives in the middle of the night, half of them weren’t prepared for the longer waiting time. In the previous chapters of Matthew, Jesus preaches about his return, and the original audience was deeply concerned about how to “keep awake” (v.13) for Christ. When read within the bigger context, this story might teach what we should do to prepare ourselves for the return of Christ.
 
Many have interpreted this parable to mean that heaven will be a place where only a few get in -- those who urgently prepare for Christ’s return to avoid Christ’s rejection. An interesting point to keep in mind is that the phrase “kingdom of heaven” means the same as “kingdom of God.” With that understanding, the kingdom of God is not only limited to heaven in the afterlife, but also is in the here and now.
 
The very first verse of this passage: “The kingdom of heaven will be like this” suggests a deeper meaning to this story. This story is a snapshot of what God’s kingdom looks like. However, one detail really bothers me that seems contrary to the kingdom of God. The five who came with extra oil were unwilling to share. They even sent the others away to purchase oil when the sellers were certainly closed for the night. Did they send them away knowing they couldn’t get more at midnight? Remember, it wasn’t the oil that gained them access to the banquet. The extra oil was to keep their lamps burning to welcome Christ. Their unwillingness to share made it impossible for the others to welcome Christ.
 
The five “foolish” bridesmaids were not the only ones who became drowsy and slept. The “wise” ones did too. They were only considered wise because they brought extra oil for the longer waiting time. Maybe they were considered wise because they brought enough to share. Were they still considered wise when they refused to share? Were they still welcoming Christ when they were not welcoming to others? Who truly are the wise ones?
 
Perhaps the story has many more layers and goes deeper than the context, which is notorious for many of Jesus’ stories. That’s what makes them timeless. If this story is really about what the kingdom of God is like, then I see the unifying trait as all of them became drowsy and slept. Despite the division of two groups, the labeling, and the rejecting, they all did the same thing while waiting for Christ. They got tired and fell asleep. And, when they were all awakened at the same time, they were all invited to “Come out to meet him” (v.6).
 
Their drowsiness is our drowsiness, humanity’s tendency to dose off when we have to wait. We are impatient. Our attention and interest wanes until we are awakened by the next loud voice. The kingdom of God/heaven is represented in this story when “all … got up and trimmed their lamps” (v.7) to welcome Christ. The kingdom of God is all people coming together in their shared humanity and welcoming Christ when he comes.     
 
Reflection questions:
Is there a detail in this story that bothers you? Which one?
Where do you see the kingdom of God in this story?
Where do you not see the kingdom of God?
 
Action: Explore in a journal or engage in a conversation with someone about what bothers you in this story in an attempt to work it out. Strive to come to a place to see it in a new way.