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The Lord’s Deliverance Is Near!

Written by Aidee Boesen on . Posted in From our Pastor:.

The news that there are a couple of vaccines for COVID-19 that are nearly ready for production and distribution is a great way to end the church year and to begin a new one. With that news we begin the season of Advent this year, the season of hopefulness and expectation.

Nonetheless, we have always had reason to hope, regardless of the “advent” of effective vaccines. God lives! God saves! God is merciful and loving! God’s promises remain! For this reason we have hope.

Throughout the month of November, I have returned to read a scripture text only heard around Holy Thursday and Good Friday, and occasionally used at funeral liturgies. The Book of Lamentations 3:17-26 is one of those Bible texts that serves us so well. The writer is lamenting expressing his sorrow and that of the whole community which has suffered destruction and exile from Jerusalem. The book is dark with images of sadness and woe, except for a few verses in the text cited above. In the middle of this 5-chapter book, in the middle of the third chapter, like a pivot point, is the following: Remembering it over and over, my soul is downcast. But this I will call to mind; therefore, I will hope: The LORD’s acts of mercy are not exhausted, his compassion is not spent; They are renewed each morning—great is your faithfulness! The LORD is my portion, I tell myself, therefore I will hope in him. The LORD is good to those who trust in him, to the one that seeks him; It is good to hope in silence for the LORD’s deliverance. (Lamentations 3:20-26)

For months now, over and over again, we have endured the coronavirus itself, the growing numbers of infected and dying, the loss of our sense of “normal,” etc. And yet, our faith invites us to “call to mind” the persistent mercies of the Lord, God’s faithfulness, (v. 21-22). Indeed, after crying out to the Lord, we are drawn to the author’s recognition that “it is good to hope in silence for the Lord’s deliverance,” (v.26). After the wailing and grinding of teeth in the darkness, in the silence, we discover that God is near and always has been near!

In the season of Advent, may we share our reasons for hopefulness with one another. Let us share our faith through good deeds, attentive communication, and thoughtful prayers. The Lord’s deliverance is near!

Peace, Fr. Andy