FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT

2 Samuel 7,8. Psalm 23 Romans 16:25-27 Luke 1: 26-38

Theme: be still and know that I am the Lord.

1. Be Still and know that I am the Lord, says Yahweh. With the fourth Sunday of Advent, we enter into the final six days before Christmas. The time now is so relative. For children it seems six interminable days before Santa comes and they can open their presents, for adults it is time of frenzied activity: there is the last minute shopping, the presents to wrap, the finishing touches on the ham, turkey or roast or the speciality which is typical of our ethnic culture, the Christmas cards to mail. In the middle of all this, we must make time to be still and acknowledge that God loves us, God is giving a gift to us, God’s gift is the only Son, Jesus Christ who has become flesh and dwells in our midst.

2. One of the models presented to us is King David. David has reached a point in his life where he has accomplished a lot of things. He has defeated his enemies. He has united the Israelites into one large Kingdom. He has committed his sins of arrogance, adultery, murder and repented. He has come to a point, when he realises that he must do something for the Lord, - as if the Lord needs anything. But it is a pity that we do things in reverse. He should have stayed “still and known that Yahweh was the Lord.” So now he decides to build a Temple for God. The Ark of the Covenant which symbolised the Presence of the Lord is housed in a mere tent, while David is living in a palace, a comfortable and luxurious abode. However, God is a God of surprises. God will take the initiative. And so in the quiet of the night, through the prophet Nathan, God will enumerate all the things God has done and will continue to do for David. Advent is a good time, to be still and realise all the things that God has done for each one of us personally. As David was stopped in the frenzied activity of wanting to build a Temple, we can stop ourselves in the frenzy of shopping, cooking, cleaning, wrapping gifts and mailing cards - to spend time with “the reason for this season” as the cliche goes. “But I have so many things to do” is all the more reason to stop and be still.

3. The second model is Mary. We have the story of the Annunciation. This is not the first story of the Annunciation in our Scriptures. There is a regular pattern in the other annunciation stories. We have the stories of Sarah and Elizabeth, both in their old age and past child bearing age. We have the stories of young women like Hannah the mother of Samuel, Samson’s mother, who is known simply as the wife of Manoah (Judges 13) and Mary, the Virgin Mother of God. The mothers of Samuel and Samson were apparently barren. There was no testing for the sterility of the fathers in those days. And so in the cases of Sarah and Elizabeth, and the mothers of Samuel and Samson the news of the birth of a child in unlikely conditions is announced. The story of Mary - the conditions are even more unlikely because there is absence of even the husband. The God of Surprises acts in mysterious ways. We are told in the life of Jesus, Mary “pondered these things in her heart.” She must have done the same now when the Angel Gabriel said to her, “the Lord is with you.” It was not the greeting the priest gives us at Mass, but rather a statement of the fact of the presence of God.

4. Be still and know that I am God is for all people. For each one of us, the circumstances are different. I am very fortunate, there are no problems in the family. Every one is in good health, each one has a decent job, there is neither financial nor family tensions. But there are a whole lot of people for whom this Christmas season will be a difficult time. Some have just discovered that they have tumours, or diabetes, or multiple sclerosis. Others have been laid off from their jobs. Still others have increasing tensions from children who are teenagers and are beginning to assert their personalities in ways their parents (who are already under stress) - find it difficult to accept. Others have to deal with aging parents who have Alzheimers, arthritis, unable to cope by themselves, but who do not want to enter a senior’s home. Christmas season can be very emotional and difficult.

We get strength at this time from the Annunciation story - especially from the line: “nothing is impossible with God.” Mary had a plan for her life. God also had a plan for her, and through her for all of us. On the surface the two plans seem to meet head on, they were impossible. But a God who is all wise, all knowing and all powerful did find a way to make “the Word become Flesh and dwell among us.” If we let God, if we can be still and realise that God is in charge, if like David we realise that it is not David who will build the Temple, but God in person will accomplish things - then all our problems will disappear like the morning mist. If they do not disappear, we will have the strength to change the things we can, the courage to accept those we cannot, and the wisdom to know the difference.

5. A real life story will show us that the God of Surprises still works in mysterious ways, if we can be still and know that our God is the Lord.

Astrid has a 94 year old mother staying with her and suffering from Alzheimer’s. The mother was and still is a feisty woman with a mind and will of her own. Or as you and I would put it more bluntly: “she is stubborn.” But it is natural to be fearful when you are at the mercy of people you no longer recognise. Often enough she will ask her daughter, “Who are you.” And the daughter will answer, “I am your daughter, Astrid.” The mother does not recognize the face, but the name seems to ring a bell and she is feels some what secure. At other times, Astrid will pretend that she is a doctor, she says to her mother, “if you do not let us clean you, I will give you a big injection. Do you want that?” It works.

Finally, a few days ago, as they were struggling to change her clothes and bed linen, the mother challenged her with the usual , “Who are you?” The God of Surprises took over, Astrid replied, “I am the angel Gabriel, Jesus sent me to you.” The mother paused, still uncertain, but the sudden answer transformed the daughter. She held her mother’s face close to her, and led her through the Our Father, Hail Mary, the Memorare and other familiar prayers. At first the mother stumbled through the prayers, searching for the words, but then they came out clearly and with devotion.” Astrid had her Gabriel experience. Be still and know that the Lord is God - and great things can happen when God mixes with us.