Sermon - 2019-12-15

Just last week we talked about peace and how distant it feels for us.  I shared with you the very secret to obtaining peace in your life and in the world around us. That entering into a time of Confession and Forgiveness opens our hearts, minds, and lives to the possibility of what God is calling for you to be apart of.  However today, I want to share with you the very gift that we are lacking in this world. The very reason why we as a people do take that gift of Hope and Peace into our lives and freely give it to those who are around us. That gift is Love. 

Yes, the very gift that we talk about, the word that so many children’s stories talk about, the very word that we long to hear from a special person and the very word that we idealize but one that we are also afraid of.  Let me share more of what I am talking about.   

In David Redding’s latest book, The Golden String, he tells of being raised on a farm and developing a beautiful relationship with his constant companion, Teddy, a big, black Scottish Shepherd dog. The two of them were inseparable. Teddy hiked the woods with him, slept at the foot of his bed, waited anxiously for his return from school each day, and always came when David whistled even if it meant interrupting a meal. At night, the dog was a superb sentry, allowing no one to get within half a mile of the house without barking their presence. 

Then came the day when David was going off to war. He called Teddy to his side and tried to explain he should be gone for a long time. Writes Redding: “How do you explain to someone who loves you that you are leaving him and will not be chasing woodchucks with him tomorrow as always?”

Some months later, David came home for the first time from boot camp. The last bus stop was 14 miles from the farm and Redding didn’t get there until 11:00 at night. By the time he had walked to within a half-mile of the house, it was two or three in the morning. It was pitch black but he knew every step of the way. And suddenly Teddy heard him and began his warning barking. 

As David explains, he whistled only once and the barking stopped. There was a yelp of recognition, and Redding knew that was a big, black form was hurtling toward him in the darkness. It didn’t take long, and the ecstatic animal leaped into his arms, whimpering with joy as he covered his face with wet slurps of happiness.

Love is like that, it reaches across the barriers of time and distance to embrace the soul and welcome the weary traveler home.

For so many of us, we live our lives afraid that we may be hurt by someone, fearing that they may leave us, fearing that they may reject us, fearing that one day they would not be part of our lives.  This is perhaps one lesson that we as humans can learn from our pets, that we need to be open to the unconditional love that can be in our lives. That we do not need to fear love but rather embrace it as the true gift that it is.  That when God enters our world, he understands our struggles, our fears, and gives us this gift but along with it, an eternal promise that with this gift of life and love, we may know that no barrier would separate us from God’s love, not even time, distance, or death.  

Yes, today in our Advent journey, I call you to be honest and aware of your own fears that are holding you back from understanding and embracing the Hope, Peace, and Love that God gives to us in Jesus Christ.  That in the midst of your heart and your life, you may be able to experience this and no longer distancing yourself from God. I know I say it often but that is because it is something that we need to hear, God loves you.  Even when we believe it, we need to hear. Even when we do not believe it, we need to hear it. Even in this world, we need to experience it.  

So as you continue your Advent journey, may you be aware of the love that is your life, the gift that God has given to you?  May you share that love, without fear, with a barrier, that you may half a mile or more to loved ones in your life including God.  Amen.