We interrupt our advent meditations before we even get started with a reminder of one of the things we’re waiting for: an end to death:

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. (Revelation 21.4, NIV)

That is, until the old order passes away, there WILL be death, mourning, crying, and pain.

My friend and Navigator mentor Paul Stanley passed away Thanksgiving morning, just three days short of his 79th birthday. Actually, Paul has been gone for several years, having suffered from dementia. I wrote about Paul and his wife, Phyllis, back in September 2019.

Given the dementia, it’s a blessing he didn’t hang on longer. Phyllis wrote, “We are rejoicing that my precious husband is now with Jesus.” But still, we would have rather seen him healthy, making disciples, and developing leaders as he did for a very long time, in the Army, as a Navigator missionary in Germany, as International Vice President of The Navigators, as the founder of the Leader Development Network, and as Interim President of another organization, Greater Europe Mission.

So we wait…that’s what advent is about.

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3.8, NKJV)

For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. (1 Corinthians 15.25, 26, NKJV)

But we take comfort during this first week of Advent, the week of Hope:

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. (1 Thessalonians 4.13, NIV)

I’m committing (by faith!) to blog advent meditations from now until Christmas. I’m excited to see where this goes.

I strongly believe that this Advent season has the potential to be very significant. Why? Because we’re actually waiting for something. This is America. We don’t wait for anything. If we need or want it, we buy it. Long gone are the days of “Please allow 4 weeks for delivery.” Stuff we order comes in a day or two.

HOWEVER, this year we wait…for relief from COVID. We’re chafing against lockdowns and isolation. The neighborhood Jesus moved into was waiting, too. Jews were in permanent lockdown under brutal Roman rule.

So for the first time I can remember, ALL of us are waiting…in hope. It’s a good way to start the Advent season. Journey with me.

Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Romans 8.24, 25, ESV)

Yesterday’s thanksgiving sentiment that this is the year to appreciate what you have reminded me of something I heard on Prairie Home Companion over 35 years ago. Garrison Keillor was in the middle of the long weekly story about what was going on in his hometown, Lake Woebegone. A mother was in conversation with her adult, newly married son, who was having marital adjustment issues. He asked his mother how she and his dad made it all these years, and his mother replied, “Even when it was hard, we knew it was what we wanted.” The son replied, “Well, some people are lucky; they know what they want.” Later, the mother reflected on the exchange and concluded what she said wasn’t quite right. Then Garrison reported what she meant to say:

Some people are lucky, not to get what they want, but to get what they have. Which, after they’ve had it, they might be lucky enough to realize it’s what they would have wanted had they known about it!” -Garrison Keillor

Meditate on that! It’s profound – I’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of that quote over the years.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. (Romans 8.28, NKJV)

We can never devote too much time or space to being thankful, can we? Here’s something I saw on NextDoor recently, and it’s too good not to share:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1.17, ESV)

I was just reminded of the following annual sequence:

Thanksgiving -> Advent -> Christmas -> New Year

It’s been a crazy year, and 2021 gives no hint of immediate improvement; however, 2020 is going to end the way all years do. Let’s just continue to be thankful people!

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! (1 Chronicles 16.34, ESV)

In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1 Thessalonians 5.18, NKJV)

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! (2 Corinthians 9.15, NIV)

Here’s a good Thanksgiving meditation from a familiar story:

One of them, a foreigner from Samaria, when he discovered that he was completely healed, turned back to find Jesus, shouting out joyous praises and glorifying God. When he found Jesus, he fell down at his feet and thanked him over and over, saying to him, “You are the Messiah.” This man was a Samaritan. “So where are the other nine?” Jesus asked. “Weren’t there ten who were healed? They all refused to return to give thanks and give glory to God except you, a foreigner from Samaria?” (Luke 17.15 – 18, Passion Translation NT, emphasis mine)

The point is clear: the Jewish lepers felt more entitled than the Samaritan leper. Those who feel entitled tend not to be as thankful. After I wrote that sentence in my journal, I read Seth Godin’s blog, and he said the same thing:

An attitude of entitlement doesn’t increase the chances you’ll get what you want. And it ruins the joy of the things you do get. Win or lose, you lose. –Seth Godin, emphasis mine

The ratio of thankful lepers to the group of lepers was 1 in 10: what about me? Am I the one in ten? Or, do I give thanks for even a tenth of what Jesus gives me?

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him… (Romans 1.21, ESV)

In this “Thanksgiving Week,” here’s something to be thankful for, courtesy of my son Mark’s Facebook posts election week:

As the sun rose on election day, we posted our American flag – not as a sign of support for one candidate or another (our house is divided), but in appreciation for the privilege of voting and the belief that no matter what happens with the election, we live in a great but imperfect country, a land of opportunity, a nation governed by flawed humans through a flawed system. Things will get better in the coming months regardless of who wins today. This election season has been particularly divisive, but we will heal. We have to.

Mark continues:

The person who voted for someone different from you is not your enemy. The person who believes differently from you is not your adversary. No portion of the country, whether a minority or majority, can succeed by tearing down the other portion. We are all in this together.

Mark concludes:

Jesus asked, “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of [evil men]?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” Have mercy. Love your neighbor. – Mark Ewell, November 3, 2020

Mark’s next election week Facebook post:

Whoever is inaugurated on January 20th will be my president, and for all our sakes I hope he is the best president we’ve ever had. I will agree with some of the things he says and does, and disagree with others. Either way, I’m grateful for the amazing country we live in, for the checks and balances among our branches of federal government, and for the uniqueness of the states. Very little of this matters day-to-day, and none of it matters in the long run. – Mark Ewell, November 6, 2020, emphasis mine

Thank you, Mark. Good counsel.

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance. (Psalm 16.6, NIV)

Here’s a little whimsey to get us in the mood for Thanksgiving week…

We’ve lived in this house and neighborhood for 14 years and seen foxes, coyotes, bears, owls, hawks, and deer. I’ve never seen a turkey although our new neighbor reported on NextDoor recently that he had them in his yard. Well, the wait is over: there were at least 20 in our backyard a few days ago.

You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you. (Nehemiah 9.6, NIV, emphasis mine)

Yesterday, we explored how joining Jesus on mission is not unlike joining the Star Trek crew on mission. And my friend Bill Mowry indicated that one of the reasons more of aren’t involved is:

I don’t have the training or the skills.

Bill’s reaction is that with all the tools out there, that’s not a good excuse. I agree. A friend of mine was leading a group of men through Bill’s book Ways of the Alongsider, and he told me this story:

Near the end of our time together, one of the men said, “Let me see if I’ve got this right. You want us to share the gospel, help someone put their faith in Jesus, then come alongside them to help them grow in their Christian faith.” I replied, “Of course.” The man replied, “I’m not ready for that.”

I would have had a simple response: “If you don’t think you’re ready, after a lifetime of teaching in a Bible-believing church, and even after taking this course, what else are you going to do to get ready? Jesus didn’t consider not being ready an excuse.”

And that servant who knew his master’s will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. (Luke 12.47, 48, ESV, the words are Jesus’, the emphasis is mine)

Being part of the mission is not difficult. Most of us are way more ready than we think or more ready than some church leaders think we are. If you missed last week’s series suggested by my friend Ray Bandi, I encourage you to look at it. His model was a simple Love, Pray, Model, Teach, Repeat.

And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. (2 Timothy 2.2, NIV)

Remember:

2 Timothy 2.2:  It’s so easy, anyone can do it, even lay people.
It’s so important, everyone must do it, even pastors.

Yesterday we wrote about exercising faith in a big God. Again, it’s not the size of our faith, it’s the size of our God, and…we must take action. Here’s another metaphor, this one from my very creative friend Bill Mowry, author of Ways of the Alongsider. He, like me, is a fan of Star Trek, especially The Next Generation version with Captain Picard. Bill writes:

The captain’s voice-over opening to each show makes me sit up straight in my recliner (my command chair!).

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise, its five-year mission to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before!

What a clear and simple mission statement. You can’t miss the purpose of this crew of intrepid explorers. Their assignment was straightforward— explore strange new worlds and find new life. The Captain of our Starship is also calling us to a clear mission — one that is bold and full of new life. – Bill Mowry (His whole blog is worth the read.)

It’s a great mission! “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4.19) or “Go and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28.19) Why aren’t more of us involved? Bill suggests several reasons including this one:

I don’t have the training or the skills.

Bill says with all the tools out there this isn’t a good reason. I agree, and I’ll have more to say about that tomorrow.

In the meantime, there’s adventure waiting for us!

And the angel of the LORD appeared to [Gideon] and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.” …And the LORD turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” (Judges 6.12, 14, ESV)

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. (Acts 1.8, ESV)