Walking from Shadows into the Light: Part 2

“Moving into the Light Promised”

This strong prophetic message spoken for God through the prophet Isaiah, is a message of hope & faith for all ages.  They are timeless words spoken to the people in exile & to us today, as we too live in a spirit of hopelessness & darkness. Like the exiles, we too listen & hear with a spirit of hope of the new life promised with the coming of Emmanuel: God with us.  These are the words that we live into during these four weeks of Advent as we await the coming of our Lord & gradually embrace the hope, love, joy & peace that God blesses us with.

Since Christmas is a season when the shadow of darkness is shattered with the coming of Jesus bringing light into the world, the observance of Advent is traditionally practiced symbolically with the use of candles.  Typically, one candle is lit to represent each of the four words of: hope, love, joy & peace, that represent our journey from darkness into the fullness of light, as we await the birth of our Lord.  The tradition begins with one candle representing HOPE being lit on the first week.  On the second week the HOPE candle is lit & then the second candle representing LOVE is lit.  On the third week, the HOPE candle, then the LOVE candle & then the third candle representing JOY are lit.  On the fourth & final week of Advent the: HOPE candle, then the LOVE candle, then the JOY candle & then the PEACE candle are lit.  The light grows each week ever more brightly, representing the light that Christ brings into the world.  As the candles are lit, by the fourth week, there is a circle of bright light symbolizing the shattering of darkness & the gift of light that comes into the world with the birth of the Holy child. 

In Advent, having heard the prophet’s proclamation of things to come, we begin the four weeks lighting the one candle in a spirit of expectation & hope, trusting in God’s promise fulfilled.  In the second week, as we light our second candle, we move forward in a spirit of anticipation & ever-growing love for God & His promise of new life freely given that will bring healing & harmony to the world.  In the third week, as we move ever closer to the realization that Emmanuel: God with us, is truly coming into the world, we light our third candle in the spirit of Holy Joy, as we prepare our hearts to receive the gift from God.  In the final week, we light our fourth candle in the spirit of deep gratitude & inner peace, for the gift of new life that will dispel all darkness & bring eternal light into the world.

As we step into the Holy night with the birth of God’s Holy child, our hearts are filled with hope, love, joy & gratitude that radiates the light of the world, that has grown brighter as we receive God’s gift of new life for us as His kingdom expands to include all people on earth.

Hope is trust that God will fulfill God’s promises to us in a way that leads all people to true freedom.  The person of hope, lives in the moment with the knowledge & trust that all of life is in God’s hands.  Wherever you may be in your spirit as you enter this Holy Season this year, know that you are welcome to receive God’s gift & leave the shadow of darkness & step into the light freely given on this & every day remembering:

“Christmas isn’t Christmas till it happens in your heart.  Somewhere deep inside you is where Christmas really starts.  So, give your heart to Jesus you’ll discover when you do, that its Christmas really Christmas for you.”   AMEN

~Posted by Rev Kathryn Bindig, MDiv. MS; Pastoral Care Minister with assistance from Rich Muscatello; Director of Business Development & Strategy