03Advent2020

third week (JOY) Advent devotional for teens

(Almond) JOY to the World!

So you may have noticed the church’s Advent candle display out by the road. The season of Advent begins in the dark, and the weekly lighting of additional candles is a way of marking the light coming into the world. Normally we light actual candles in the sanctuary, and some people have Advent candles in their own homes, but the display by the road is a visible way to share with the community “the light that is coming into the world.”

I’m excited to see all four Advent candles lit – the fourth candle will be lit on Sunday Dec. 20 – and then there is a fifth candle in the center, a white candle, the Christ candle, which is lit on Christmas Day (or Christmas Eve). And you probably know that December 21 is the winter solstice – the “longest night” of the year, and that after Dec 21 the sun rises a little earlier and sets a little later each day. We truly do celebrate the light coming into the world.

And it fills us with JOY, and that is the theme for the third Advent candle,
as well as the name of the candy for our third week of reflections.

By the way, I would love to see any drawings or writings you did based on last week’s reflection. Heck, take a picture of you and your empty Almond Joy wrapper, or just the wrapper itself, and send it to me at the email address or cell phone number listed below. And then kick back and turn the page and check out the reflections for this week.

 

Remember: email or call the church or Pastor Kerry if you have questions, or want a Bible, or if you want to share this thing with a friend. We’ll get another reflection to you on Monday!

3.1 A reflection for the third week of Advent

So you remember the prophet Isaiah? (Um yeah, we can’t forget him, you keep bringing him up!)
In chapter 7 the prophet delivers another word of hope to the people. It’s a curious exchange.
Isaiah tells the king that the king’s enemies will be destroyed before those enemies have any
chance to hurt the king and his people. And then, get this, after Isaiah delivers the Lord’s message
to the king, the Lord says to the king, “Go ahead, ask me for a sign that what Isaiah has told you
will happen.”

Can you imagine that? You get great news, and then God says to you, “You believe me? Want to peek at what’s going to happen?” What would you say? “Um, yeah!”

The king replies “I will not put the Lord to the test.” It sounds like an honorable reply, but really
the king was doubtful and scared, and he couldn’t allow himself to believe. So Isaiah fills in: “The warring kings you’re worried about? They’re going to vanish, your troubles will be gone. A young woman is going to give birth to a baby, and the baby’s name will mean ‘God-is-with-us’, and before that baby is a toddler, the things I’m telling you will happen.” (Isaiah 7:10-17)

Sometimes we have a hard time believing. And there’s good news because we can lean on others when we can’t believe. We can say to ourselves, “This whole gospel message, this Advent stuff,
I don’t know. The idea that there’s a God who cares about me, I just don’t know. But. There are people I trust, and they believe. They have had some more experiences than I have, and I can
trust them.”

And that is doing the work of Advent. Preparing ourselves to receive God’s gift.

One last thing for this reflection: there’s a story in the Gospel of Mark where the disciples bring a boy to Jesus, a boy they have tried to heal but they can’t. The father says to Jesus, “If you are able to help him, please do.” Jesus says to the boy’s father, “If I’m able? All things are possible for those who believe.” And the man replies, “I believe! Help me when I don’t!” And Jesus heals the boy. (Mark 9:14-29)

Let the father’s prayer be our Advent prayer today: “Lord, I believe. Help me in my unbelief.”

3.2. A reflection for the third week of Advent

I know, I didn’t really talk about JOY in the earlier reflection.

Part of Advent is about preparing yourself for the arrival of Jesus into your life.

It’s like, say, becoming a licensed driver. You have the desire, you do some studying and some practice, trusting in a parent or teacher or friend to help you learn things and gain experience, and then one day you take a test and get a license (okay that part doesn’t really connect but hear me out). So you’re licensed, and you’re still you, and you have a new something that you can share with the world.

See, the point of getting a driver’s license is not so that you can have a fancy piece of plastic in your wallet, it’s so you can do something. It’s great to accept God’s gift, but it doesn’t stop there. We accept God’s gift and then we do something with it. We prepare ourselves to receive God, and then we celebrate the new relationship.

One way to think about “JOY” is “Jesus, Others, You,” and I want to share two verses with you:
- Jesus said, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind… and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:26-40)
- Jesus said, If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy will be in you and your joy will be complete. This is my commandment: love each other just as I have loved you. (John 15:10-12)

Joy is connected to receiving God’s gift, and sharing it with others, and seeking to live in harmony with God’s “shalom” intent for our lives.

Let’s pray: God, thank you for Jesus. Thank you for others who have been there for me. Lead me to be there for others as well. Amen.

 

Writing prompt:
Who are some of the people that have been leaders or helpers in your life? Write a few names on the blank page inside. Maybe send them a personal note right now!

Who are some people you can share your experience with as a guide?