This third Sunday in Advent, the one called Joy, has arrived. It follows the Sundays of Preparation and Expectation and could be likened to your junior year of high school—past the freshman runt stuff and insecurity of being the babies of the school, beyond the blase of sophomoric apathy with the cheerleaders blocking the view so the end of the tunnel is not in sight; and the senior shakes of "what am I doing with the rest of my life or even tomorrow....?" hasn't hit yet. Junior joy may be experiencing some of the privilege of young adulthood without the full blown responsibility of it. The third Sunday of advent focus is on the joy of the saviour's birth. Forget the stinky barn, Mary's jostling ride to Bethlehem when she couldn't see her own toes much less the feet of the donkey, and an invasion of their space and comfort zone by some unkempt shepherds in the middle of the night. This is the Sunday of JOY! God's provision of a refuge for His Son's arrival. A perfect place for the fulfillment of prophecies. A place for everyone who desires to come is able to do so. It's a 'for God so loved the WORLD that he gave His only Son' kind of place.It's the appearance of the heavenly host!
There's not much pretense in a barn or a cave for animals. In fact to come to the manger is to lay down all pretense that we typically carry. The door is too narrow for people burdened with backpacks of pride to enter. With JOY we may all approach and worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This Sunday of JOY is the time to remember the softness of a baby's skin, the sweetness of one so fresh from the hand of the Creator. Advent advances. Embrace the swell of JOY this week...and always!
Mimi D
