“Mary’s Song of Joy”

“The Hoy of the Lord is Our Strength”

Luke 1:46b-55; Isaiah 35:1-6, 10

Rev. Elizbeth Aguilar

Community Congregational Church of Chula Vista, UCC

 

We love Mary, don’t we? We love her obedience, her “pondering everything in her heart,” her faithfulness to God and to Joseph….But I love her bravery, too. I hope you all heard or read Mary’s words very carefully.

 

Now, I am not sure if I were her if the first thing I would do after hearing that I am going to give birth to a baby although I am not wed- is to break out in this song.

 

But why? Why was Mary about to do so? Because she knew that her strength came from the joy of the Lord.

 

And that’s what I want us to focus on today. That OUR Strength comes from the Joy of the Lord.

 

This is the third Sunday in Advent and we Are focusing on Joy. But as I reflected on it, it dawned on me how important it is that we not focus on joy as merely a feeling but on it being a gift that comes from God, that MOVES us beyond a feeling.

 

You see, when we FOCUS on Jesus, who IS the source of our joy, the circumstances in our life- no matter how hard they are, do not overwhelm us.

 

Does God want us sad, consumed with worry, or anxiety? No.

 

Think about it- had Mary focused on her circumstances she might as well have broken out in a loud cry instead of a song. For a woman to be unwed and pregnant meant that her fiancé would have had to break up with her and she could have been stoned to death- that was the severe punishment for a woman in that predicament.

 

So, had Mary been focused on her situation of being an unwed pregnant woman, she would not have been able to go on.

 

But instead, she kept her focus on what she knew- which were the promises of God through scripture.

 

And she knew that by focusing on those promises found in scripture, she would be strong through out her pregnancy. It wouldn’t matter if the town folk would talk badly about her. It wouldn’t matter that she was poor and unsure of her future. What mattered to her was that God would make a way for her and her family and for the promise of God to come to fruition for the WORLD, THROUGH her!

 

How many times do we focus on our circumstances instead of on the JOY that God gives us? How many times do we forget that the SOURCE Of our strength COMES from the Lord?

 

Now, I’m not saying we should ignore our problems and bury our heads in the sand- no, of course, not! I’m not talking about being an irresponsible person.

 

I’m talking about keeping our gaze on Jesus because He WILL make away where there is NO way! He IS the Source of our strength.

 

If there is anything I want you to remember about today’s message it is this- that the Joy of the Lord is our strength!! And that when we keep our focus on Jesus our problems do not overwhelm us. (Nehemiah 8:10)

 

 

First Sunday of Advent

December 1, 2019

Waiting in Hope

Luke 1:5-25

 

To remind us all what Advent is about- it isn’t just about putting up lovely decorations or beginning to make our lists of gifts we want to purchase. (As fun as those things are.) Advent is much bigger than that. It has to do with the past, the present and the future. It is a special period (4 weeks) when Christians wait and prepare, but for what?

We wait not only to celebrate the past- when Christ came into the world. But we also wait and prepare for our Savior’s return. We do so not passively but actively, for we wait in hope in God!

The task for us this Advent season then is not just to focus on what all is wrong with the world and with our own lives but to place our hope in Christ; hope that God will restore all things in God’s time.

As an example of waiting in hope (and not in vain) is this story of how these elderly servants of God (Zachariah and Elizabeth) chose to wait. They had been barren and to remind ourselves- for a woman not to have had children, specifically a son, was something seen as sad and negative. The family name and land were passed on from generation to generation. Sons often followed in the profession of their father’s. Sons were seen as the barer of the family blessing that he, in turn, would one day pass on to his children.

Zachariah and Elizabeth, though, had not waited their whole lives in vain. We know from the reading that Zachariah was a priest and had been praying to God not only for the needs of others but for his, as well. We know this because when the angel appears to Zachariah he tells him that God had heard his prayer.

This should give us hope right away- that God hears our prayers. We don’t just  say empty phrases to the air when we pray. We pray in hope and assurance that God will work it out in God’s special time and will for us. We pray to a living God who loves us and is actively working things out on our behalf.

So, Zachariah and Elizabeth waited for God to act somehow in their lives by serving God as leaders in their community.

We must do the same- we must wait for God to act in our own lives and in the ways we chose to serve others- our family, our neighbors, our co-workers and even strangers. When you chose to forgive your spouse or your child, you are serving God. When you chose to do the right thing, even when it isn’t expedient or popular, you are serving God. When you chose to love someone you disagree with, you are serving God.

 

But back to hope- Elizabeth’s and Zachariah’s hope and faith in God did pay off. Despite her bareness and his lack of a child to pass on his name and blessings to- they did not give up hope. They hoped in God and in doing so God not only listened to their prayers but also grants it by allowing them to give birth to someone who would become an important prophet and for-runner of Jesus, the Messiah.

Now, there had already been 400 years of “silence.” Meaning there had not been any prophets speaking for God in 400 years. The fact that an angel comes to tell Zachariah that he will give birth to a son and that his role will be that of a prophet must had indeed surprised him to no end. As a devout Jew and as a priest, he would have understood the significance of a prophet.

We know the consequences of Zacheriah’s unbelief. He is struck mute by the angel. I personally don’t believe that God is in the business of striking us mute but I do know that our belief or disbelief have real consequences.

When we chose not to believe in God we give up on hope. Consequently we become doubtful, fearful, and very focused on ourselves.

I once knew a young woman who left her faith tradition for many years. During those years many bad things happened to her. She lost her way, her faith, and her identity, even. Once she was able to return to God she found herself again and her life began to take shape and meaning. She was reunited with her family and her life changed around.

God does not want us to be hopeless people. God wants us to be people of hope. Because hope is a powerful force and when we act in hope, we do not only save ourselves but we save those around us.

Our mood is lighter. We are happier. We are more generous. We forgive more easily. We desire and work toward the best in others. We want and work for justice for our brothers in sisters who are hurting. Why? Because our hope is not placed on ourselves but on God.

If I placed my hope on myself I would be in trouble, for, I know I fail, all of the time. But when I place my hope in God, I know that anything is possible and good things begin to happen.

May we be a people of hope in the Lord; pointing others to this God of hope. Sharing with others the amazing things that God has done in our lives in order to give others hope. May we be a people of hope now and always. Amen.