Seasons of the Spirit ~ SeasonsFUSION
Lectionary resources for worship, faith formation, and service
Advent 3: Good News Proclaimed
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To be human is to experience vulnerability in some form. Depending on our circumstances, this vulnerability can impact every aspect of life. When vulnerability becomes the primary force impacting each day, we long for good news. In these moments, people around us have an opportunity to embody good news through words and actions.
When our circumstances are not as vulnerable as another, and an opportunity to respond opens up, we may not do so. Uncertainty, fear, confusion or judgment may all play a role in this decision. We pass by a man sitting on a sidewalk with a box in front of him, asking for change. How should we respond? We see someone crying on a bus. What should we do? Often, we have to make a decision quickly, and it feels like we don’t have enough information.
Through this week’s worship, we hear of Sarah, and her struggle to deal with the needs of all the people coming to stay with her. In the process, she also is learning something about her own ability to share with those she comes into contact with.
We also learn a bit about John’s demands for justice in the basic human dealings of the day. We can ask ourselves: Was John simply interested in have the exploiters return the goods they had taken away, or was the good news deeper than that? It seems the real focus for John was a truly transformed heart. When our hearts see people and their circumstances in a new way, good news can become a reality.
Perhaps this is a good week to ask ourselves: What does my heart see? Am I an embodiment of good news for others? How have others embodied good news for me? Where do I see signs of transformed hearts around me? Take some time to reflect on these Advent elements this week, and see what you discover.
