When John the Baptizer made his
appearance as a preacher in the desert
of Judea, this was his them: Reform your
lives. The reign of God is at hand!"
Mt. 3:1 Second Sunday of Advent

O Jesus, in an empty desert your
prophet John proclaimed: God is
here, at your side. God has come
to bring about a kingdom where
injustice and suffering will be no
more, where tears will be wiped
away, and where those who turn
to God will feast at a banquet.

"Turn now, your God is standing at
your side. Reform your lives, God's
kingdom is at hand." In an empty
desert John said these things.

Give me faith like John's, O Lord,
strong enough to believe even in
a desert that you and your kingdom
are no farther from me than my hand.
Make my heart strong like his, not
swayed by trials or snared by false
pleasures. Give me courage to be faithful
until your promises are fulfilled.

O King of all nations, Jesus Christ,
only joy of every heart,
come and save your people.
 

"Jesus said to his disciples: 'Be constantly
on the watch! Stay awake!...You do not know
when the Master of the house is coming.'"
Mark. 13:33 First Sunday of Advent

O Jesus, your voice sounds through the
house of my world: Be on your guard!
Stay awake!

Yet I hardly hear you. Busy with so much,
I go about the things I do like a servant
trapped in household routine, hardly giving
a thought to what my life is about. My
spirit within has grown tired and you, my
God, seem far away. How can I hear your
voice today?

Speak to my heart during this season of
grace, as you spoke to your prophets and
saints. Remind me again of the journey
you call me to make and the work you
would have me do. I am your servant, O
Lord. Speak to me in this holy season
and turn my eyes to watch for your coming.

O Emmanuel, Jesus Christ,
desire of every nation, Savior of all peoples,
come and dwell among us.

(When the Christmas Season gets to be
to much feel free to read this Reflection)

Scripture:

“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the
angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the
coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before
the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered
the ark; and they knew nothing about what would
happen until the flood came and took them all away.
That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the
other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill;
one will be taken and the other left.
 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know
on what day your Lord will come. But understand this:
If the owner of the house had known at what time of
night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch
and would not have let his house be broken into. So
you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will
come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
(Matthew 24:36-44,) NIV

Advent
The word Advent means "coming" or "arrival."
The focus of the entire season is the celebration
of the birth of Jesus the Christ in his First Advent,
and the anticipation of the return of Christ the
King in his Second Advent.
Advent is the beginning of the Church Year for most
churches in the Western tradition. It begins on the
fourth Sunday before Christmas Day, which is the
Sunday nearest November 30, and ends on Christmas
Eve (Dec 24). If Christmas Eve is a Sunday, it is
counted as the fourth Sunday of Advent, with
Christmas Eve proper beginning at sundown.
The Spirit of Advent
Advent is marked by a spirit of expectation, of
anticipation, of preparation, of longing. There is
a yearning for deliverance from the evils of the
 world, first expressed by Israelite slaves in
Egypt as they cried out from their bitter oppression.
It is the cry of those who have experienced the
tyranny of injustice in a world under the curse
of sin, and yet who have hope of deliverance by
a God who has heard the cries of oppressed
slaves and brought deliverance!
(The Season of Advent Anticipation and Hope
by Dennis Bratcher)

Reflection:

You know to be perfectly honest with you, for me
the celebration of Advent is almost as exciting as
the celebration of the the birth of Christ (Christmas).
For me the anticipation of a great event, such as
Christmas, is really exciting. Ask yourself this,
"Are you excited about the birth of Christ, are you
excited about the Second Advent, the coming again
of Jesus Christ?  Thats what these four weeks before
Christmas is all about.  It is not about rushing around,
being stressed out, being angry, being frustrated, and
worrying about how we are going to get enough money
to buy those Christmas presents.  The Christmas season
is about preparation, and anticipation of the birth and
second coming of Jesus Christ.  Thats it! Nothing else.
During Advent we are celebrating the fact, as Christians,
we are no longer bound by the chains of the evilness of
the world, we have been delivered from sin and posess
eternal life, we are free in Christ Jesus. And with that
freedom we serve others, with that freedom we love all,
and with that freedom we experience the love of Jesus
Christ.  Sit down now, relax and enjoy the Christmas
Season, experience the freedom and joy of serving
others because of your love of Jesus Christ.  When you
can do this you are truly celebrating Christmas!  Why
don't you start now.

Prayer:

God Bless Us One and All (Tiny Tim)
 

We gather today, Lord of abundant life, as grateful children.
Delighted and humbled by our bounty, we celebrate gifts of
food and shelter, of colors that dance at dawn and dusk; we
relish the scent of cooking foods, of burning leaves and
 summer's wet grass, of snowflake, of animal fur. We
 marvel at the intricacy of spiders' webs and fish bones, newborn
babies and lines etched on faces of grandparents come for a
visit today. All gifts from Your hand. When our meal is completed,
leftovers stashed, and naps taken, we will leave replete, energized,
and eager to go generously into the world and share our good fortune.
- Rev. Lynn James
 

Think you've got nothing to be thankful for?
Just sit down here and think again.
By Bob Perks 

"I have so much to be thankful for.
I wouldn't know where to begin," she said.
I wouldn't know either. As I looked around
her home, I couldn't find a thing that she could include.
I have discovered that the friendliest, most welcoming
people in the world are those who have little in the way
of material things to offer. What they lack in
possessions they make up for in spirit and love.
Some years ago I had been working for the
Commission on Economic Opportunity. It was
the year following a devastating flood in Pennsylvania.
My job was to interview low-income families and assess
 their needs. Up until that moment I thought I had seen it
all. The odd thing was I was looking at nothing at all,
 and this woman was thankful.
The home, though technically out of the flood area,
looked like it had been a part of the destruction.
The front porch steps were missing, replaced by a
 few cinder blocks and planks. There were several
broken windows, and part of the foundation had
 caved in, exposing the basement to the weather.
That particular day it was in the upper 30s with
 a strong wind blowing. Snow was predicted
by nightfall. Thanksgiving Day was approaching,
and quite frankly my heart was not into doing these
surveys. Like many others, I just wanted to start
my holiday early. This was the last stop for me.
Tomorrow like millions of other families we
would be gathered around the table filling ourselves
to capacity. Oddly I hadn't even thought about
what this family was looking forward to. I just
figured they would be taken care of by some
organization or church. I looked around the
kitchen for some sign of a charitable box of
goodies but saw nothing there. The house was bitter
cold. The young children ran several times through
 the kitchen playing, laughing like any other kids.
I happened to notice that they were barefoot on
this cold linoleum floor. At one point I said to
one of the youngest girls, "You should go put
your socks and shoes on before you get sick."
She replied, "Mommy, did this man bring me
some shoes I can wear?" "No, Sissy. He didn't.
 Go put on a pair of mine. He's right--you need
something on your feet." I was embarrassed for
having put her in that position. "Well, I'm finished here.
Thank you for your time. I hope you have a wonderful
...." I didn't know what to say. How could they
possibly have a wonderful anything?
"Look, I'm sorry. I know there must not be much
 to be thankful for these days," I said nervously.
"Well, you certainly are wrong about that!" she said
emphatically. Then, rising to her feet, she walked into
the living room and stood in the middle.
"My dear, I am truly blessed for all of this.
I know it doesn't look like much. But who made
the rules that say that we can only be thankful for
things that cost money? "Sit here on this chair," she
 told me. "That chair may be worthless even to a
junk dealer. But I sat in that chair and waited for
months when my son was in the service. That was
my worry chair. I sat in that chair, prayed and gave
 thanks when the good Lord brought him safely
home to me. It was in that same chair I was sitting
 when my daughter came home from school and
told me she was going to college ‘cause she got a
full scholarship. It was my joyful chair.
It was also in that chair that I sat holding my daddy's
 hand when he died. They had sent him home telling
 us there was nothing more they could do. He wanted
to be at home. We put the chair next to his bed, and
 I ate, slept, and cried as I sat in that chair holding his
hand. He was all the world to me when I was growing
up. I owed him that much.
"So how much is that chair worth in dollars? Nothing.
But I wouldn't trade it for anything," she said.
Then walking over to a picture on the wall she said,
 "You see this man? He's the man that has loved me
for all these years. He's at work now. He doesn't make
 much, but he works hard for it. He paid for that chair
 in sweat. How much money value do I put on him?
There isn't enough money in all the world for the true
value of love."
"Those kids running around the house. Yeah, maybe
someone would say I'm not a good parent. But you
 go and ask them if they love their mommy and daddy.
Then tell me how much that is worth," she said.
Then she added, "I'm thankful for my sight, I am
thankful that I have good health, considering everything
 else. I am thankful for my faith. Oh, how thankful
 I am that I have something to believe in. I am thankful
for the second-hand quilt the lady down the street gave
 me yesterday."
She gestured toward the other room. "Do you hear that
 laughter? I'm thankful my kids are playing and laughing
like other kids in the neighborhood. How much would you
 pay to find something to laugh about when things aren't so good?
There is so much I am thankful for that most people take
 for granted," she said. I stood up and picked up my briefcase.
 It was time to go.
She walked over to the chair I'd just vacated and sat down,
 adding, "So now I call this my 'Thankful Chair.' Tomorrow
 when we gather round the table to share whatever meal God
will provide--and he always provides--I will be thankful that
He sent you here to talk to me," she said, smiling.
I knew then that, in addition to making my report to the state,
 I would be coming back with a pair of shoes and socks, as
 well as some other ingredients for a happy Thanksgiving.
"Thanks for sharing your 'Thankful Chair' with me," I said
, walking out the door. "I believe one day I will find that priceless."
I was right.

Come Ye Thankful People Come

Come, ye thankful people, come, raise the song of harvest home;
All is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin.
God our Maker doth provide for our wants to be supplied;
Come to God’s own temple, come, raise the song of harvest home.

All the world is God’s own field, fruit unto His praise to yield;
Wheat and tares together sown unto joy or sorrow grown.
First the blade and then the ear, then the full corn shall appear;
Lord of harvest, grant that we wholesome grain and pure may be.

For the Lord our God shall come, and shall take His harvest home;
From His field shall in that day all offenses purge away,
Giving angels charge at last in the fire the tares to cast;
But the fruitful ears to store in His garner evermore.

Even so, Lord, quickly come, bring Thy final harvest home;
Gather Thou Thy people in, free from sorrow, free from sin,
There, forever purified, in Thy garner to abide;
Come, with all Thine angels come, raise the glorious harvest home.

We Gather Together

We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;
He chastens and hastens His will to make known.
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing.
Sing praises to His Name; He forgets not His own.

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
Ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine;
So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
Thou, Lord, were at our side, all glory be Thine!

We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader triumphant,
And pray that Thou still our Defender will be.
Let Thy congregation escape tribulation;
Thy Name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!

 ** A Hebrew Blessing **

Blessed are You, O Lord our God, Eternal King,
Who feeds the whole world with Your goodness,
With grace, with loving kindness, and with tender mercy.
You give food to all flesh,
For Your loving kindness endures forever.
Through Your great goodness, food has never failed us.
O may it not fail us forever, for Your name's sake,
Since You nourish and sustain all living things,
And do good to all,
And provide food for all Your creatures
Whom You have created.
Blesses are You, O Lord, Who gives food to all.
   
HAPPY THANKSGIVING AND GOD BLESS YOU ALL

PASTOR KIM
 

This Scripture needs no reflection from me.  This
is a prayer for all of us.

To Live Holy Life

Strengthen my heart so I will be holy and blameless
in Your presence when Christ comes. Help me make
every effort to be good and knowledgeable,
self-controlled and godly, relying on the Spirit's power
within me. (1 Thessalonians 3:13; 2 Peter 1:5–7; Ephesians 3:16)

May I imitate the Lord Jesus Christ in all that I am and
everything I do, and may the way I live match what I
say I believe. May I make every effort to live a clean and
holy life, devoting myself to You, to prayer, and to doing
good. (1 Thessalonians 1:6; 1 Corinthians 4:17; Hebrews 12:14a;
Leviticus 27:28; Jeremiah 30:21; Colossians 4:2; Titus 3:8b)

May I desire more than anything else to follow You, setting
my heart and soul on seeking You. Help me move from strength
to strength, faith to faith, and glory to glory. May my love increase
and overflow for each other and for everyone else.
(Psalm 84:5; 1 Chronicles 22:19; Psalm 84:7; Romans 1:17;
2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 Thessalonians 3:12)

In Jesus' name, amen.
- Jim & Kaye Johns
source: "Prayers for the Moment: One-Minute Scripture Prayers"
Copyright September 2006.B&H Publishing Group
 

Scripture:

"Let he who has not sinned throw the first stone."
(John 8:7)

Reflection:

Do you notice something very important about this
verse.  It doesn't say which sin.  I really think what
Christ is telling me is that if you see someone
committing a sin, lets say adultery, and I'm a liar I
guess I better put my stone away.  I better take care
of my own house, before I destroy someone else's.
It is very true, we are all human beings therefore we all
sin.  And all who sin fall short of the glory of God, and
only through the Grace of our Savior Jesus Christ do we
receive that glory.  I don't know about you but I have
enough sin in my life to deal with, thank God for His
Grace.

Prayer:

Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace.
Where there is hatred . . . let me sow love
Where there is injury . . . pardon
Where there is doubt . . . faith
Where there is despair . . . hope
Where there is darkness . . . light
Where there is sadness . . . joy
O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled . . . as to console
To be understood . . . as to understand,
To be loved . . . as to love
For it is in giving . . . that we receive,
It is in pardoning, that we are pardoned,
It is in dying . . . that we are born to eternal life.

Quote for the Day

Samantha Smith
Ambassador of Peace and Goodwill
(1972-1985)

"If we could be friends just by getting to know
each other better, then what are our two
countries really arguing about? Nothing could
be more important than not having a war if war
 would kill everything."

Scripture:

"Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the
Father may be glorified in the Son.  (John 14:13)

Reflection:

Over the years of prayer in my life, I have caught myself
doing something in my prayers to God that really isn't
to smart. Often in my prayers I kind of give God some
advice.  I have found myself making a request to God
and then immediately telling Him how to answer that
request.  In other words I expect God to answer my
request the way I want it answered. What a total lack
of faith, not to mention a waste of time.  I don't have
enough faith in God to expect Him to do what's best
for me.  I have to keep in mind and heart that God
always answers my prayers and always does what's
best for me.  It may not always be the answer that I
want, but it is the answer that is best for me.  I also
must remember that God answer's my prayer in His
time not mine.  Let's you and I do something, the
next time we have a request to God, in total
commitment of faith, let Him answer the request
not us.

Prayer:

I praise and honor You oh Lord. Thanks you for your
commitment to me. THANK YOU GOD FOR BEING
GOD!

Quote:

St. Claire of Assisi
Spiritual Teacher and Guide, Political and Religious
Peacemaker (1193-1223)

"Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road.
 Go forth without fear, for He that created you has sanctified
 you, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother."