"Joy can never do an end run around the darkness." We cannot avoid darkness, and God does not. On this third Sunday of Advent, Joy Sunday, we sit in the midst of darkness and await God's in-breaking light. Like the line from the hymn "Lo how a rose ere blooming", our joy shines forth even when the night is half-spent, when the darkness seems it will never end. We remember God's goodness and wait, longing for light. Isaiah 61:1-4,8:11 and John 1:6-8, 19-28 all point us to this idea of God coming in the midst of deep darkness. Pastor Phil Kniss encouraged us to wait in hope, as Paul encouraged the church in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 5:16-24) to rejoice always and to give thanks in all circumstances. We can discover the light among us in the middle of our night.
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