Thursday, November 27, 2008

Advent Devotional #4

Today's devotion from Goshen College:

NOV. 27 - LIVING IN HOPEFUL EXPECTATION


By Amy Showalter, a senior Bible and religion major from
Harrisonburg, Va.



SCRIPTURE: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9 (NRSV)
Scroll down for complete Scripture.

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DEVOTIONAL:
As I read today's text, I’m struck by the promise of God's
faithfulness to accompany us as we wait. We of course are
waiting for Jesus, and the world that will come on his
return. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians holds true for us.
We have been enriched and strengthened in Jesus Christ. Our
spiritual gifts are plentiful, and we have been called into
fellowship that belongs to Jesus, but includes many. These
realities cause our waiting to be joyful and hopeful.

God accompanies us, and turns what could be our passive
wish for the future into an active hope. This hope allows us
to engage the present in a way that looks toward and
believes in a different future. Our present engagement with
the world and our attempts to move toward God's Kin-dom -- a
realm of equality and inclusiveness -- are driven by God's
presence within our hearts and our relationships with
others.

Cynicism comes easy in a world where individuals and
systems cause pain and unbelief, but Christ’s message
provides an alternative. As we await Jesus' birth, we also
await his life and resurrection, and his return. We live in
hopeful expectation of a world where life and love are one,
and struggles for power cease to exist.

We simultaneously accept and invite God's accompaniment
and grace, realizing this is what empowers and guides our
present task. We recognize the fellowship to which God calls
us, seeking God's presence and peace within our
relationships and faith communities. We wait together,
joyfully participating in the transformation of our world.

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SCRIPTURE: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9 (NRSV)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ.

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the
grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in
every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and
knowledge of every kind -- just as the testimony of Christ
has been strengthened among you -- so that you are not
lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing
of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the
end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord
Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into
the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.




View all of this season's devotions at
http://www.goshen.edu/devotions

Goshen College
http://www.goshen.edu

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