The Advent of Restoration
It Came Upon the Midnight Clear
It came upon the midnight clear, that glorious song of old,
from angels bending near the earth to touch their harps of gold:
“Peace on the earth, good will to men, from heaven’s all-gracious King.”
The world in solemn stillness lay, to hear the angels sing.
Still through the cloven skies they come with peaceful wings unfurled,
and still their heavenly music floats o’er all the weary world;
above its sad and lowly plains, they bend on hovering wing,
and ever o’er its Babel sounds the blessed angels sing.
And ye, beneath life’s crushing load, whose forms are bending low,
who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow,
look now! for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing.
O rest beside the weary road, and hear the angels sing!
For lo! the days are hastening on, by prophet seen of old,
when with the ever-circling years shall come the time foretold
when peace shall over all the earth its ancient splendors fling,
and the whole world send back the song which now the angels sing.
“Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more. On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak. The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. I will deal with all your oppressors at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth.” —ZEPHANIAH 3:14-20 (NRSV)
Sometimes it’s hard to catch the spirit of Christmas joy because it feels so far from reality. We have broken hearts and broken bodies and broken spirits. We may know intellectually that we are part of a bigger story of restoration, one foretold by prophets of Israel then sang out in the glad songs of angels to those obscure shepherds.
It’s a story of “peace on earth and good will for all people” (Luke 2:14). One where fear and death will be no more. Judgment and shame will be eclipsed by delight. No loneliness. No illness. No shame. A story where everyone belongs.
The more we notice the difference between what should be and what is, our Christmas joy shrinks to the size of a snow-globe. Not heaven come down. Yet what if the smallness of that all-too-perfect Christmas snow-globe we loved as kids could be a sneaky little symbol of hope? In it, we catch a glimpse of a perfected world, of a restoration that will one day be complete, of a not-yet-ness that God has promised to see through.
So next time you get the chance, pick it up and give that snow-globe a shake. Watch the snow settle on the scene, and remember that you are not alone. God sees you and loves you. You have not been forgotten. God is in the work of restoring it all.
PRACT ICE ADVENT TOGETHER
Gather your family together over dinner, invite over some friends, or FaceTime some of the kids in your life. Turn down the lights, gather around the Advent wreath and take turns reading Zephaniah 3:14-20 (Each person can read one verse and go around in a circle). Light two of the purple candles and the pink candle. The third Sunday of Advent symbolizes joy, and its candle is called the “Shepherds’ Candle.” The Shepherds’ Candle is socalled because of the message of the angels to the shepherds: “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,” and the shepherds’ joy at finding the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes. The candle is pink because rose is the liturgical color for joy.
REFLECT
1. What is the best party you’ve ever attended? What made it so special and full of joy?
2. What does restoration mean to you?
3. The scripture says, “he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it” (Zeph 3:17b). How do you imagine it will feel when God restores you and throws a party with rejoicing and singing? How will it feel to be renewed in God’s love?
RESPOND
This week, look for signs of the already-but-not-yet-ness of the season. How do you embrace the joy and sit with the suffering? How can you mourn for the present and rejoice for the future? How can you pour out love on others as an act of restoration and hope?
A Blessing for Our Part in the Bigger Story
Blessed are we, gathered already into the plot, part of the epic story you have been writing from long before we were ever born.
Thank you that we are not separated into lives of loneliness but joined together as those who were loved into being.
We are made for meaning and a purpose that only our days can breathe into action.
Pull us closer to the bigger story that reminds us that our ordinary lives are the stuff of eternity.
You fitted each of our days for small efforts and endless attempts to pick ourselves up again.
In our triumphs and embarrassments, we need to be told again (sigh) that we are not just everyday problems.
We are a story of extraordinary love.
katebowler.com