This Week's Scripture Readings
Story for All Ages
&
The Message
from Retired Pastor
Durwood Sargent
Story for All Ages
A Letter From an Eight Year Old Girl
Dear Concord Monitor, (daily Concord newspaper)
I have a dream that someday everyone will have a REAL family. My brother and sister didn’t have that kind of family that loved them. When you don’t have a real family, you feel different than other people. Put yourself in that person’s shoe. How would you feel?
One way that everyone could have a real family is to foster and adopt kids. Then everyone will have a real family. Love bines you and your family together. Love is much greater than anything else.
From,
Ali B. Sargent
A bit of explanation: My son Craig and daughter-in-law Sandy became foster parents at the urging of their neighbor across the road from them. When two foster children came into the family, they were told that Craig and Sandy are Daddy and Mommy, and Ali and Thomas (my grandchildren) are your sister and brother. At two and four years old they were fine with this, without asking questions.
On this day I was at their home as I had gotten Ali and Thomas ready to go skiing when Sandy got home from work. When they came home from skiing, the first thing that Sandy did was check their homework folders which were all ok. However, in Ali’s folder she found a paper that she had written the day before. It was the letter to the Concord Monitor Newspaper. All of the children in her third-grade class listened to the “I have a dream” speech of Dr. Martin Luther King and they were invited to write their own “I have a dream speech” to be sent to the newspaper. After Sandy read it and complimented Ali on her work, she gave it to me to read.
It was published in the Concord Monitor.
So, let’s hold onto two third grader thoughts:
1. Everyone should have a real family, and
2. Love is much greater than anything else.
The Message
Last week you heard Pastor Arnie preach on Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth. From that account of the Holy conception Luke continues with the Magnificat. The Magnificat (Latin for "[My soul] magnifies [the Lord]") is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary or the Canticle of Mary. The Magnificat is one of the eight most ancient Christian hymns and is most often sung or recited during the main evening prayer service: Vespers in the Catholic and Lutheran churches.
This biblical understanding that Mary has of God may come as a surprise and attests to how both her and Elizabeth knew the Jewish scriptures most repeated and read in her time. And as we find ourselves at the fourth Sunday of Advent our theme is “The Blessing of Home”.
WMUR Channel 9 has had a long running series on foster parenting called “Home at Last”. Craig, Sandy and the children were in one of the early broadcasts of that series. I think Ali’s point of every child having a “Real Family” assumes that this happens in a place called home. The blessing of a place called home. However, home can be depicted in many ways.
Song writers explore those ways. For instance, John Denver sings about country roads in West Virginia taking him home. Gene Autry and a host of others sang about “Home on the Range”. A kind of romantic account of sleeping under the stars out on the prairie with a herd of cattle. If you have done much camping or traveling, there might come a point at which you think “it will feel good to get back home into my own bed”. Home has comfort, security and familiarity.
And if we take Ali’s second point – Love is what binds you and your family together and love is much greater than anything else. If we wanted to use Ali’s statements as a metaphor, they would certainly work. Love is what binds you to God and that love is much greater than anything else.
Mary as a humble servant is willing to do what God has asked simply because God has said “you are the one I choose”. She will bring into this world the light in the wilderness that lifts up the lowly. In Advent as we light more and more candles, we bring more light into our sanctuary until we bring the ultimate light – the Christ candle.
The past two years Sharon’s Christmas gift for me is a donation to an organization called a light for Zimbabwe.
Fourteen years ago, a Critical Care Nurse at Catholic Medical Center was called by God to go to Zimbabwe to help pregnant women. Today she focuses on many issues in that country but especially she gives her attention to orphans. She spends 3 months a year there and hopes to spend more time than that in the future in spite of being 81 years old. For Sue home could be where she now lives in Loudon, at her home church in Canterbury, In the ICU at CMC, in Massachusetts with any of her 4 children and 11 grandchildren - or in her beloved Zimbabwe.
Home is where God has called her to be. The tiny white – white haired woman is a site to see among the totally black population that she serves. Her faith undoubtedly inspires many. You might even call her Mary-like.
Mary’s faith in God is expressed in The Canticle of Mary. But we wonder – did she know that she was bearing love. No one, not even Mary knew what the Son of God would bring to this earth. You probably know the song “Love came down at Christmas”. Love came down at Christmas – Love incarnate, love divine. In her womb was incubated love. A love unknown to humankind. Radical love “love you enemies”. Love that defied “human nature”.
A love that is forgiving – that might make us look weak. It is a gigantic word absent from so much of our discourse today. Often times love can make something of a comeback at Christmas – let’s hope and pray that it does this year.
Coming home to Christmas is a good time to listen as you thank God for the blessings you have in spite of all that is happening around us. And let us ponder this: What is the infant in the manger saying to you? Can you take time to listen?
Would you pray with me: Tiny Christ Child, You come to us as the unlikely King that you are, yet we know that You have already changed the lives of every one of us. With your birth we know God’s love for us, we know His desire that we find peace in this Kingdom on earth. Help us in this time of reflection on the past, to not discourage hope. We confess that we forget Your promise to be with us – a light in our darkness always. May Your innocent Peace be with us and with all of our brothers and sisters throughout Your world - we pray this day – Amen.
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