The Way of the Lord is Upon Us!

12-16-2018Weekly Reflection

Hundreds of years before the birth of our Lord, the prophet Zephaniah parted the murky pall that hung over God’s people and saw a day of unbridled joy. Yes, judgment had come upon the nation. Yes, exile had interrupted everyone’s dreams for a better life. Yes, God’s people had lost so much faith in the Onewho parted the Red Sea and established David’s kingdom.

To that troubled time, in that moment when hope was but a zephyr, God found the way to point to the future. The prophet Zephaniah said to the people: “the Lord will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing as on the day of festival.” Then, speaking directly to his people, God says, “I will remove disaster from you” (Zephaniah 3:14 18).

My sisters and brothers, no matter how broken the present is or how dark the future seems, I say do not despair for God finds the way to turn our sorrow into gladness, our woundedness into healing, and every dirge on our lips into joyous singing. The way of the Lord never leaves us alone with our fears or paints bleak landscapes on tomorrow’s canvas. The way of the Lord - victoriously so! - is the way of renewal and hope, promise and grace.

Please, for God’s sake, tell that to a friend whose cancer diagnosis seems like a death sentence. Tell that to a woman who is seeking her place in the church. Tell that to a family member who is suffering from depression and anxiety. Please tell a neighbor who sits in the ashes of a house that burned to the ground that the way of the Lord is the way of renewal and new beginnings. Please, dear ones tell that to your own soul when you’ve decided how the next chapter of your life will be written without asking God to be your proofreader.

May the way of the Lord be unto us the way of gladness and joy as we choose to see that way through the eyes of faith, amen!

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