In my last newsletter article, I announced that Faith and Jerusalem would be beginning our participation in the Nourishing Vocation Project this coming Advent. As I mentioned in that article, the Nourishing Vocation Project is a program of spiritual renewal and discernment, sponsored by St. Olaf College and funded through the Lilly Endowment’s Thriving Congregations Initiative. This project aims to help congregations discern their vocation, i.e., what God is calling them to do. Thus, in Advent, we will prepare for this journey by listening to our longings, our hopes, and our joys for the future as we embark on this process.
So, my question is “what are you longing for?” As human beings, longings are nothing new to us, and we long for so many different things. In the winter, we long for a new spring day. In the summer, we long for the cool crisp fall. In other instances, we long for stuff like our favorite foods. However, sometimes, our longings are deeper. One might long for a loved one who is gone, or one may long for the end of a conflict, or for the comfort of one's home. On the other hand, one might long for a particular emotion or feeling, for happiness, love, joy, or hope. Even the people of the Bible had longings. Adam and Eve longed for the garden. The Hebrew people longed to see the promised land. Mary and Martha longed for their brother Lazarus. The disciples longed for Jesus after his death. Paul longed to see the Church at its most faithful. No matter who you are or when you are, we all long for something, and we have these longings because these things bring us comfort and peace. However, the questions are what do we do with these longings, and how do these longings affect who God has called us to be?
This advent, I invite you to reflect on these questions and on your own longings. For in Advent, we wait for perhaps our greatest longing. We wait for the coming of our lord and savior Jesus Christ, for God sends the answers to our longings in the birth of Jesus for all people in a manger in Bethlehem, and so we await his coming again at the end of the age. However, in the meantime, let us wait in preparation and longing for the coming of our Savior! And let us “prepare the way of the Lord” and “make his paths straight” (Luke 3:4), so that all may know of his coming, of the joy and peace that he brings!
And so, I want to leave you all with the words of Psalm 42:1-2:
As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
This advent, I pray that you all may find the longings that you seek, but more importantly that you find peace and comfort in our lord and savior Jesus Christ as we await his final coming. I pray that this peace and comfort may also give you guidance and lead to love and to serve the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Peace and Blessings, Pastor Ethan Doan
So, my question is “what are you longing for?” As human beings, longings are nothing new to us, and we long for so many different things. In the winter, we long for a new spring day. In the summer, we long for the cool crisp fall. In other instances, we long for stuff like our favorite foods. However, sometimes, our longings are deeper. One might long for a loved one who is gone, or one may long for the end of a conflict, or for the comfort of one's home. On the other hand, one might long for a particular emotion or feeling, for happiness, love, joy, or hope. Even the people of the Bible had longings. Adam and Eve longed for the garden. The Hebrew people longed to see the promised land. Mary and Martha longed for their brother Lazarus. The disciples longed for Jesus after his death. Paul longed to see the Church at its most faithful. No matter who you are or when you are, we all long for something, and we have these longings because these things bring us comfort and peace. However, the questions are what do we do with these longings, and how do these longings affect who God has called us to be?
This advent, I invite you to reflect on these questions and on your own longings. For in Advent, we wait for perhaps our greatest longing. We wait for the coming of our lord and savior Jesus Christ, for God sends the answers to our longings in the birth of Jesus for all people in a manger in Bethlehem, and so we await his coming again at the end of the age. However, in the meantime, let us wait in preparation and longing for the coming of our Savior! And let us “prepare the way of the Lord” and “make his paths straight” (Luke 3:4), so that all may know of his coming, of the joy and peace that he brings!
And so, I want to leave you all with the words of Psalm 42:1-2:
As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
This advent, I pray that you all may find the longings that you seek, but more importantly that you find peace and comfort in our lord and savior Jesus Christ as we await his final coming. I pray that this peace and comfort may also give you guidance and lead to love and to serve the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Peace and Blessings, Pastor Ethan Doan
