“Prayer and Advent- Longing for His Appearing” II Tim 4:8; Luke 2:25-32 12/3/06
One of my favorite Norman Rockwell prints is a picture of St. Thomas Church in New York. Everyone is rushing around in front of the doors, looking busy, pre-occupied, rushing, a little cold, and if you look closer, a little sad. It is a little bit like people living advent without Christ. A church member is changing the marquee out front. The Marquee says, “Lift up thine eyes.” It is a good reminder of advent- don’t get so busy, so rushed, so pre-occupied that you cannot take the time (or will not because you are exhausted) to lift up your eyes. I really believe one of the keys to enjoying advent spiritually is taking time to pray and worship- to seek God.
Advent and prayer go together. They go together because waiting and prayer go together- waiting on Christmas to get here. Waiting in line. Waiting for the relatives to come, waiting for the good time, and maybe for the grinches out there- waiting for it to be over. Whenever you wait it is an opportunity to pray. It is an opportunity to replace impatience with peace in prayer. It is an opportunity to replace anxiety over decisions with reliance on God to help you through.
Waiting and prayer can have the same spiritual goal. The physical goal maybe the same too- “Lord, please help me get through this.” But the spiritual goal can be similar too. For waiting teaches us patience and trust. Prayer teaches us patience and trust.
I like the verse in Luke about Simeon- “Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel.” Simeon was waiting and no doubt he was also praying, and he was also living a righteous life.
Waiting in God’s way means not just twiddling our thumbs, and especially not stomping our feet or chomping at the bit. Waiting in God’s way means to wait with patience and righteousness. We don’t try to lie or cheat to hurry things up and take things into our own hands.
It also tells us what Simeon was waiting, praying, and longing for. It is what II Timothy 4:8 says, he was waiting for his appearing. He was waiting for God to show up.
The Old Testament clearly predicted the coming of a messiah, and people were seeking that messiah. The seeking of the messiah was a seeking after God. “The Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple.” The Old Testament is full of promises of God’s coming and helping His people. People of God were looking, seeking for that promise.
In many ways, that same spirit of looking for God to fulfill his promises is what advent is about and it is also what prayer is about. It is the hope that God will not forget us, but will keep His word. Prayer is not just talking to God, it is also listening for God- listening for His answer, His presence. Listening for God is the same as seeking God. This is what Simeon was doing, and what II Timothy 4:8 says to do- long for his appearing. Frankly, prayer means nothing if we are not seeking God. Prayer should be directed to God, and seeking God’s will for our lives. How many times the Bible says to seek God. Listen to some of them:
Deuteronomy 4:29- “If…you seek the Lord your God, you will find him, if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Jeremiah 29:12-14- “You will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you. Declares the Lord.”
Isaiah 55:6- Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he is near.
Luke 11:9-10- Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you; For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks the door will be opened.”
Seeking God is so important. Jesus said the kingdom of God is like someone looking for a lost coin or a lost sheep. The ironic thing is God is also seeking you- like a father looking for a prodigal son. Seek God. Seek God like Mary, like the shepherds, like Elizabeth, like Simeon- and He will be found.
Jim Smith went to church on Sunday morning. He heard the organist miss a note during the prelude, and he winced. He saw a teenager talking when everybody was supposed to be bowed in silent prayer. He felt like the usher was watching to see what he put in the offering plate and it made him boil. He caught the preacher making a slip of the tongue five times in the sermon by actual count. Someone spilt bread in the communion cup and Jim was disgusted. As he slipped out through the side door during the closing hymn, he muttered to himself, "Never again, what a bunch of clods and hypocrites!"
Ron Jones went to church one Sunday morning. He heard the organist play an arrangement of "A Mighty Fortress" and he thrilled at the majesty of it. He heard a young girl take a moment in the service to speak her simple moving message of the difference her faith makes in her life. He was glad to see that this church was sharing in a special offering for the hungry children of Nigeria. He especially appreciated the sermon that Sunday--it answered a question that had bothered him for a long time. Communion was especially moving to him, and he felt so much closer to God for taking it. He thought as he walked out the doors of the church, "How can a man come here and not feel the presence of God?"
Both men went to the same church, on the same Sunday morning. Each found what he was looking for. What do we look for in worship? What do we seek in prayer?
He believed that Christ’s showing up was the consolation of Israel. Jesus is the consoler, the comforter, the healer of Israel. We should seek Jesus more than someone who has a migraine seeks headache medicine. We should seek Jesus more than someone who has been in the hot desert seeks water. Advent is a time to seek Him, to call upon Him, to pray to Him.
A few weeks ago I was giving the devotion for a presbytery committee meeting. In my cell phone is a copy of the Bible. So, I pulled it out, said, “Hear the Word of the Lord” and read a rather lengthy passage. When I got through speaking, I noticed one of the older adult members of the committee (who didn’t understand my Bible was in my cell phone) had her mouth wide open. She saw me looking at my cell phone and reading scripture. She said, “I have one question, Ben. In that cell phone of yours, do you have a direct line to God?” My answer was, “Yes!” But I believe we all have a direct line to God, and it is not dependent on the contents of our cell phone. Prayer is not just for preachers or monks or nuns or seminary professors or experts or flowery speakers. Prayer is for everyone. It is for the child praying, “Now I lay me down to sleep.” It is for the person praying before the operation. Prayer is for the person going into the job interview. Prayer is for the person struggling with ongoing sickness. Prayer is also for the person who is trying to rid guilt by confession. It is for the person who is thankful and joyful and full of wonder at God. It is for the young soldier about to go out on patrol. It is for the sister whose brother is estranged from her. Prayer is not for the elite. It is for you and me. We all have a direct line to God. Jesus said as much when he responded to the request to teach his disciples how to pray by saying, “Our Father who art in heaven.” God is a father who longs to hear from his children. The ironic thing is we long to hear from Him. If He longs to hear us pray, and we long for answers to prayer, how do we get these two longings together? Jesus’ coming is the answer to our prayers. He is a visible sign that God cares and God hears. He is the One who brings together God’s longing for us, and our longing for God. Advent is tied to prayer. It is a time of waiting, of longing, of seeking God, and also a time when we remember He is coming. Amen.