Peace Knocks at the Door

Tuesday, December 16, 2014                                                                   Isaiah 9:2-7

Whitney Booth

For as long as I can remember, the liturgical seasons of the church have been relevant points of reference. My mom worked in our small Presbyterian church in Commerce, Georgia and I’ve since spent a few years working for a Methodist publisher before assuming this full-time role at WPC. Growing up, while many of my friends were excited about Christmas, I was quick to put on my Linus hat and remind them that it was actually Advent. My publishing job brought its own counter-cultural approach to the liturgical year, as I would be working on Advent issues during April and meeting Lent deadlines in October. The same confusion follows me to my current office next to the handbell room where I’ve eavesdropped on rehearsals of “Still, Still, Still” since September.

Once I get my bearings and can acclimate to Advent, I rejoice in the familiarity of hope that this season brings. It doesn’t take long, however, to realize that every year we cry out from darkness to find this hope and hold tight…until next year when we’re in the dark again. The cycle becomes familiar — we know that light will disrupt this darkness. God will put on flesh, come to live among us, and instill a reign of love, hope, peace, and joy to banish all injustice, fear, and pain. But when Advent rolls around again and we find ourselves in a world that seems even further from the hope we claimed last Advent, my heart pangs with hunger for the peace that Isaiah claims in this text. This year, the promise of God’s peace is more than a seasonal reminder of what we know we need and will one day have — it is a knock at the door. 

This Advent season, I am praying for God to call me out of the comfort of seasonal routine — to not anticipate the liturgical ebb and flow, but to invite in the movement of the Spirit and embrace its relevance to the roads we walk today and the people we meet along the way. The hope and peace that Isaiah proclaims is indeed coming to us, as heaven meets earth. “And he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”, love of neighbor, broken oppression, multiplied joy. 

Prayer: Loving God, guide us to see and embody the peace that you are giving to us. Help us to welcome the light you bring to us through your son, even when we may get caught up in seasonal expectations. May we always walk in the light, joyfully preparing for more light instead of preoccupying ourselves with bewaring the darkness. 

Daily Challenge: Today, try reading this text as if you haven’t heard it so many times before, whether in the lectionary or in Handel’s Messiah. These words radiate God's radical, world-turning love and may resonate even more clearly to ears and hearts that can receive them without the barriers that familiarity sometimes brings.