{"id":8255,"date":"2005-12-19T00:40:30","date_gmt":"2005-12-19T05:40:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/newswire\/?p=8255"},"modified":"2011-07-06T08:29:10","modified_gmt":"2011-07-06T13:29:10","slug":"4647","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/newswire\/2005\/12\/19\/4647\/","title":{"rendered":"Advent: What Questions Do We Have of God?"},"content":{"rendered":"

EAST HAMPTON, CT (December 19, 2005)\u00a0 – Editor’s note: In preparation for\u00a0 the Christmas observance, Covenant Communications is sharing devotionals\u00a0 that originally appeared in local Covenant church newsletters and are\u00a0 being published here by permission. The following comes from pastor Tom\u00a0 Anderson of Haddam Neck Covenant Church in East Hampton, CT.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Tom Anderson<\/div>\n
The Lord will lay bare his holy arm in the sight of all nations, and\u00a0 all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.<\/em> (Isaiah\u00a0 52:10)<\/div>\n
Andrew Thomas (Ursin) Martins, born October 5, 2005, was in church for\u00a0 the first time last Sunday wrapped in swaddling clothes, still in the\u00a0 ‘pink’ of his baby flesh and from appearances weighing not much more\u00a0 than his six pounds, six-ounce birth weight. Many were able to gingerly\u00a0 hold him. My turn will come soon enough as we anticipate his baptism.<\/div>\n
From Luke 2:25-32 comes this story:<\/div>\n
A man named Simeon was in Jerusalem. He was a good man and he loved\u00a0 God. He was watching and waiting for the one who would save Israel. The\u00a0 Holy Spirit was on him. The Holy Spirit had shown him that he would not\u00a0 die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. He came into the temple, led\u00a0 by the Spirit. The parents brought in the child Jesus to do what the law\u00a0 said they should do about him. Then Simeon took Jesus in his arms and\u00a0 praised God. He said, ‘Lord, now you are letting your servant go in\u00a0 peace, just as you have said. I have seen with my own eyes the one you\u00a0 have sent to save people. You have made this way for all peoples to be\u00a0 saved. He is a light which will shine for those who do not know God. He\u00a0 is the one who will bring praise to your people Israel.’<\/em><\/div>\n
Seeing a life no larger than Andrew Thomas, Simeon was prepared to “go\u00a0 in peace.”<\/div>\n
What are you expecting before you are ready to go in peace? How many\u00a0 questions do you have for God? How much evidence must you accumulate\u00a0 before you’re ready to declare “with my own eyes I have seen your\u00a0 salvation?”<\/div>\n
I marvel at Simeon’s faith, which is not credited to him, but to the\u00a0 Holy Spirit whose company he kept. By comparison, I want so much more. I\u00a0 want God to have my life all taken care of before I’ll boldly proclaim\u00a0 God’s salvation. But Simeon sees it in a life no bigger than Andrew Thomas.<\/div>\n
An Advent prayer: O God, capture my inner thoughts this Christmas with\u00a0 thy salvation, which has been revealed. Put to rest my fears and\u00a0 anxieties, which sinfully disturb my peace and the peace of others. Let\u00a0 me hear the choirs of angels sing, “Glory to God in the highest, and on\u00a0 earth, peace, good will toward humanity.” May your Holy Spirit rest upon\u00a0 us and console us and magnify your small presence among us so as to\u00a0 satisfy our souls.<\/div>\n
Amen!<\/div>\n
(Editor’s note: to read earlier Advent messages, please see:<\/strong><\/div>\n