Pastoral Letter 142
Dear Members of St. Andrew’s Uniting Church, Friends and Adherents,
Grace and peace to you all.
We are halfway through the Advent Season, preparing to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in couple of weeks. This Sunday is the third Sunday of the Advent, and the theme is Joy. Christmas, as well as New Year, is and should be a joyous and joyful. We will retell the story both this Sunday during our Carols Service, as well on Christmas Eve Candlelight Service. These few weeks, that lead us to Christmas, brings us joy and gives us the chance to celebrate with our families and friends and look forward to the new year, hoping better days by the grace of God.
Our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service will be held on Saturday 24 December at 7:00 pm on the Lawn, if weather permits and Sunday 25 December our Christmas Service, followed by New Years’ Service on Sunday 1 January 2023. After tomorrow’s Service, we will have a surprise tree planting ceremony before having Morning Tea, celebrating an important milestone in my long years of service as a Minister of the Word. I hope you will be able to join us on this happy occasion. If not, you can worship with us at home. Please light a candle and follow the attached Order of Service and sing along.
As we have done in the previous years, once again we are collecting food and Christmas gifts for Exodus Foundation. Remembering and giving to the needy is a God pleasing action. So, let us be generous and give the best we can for the glory of God. Please accept our thanks in advance. The collected food and the gifts will be delivered on Tuesday 20 December.
Be safe and well, continue to pray, remembering those who need care, support and love and let me know if any member of the congregation that you know of needs our help and prayers.
Here are some prayer points for this week:
- Pray for our ministry here at St. Andrew’s, especially as we come closer to the end of the year with special services and look ahead for yet another blessed year in 2023.
- Pray for the poor, the sick, the vulnerable, the struggling and the stressed.
- Pray for those who are unwell and struggling with different kinds of medical issues.
- Pray for those who are overseas on holiday trips, to enjoy their time with family and friends and return safely.
- Pray for world peace and ask for God’s blessings.
Please let me know if you or anyone else has prayer points.
Best Regards,
Krikor
MESSAGE
Jesus is Our Joy
Rejoice, Sing and Praise!
Luke 1:39-56 and Isaiah 9:2-7
Joy is talked about widely in Scripture. It is found in nearly every book of the Bible. Sometimes it occurs as a noun referring to one’s state of being, because of an event. Sometimes it’s a verb referring to joy’s action, namely rejoicing.
Joy is listed as one of the fruits of the Spirit.
Joy is felt in a memory from the past. It is referred to in the present tense as Apostle Paul expresses his Joy in the writing of the epistles. And also, in the future tense in the context of fullness of Joy when we get to heaven.
The Bible tells us that Joy can be created by material pleasures and drinking, but that it is a false joy.
Joy comes through faithfulness and obedience, trials and sadness.
CS Lewis has said of Joy that “It is the serious business of Heaven” and “It is a necessity not a luxury“. And Robert Louis Stevenson has said: “To miss Joy is to miss all“.
Joy manifests in us in 3 ways.
1. When good things happen (Natural Joy). For example, a child waiting for Christmas, when we are on holidays and spend time with dear friends.
2. When we do the right thing (Moral Joy). For example, helping and giving to the needy, restore a relationship.
3. When we embrace God (Spiritual Joy). It is something the world cannot give nor understand.
Most people have experienced both Natural Joy and Moral Joy. But Joy was intended by God to be a much deeper experience.
When we come to Christ and accept Him as our personal Saviour and Lord, we are no longer limited to experiencing merely natural and moral Joy.
When we are going through dark times. He is there.
When we cannot feel Him. He is there.
When we least expect Him. He is there.
When we feel we are all alone. He is there.
When we feel like giving up, He is there, ready to embrace us so that we are able to experience Joy.
Consider Mary. A virgin engaged to an older man named Joseph. She was from a culture not like ours. It was a big shame for a young righteous girl to be found pregnant.
What would people think? The parents would be put to shame. Joseph would be put to shame. So, she was sent away to be with Elizabeth, where she could be hidden in isolation. Imagine Mary’s turmoil as she goes to Elizabeth. She must have little joy at the thought of having to defend herself. But the meeting was not an embarrassing or a devastating event. Rather the Holy Spirit came down and filled Elizabeth. The Baby in Elizabeth’s womb leaped for Joy. God embraced them and brought Joy in a way that only He can do.
How many of us need to experience that kind of Joy in our life today.
We may be struggling through a difficult situation.
We are uncertain of the future.
We are troubled in our spirit.
We have been struggling in life.
We or a member of our family is passing through difficult time.
May be facing family crisis, sickness, depression, etc.
My message today is simple.
Let us open up our hearts and let God embrace us and bring Spiritual Joy.
A joy like no other.
A joy not from things that happen to us.
Nor from our sense of well-being.
But from a God who wants to carry us and let us know He is in control.
This joy becomes the reason for our praises and singing to glorify God for who He is.
Yet again, as we make our way through Advent, there is a sense of urgency in the scripture readings. And maybe, yet again, we find ourselves wondering if God’s kingdom will ever arrive. Will the day come when we will have food, enough for all, and no child goes hungry? We can easily become desperate when we consider the world’s injustice. But a farmer knows that worrying will not make the crops grow. Whether for a field of wheat, or parsley in a pot, patience is required if we want to reap and eat. Just like the prophets of old, the young and in experienced church needed to be resilient.
Yes, it’s tempting to grumble when things are not going how we would like, but James reminds the church that Christ the benevolent judge is on the doorstep, about to enter. As we get closer to Christmas, and the carols and decorations become widespread, will we actually invite Jesus into our homes and lives? Through our commitment to God’s Dream, we can welcome in Jesus to our Advent, to our Christmas, and to our hearts with great joy and rejoice, sing and praise.
Amen!