O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence –
Isaiah 64:1
While I am fortunate that I have many fond Christmases memories from my childhood, this year I have thinking about the year I got a typewriter from Santa Claus. I don’t remember how old I was. Now, it was not a fancy professional typewriter that one would find in a business office. Yet, it was more than just a toy typewriter. It was fully functional with a ribbon and held regular size paper. What made the gift more awesome that year was that Santa actually took the time to type out a short little note with it and leave it sitting in the typewriter. If I had ever doubted his existence, I didn’t that year – because I had proof!
I loved watching The Waltons when I was growing up. (Actually, I still do.) John Boy was my favorite character. I harbored a dream of growing up to be a female John Boy spending afternoons and evenings sitting at a desk typing away and producing pages and pages of insightful writing. I guess in a way that dream has come true. I have spent a lot of my life writing. Journaling, blogging here, writing for the church newsletter, and now as a pastor writing a weekly sermon. The determination of whether all those pages of writing are insightful or not I guess is left to others.
As I’m sitting here planning and working on my sermon for the First Sunday of Advent, I feel drawn to the Isaiah 64:1-9 portion of the Lectionary Readings. And as I read the first verse where Isaiah cries out, “O that you would tear open the heavens and come down,” I thought of how often I too cry out to God wanting to feel a powerful unmistakable feeling of the Divine Presence. And even more, a clear and discernible word telling me what to do, where to go, and how to be. If I could be allowed to re-write Isaiah’s words in my own way I would say, “O that you would open my computer and leave me a written note, text, or letter.” I mean, if Santa can do it I know God can do it.
And while I do believe, because I have proof of it as well from past experiences, God does speak to us and does give us messages it doesn’t always happen as clearly and visibly as I would like it to. Advent is a time of waiting. But it’s a time of active waiting. Advent invites us to wait and seek a new inspiration of a message of Hope from God. We hope to be encouraged by God’s Peace, Joy, and Love that is provided to us. And we hope to be inspired to find ways to continue to share that with others.
And so I will wait. But, as I wait I will remember and reflect on verse 8 of Isaiah 64: “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” As I wait I will be open to being reshaped and remolded as a vessel of God’s work. I will let God continue to make me what God wants me to be. And I’ll keep checking my computer for a special typed note. Well, because you just never know.
Notes from a Book Nerd 