Church in the Windshield
2nd Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2018
It’s
the second Sunday in Advent and party plans still occupy our thoughts, minds
and focus. For a brief moment we remember the first Sunday in Advent; the hope
it gives, the anticipation of what is to come and the excitement of the
celebration of the birth of Christ. It’s
going to be a great party, shepherds will be invited to visit the Holy place
and angels will be invited to sing. I wonder what they will sing; O Holy Night,
O Little Town of Bethlehem . . . Away in a manger? Neither Jingle Bells nor Rudolph
the Red Nosed Reindeer will likely be sung though. Come to think about it none
of the above listed songs will likely be sung. Those songs were all written in
our time . . . in our place in history and yet we sing them because they bring
peace in our hearts and help us focus on what is really important.
Sheron
and I reminisce about Jerusalem . . . and Bethlehem after having visited both
places. It’s amazing and intriguing to
realize how close the shepherds were to the manger probably within two or three
miles; maybe as close as a half a mile. We try to imagine being there and
experiencing that now world renown event that goes viral two thousand years
later.
In
our minds eye, we see that it is a cold winter’s night. It’s a clear night with
stars twinkling everywhere like colored fiber optic lights adorned through an
inverted colander.
We
imagine small herds of sheep bedded on the hillside warmed by their natural
coats of wool. The sheep are resting . . . sleeping . . . trusting knowing that
the night-watch shepherds will keep them safe from harm. It is so quiet and so
peaceful . . . little do they know that the stage has been set for the most
significant event in their life time and in ours.
Then
an angel appears and then another . . . and another until a whole host of
angels has made their debut like a singing flash mob in Time Square. The angles
dressed in white hovered over the shepherds . . . and the sheep. They praise
God and announce the birth of Jesus in a manager in Bethlehem. 
Sometimes,
we think we would like to have been there when the angels came. We would like
to have heard the voice and wonder if it was in the language of the shepherds.
We would like to have heard the music and wonder if it was like a thousand
voice choir singing the Hallelujah Chorus. Or maybe it was an overwhelming and
breath-taking sense of peace! Today, we light the second candle, the PEACE
candle.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do
not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do
not be afraid. (John 14:27 NIV)
Until
next time, keep the peace with God . . . and with each other.
Ron
& Sheron, drivers behind the windshield
Epilogue:
The Bethlehem, Shepherd & Sheep, Angel and Music graphics were all borrowed
from the internet.
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