I’m slowly prepping for my sermon this Sunday, where we’ll be lighting the third candle of Advent and talking about joy. There is a lot of joy in and around the birth narratives. It breaks in through strange avenues- the announcements of angels, the kick-drum beat of unborn John the Baptist kicking in Elizabeth’s womb, the prophetic praise of a virgin mother and a de-muted priest. Joy bursts forth all around Jesus, or better yet, just like Jesus (I know…gross).
We usually talk about joy on this Sunday in Advent in link to the joy of child birth. Jesus himself said,
When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. (John 16:21)
I’ve been asking friends of mine who have had kids about their experience in this sudden turn from sorrow/pain to joy, and their stories have been incredible (please feel free to add your own in the comments section). The most common theme I’m hearing is that no amount of pain made the joy of seeing that child enter the world. The joy was unstoppable when the child was finally seen, and the sorrow was almost forgotten completely in comparison.
Which makes me wonder: what sorrows are being overshadowed by the birth, the presence, even just the announcement of the Christ’s arrival? What do you find in the stories of the Advent?
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