O that you would tear open the heavens and come down. Isaiah 64:1a (NRSV)
Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.  Psalm 80:3 (NRSV)

These are desperate times.

Sexual assault and harassment exposed.

Slave auctions in Libya.

A cruel tax bill that favors the rich.

These are desperate times, so we cry “O Come O Come Emmanuel!”

And we wait for righteousness and justice to prevail.

If we prayed hard enough, would God step out of the sky to confront and correct all injustice with a divine wave of the hand?   We could pray along with the Psalmist who says:

“Restore us, O God, let your face shine, that we may be saved.”

But would we know what we are actually praying?  The loving luminous gaze of God is an amazing thing, but is nothing to be played with.  It guides our steps and infiltrates our souls.  It encourages but it also exposes.  This is the road to restoration, but will we take that journey?

Perhaps there is another plan at work to answer our prayers, like when Jesus came down as the Incarnate God, not by stepping out of the sky but by showing up in the womb of a young woman from Nazareth.

In the midst of unchecked abuse of power and its consequences, Advent asks us:
Who will we be and what will we do on Christ’s behalf?

Your Call: How are you being called to represent Christ during these troubling times as Advent begins?