Advent Devotional Dec 12
Week Three:
Creating Shalom means Sounding Joy
Monday, December 12, 2022
“The Parenthesis of Joy” – Read Psalm 42
As the deer pants for streams of water, / so my soul pants for you, my God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. / When can I go and meet with God? (v. 1-2, NIV)
This is a joyous season. Stores are lavishly decorated. Our homes are filled with heirlooms that bring the memories of our childhood and past happy Christmas. Our closets begin to share space with gifts we hope will bring a smile to our loved ones. We gather in the evening to watch Christmas movies and cuddle with those we love the most. I think that particularly during the times we are going through, we immerse ourselves deeply in the “joy” of the season to create a “parenthesis” in the middle of the chaos surrounding us.
War, natural disasters, political and social divides, and inflation do not take a break. They continue to plague our attention. These menacing factors pile upon our fears, anxieties, disappointments, and broken hearts. Some of us will go through this season without a loved one, either because they passed or because our relationships have grown distant. Some of us will smile amid pain and sorrow. We do this because we are “trained” to smile during the “holiday season.”
Yet, the babe who is about to be born invites us to “come to see him as we are.” The reading for today -- “my tears have been my food both day and night, as people constantly questioned me, “Where’s your God now?” (Psalm 42:3, CEB) -- is an invitation to us to bring to God whatever is heavy in our hearts. It is freeing—indeed, redeeming--when we do not have to smile through our hurt. The babe born in the stable comes to free us from our pain… not by ignoring it, but by confronting it and defeating it. The babe born next to farm animals shows us that strength is found in vulnerability.
May our tears be transformed into laughter and our mourning into dancing!
Lord, hope is all around me! And so, I have to ask myself: Why am I so down? Why am I so upset? O Lord, I give you thanks, because you awaken something deep inside me. You refresh me with living water. Every day I see your love, and every night I sing your praises. This I pray to you, O God of my life! Amen.
(adapted from Psalm 42)
Rev. Carlos Ramirez, Associate Director of Connectional Ministries
Congregational Vitality & Coordinator of Hispanic/Latino Ministries
The Oklahoma Conference of the UMC
“The Parenthesis of Joy” – Read Psalm 42
As the deer pants for streams of water, / so my soul pants for you, my God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. / When can I go and meet with God? (v. 1-2, NIV)
This is a joyous season. Stores are lavishly decorated. Our homes are filled with heirlooms that bring the memories of our childhood and past happy Christmas. Our closets begin to share space with gifts we hope will bring a smile to our loved ones. We gather in the evening to watch Christmas movies and cuddle with those we love the most. I think that particularly during the times we are going through, we immerse ourselves deeply in the “joy” of the season to create a “parenthesis” in the middle of the chaos surrounding us.
War, natural disasters, political and social divides, and inflation do not take a break. They continue to plague our attention. These menacing factors pile upon our fears, anxieties, disappointments, and broken hearts. Some of us will go through this season without a loved one, either because they passed or because our relationships have grown distant. Some of us will smile amid pain and sorrow. We do this because we are “trained” to smile during the “holiday season.”
Yet, the babe who is about to be born invites us to “come to see him as we are.” The reading for today -- “my tears have been my food both day and night, as people constantly questioned me, “Where’s your God now?” (Psalm 42:3, CEB) -- is an invitation to us to bring to God whatever is heavy in our hearts. It is freeing—indeed, redeeming--when we do not have to smile through our hurt. The babe born in the stable comes to free us from our pain… not by ignoring it, but by confronting it and defeating it. The babe born next to farm animals shows us that strength is found in vulnerability.
May our tears be transformed into laughter and our mourning into dancing!
Lord, hope is all around me! And so, I have to ask myself: Why am I so down? Why am I so upset? O Lord, I give you thanks, because you awaken something deep inside me. You refresh me with living water. Every day I see your love, and every night I sing your praises. This I pray to you, O God of my life! Amen.
(adapted from Psalm 42)
Rev. Carlos Ramirez, Associate Director of Connectional Ministries
Congregational Vitality & Coordinator of Hispanic/Latino Ministries
The Oklahoma Conference of the UMC
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1 Comment
Help God to continue to be lifted up in love and song in this Advent. 🙏