Thought for Friday, 8 December

 Jude 1:21, 22, 24

But you, dear friends, must continue to build your lives on the foundation of your holy faith.

  And continue to pray as you are directed by the Holy Spirit.  Live in such a way that God’s love can bless you as you wait for the eternal life that our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy is going to give you.  Show mercy to those whose faith is wavering.  And now, all glory to God, who is able to keep you from stumbling, and who will bring you into his glorious presence innocent of sin and with great joy.

In our house, we love watching a good series on the tv.  I’m talking about the type of series that when one episode ends, you just can’t wait for the next one.  Invariably, each episode ends leaving you desperate to find out what happens next.  Regarding what we watch, recommendations usually come from friends or workmates.  Some of these have been great and some just haven’t appealed to us and some, we haven’t even tried yet.  It can also be frustrating when you get to the end of season one and season two hasn’t been released yet (that’s the position we happen to be in at the moment!).  A lot of these complete series are available from the various entertainment providers which means you don’t have to wait for the next episode or season because they’re all available, but this can have its disadvantages.  I’ve seen us stay up very late……just to avoid waiting to find out what happened next!!!

Maybe all this means that, in general, we’re not good at waiting (although, some are better than others).  Have you ever came back from the watchnight service on Christmas Eve with someone in the family saying: ‘can we open just one of our presents?’ which eventually leads to all the presents getting opened and nothing being left to be opened on Christmas morning.

I’ve mentioned it before that the expectation of what presents await us at Christmas can sometimes be better than the presents themselves.  When we think back to Christmas mornings over the years, we might remember what it was like seeing our children or grandchildren opening or playing with their presents, but I certainly find it hard to remember the presents I received.

During this time of advent, Christians view it as a time of expectation, a promise fulfilled, the arrival of a notable event.  It is a time of waiting, of waiting for the promised Messiah to be born and in our case, waiting for that day when we can remember and celebrate his birth.  It is also a time for reflecting on our faith.  We all need to ask ourselves if the faith we claim to have, is demonstrated in the way we live our lives and in the ways we treat others.

As believers, our complete lives will be a time of waiting for that inevitable day when we will enter his glorious presence and experience the great joy that awaits us.

We will be singing the carol ‘Love came down at Christmas’ over the next few weeks.  A noted American preacher writes; ‘The test of love is that it is given even when there is no expectation of a return’.  Let us enjoy the waiting and try to judge less and love more.

Prayer – Heavenly Father, we know that there are many dangers and difficulties in life that combine to test our faith in you. Help us learn to love you more, get to know you better and keep you, Lord Jesus at the centre of our lives.  Help us grow in grace and give us the wisdom to discern what is likely to be  acceptable in your eyes and what is not.  Help us to recognise when the Holy Spirit prompts us to behave in a certain way and help us avoid taking an alternative path. We thank you that you are able and willing to keep us from stumbling and that through your suffering and triumph over death, we will be presented faultless before you. We can look forward to the joy of that day but until then, help us commit our lives to you.  Amen