Editor's note: "An uncommon Advent: the arrival of a Savior in our lives" is a sampling of biblical meditations composed by members of the Concordia University Ann Arbor and Wisconsin community. It is our prayer that you will take time during the Advent season to read and reflect upon God's Word and await the coming of Jesus with newfound anticipation and zeal through the Holy Spirit.
December 12 – A spoken word selection for Advent
Isaiah 29:1-14 and Jude 1-25
Each and every day, we are bombarded by the world around us, in each walk of life, and in our own ways. From smart phones, to staying up late, laptops, to avoiding the sun, we college kids see the world through different eyes. We are learning how to manage our time, learning what time is, learning how to sleep for four hours to fit in a double study session, because, man, Snapchat is a tricky mistress. Dazed in the glow of screens, little look behind the scenes, fewer seek to nourish themselves with what truly matters. In this day and age where most folks aren’t drinking the water of hydration, it is a ghastly placid mentality that befalls us when we see few peers drinking in the notion of salvation.
Bewildered as we are in the lights we have built, this commercial world takes our hearts. From Christmas wishes from strangers to the fun of stalking stores for good deals, we fall into a sense of worldly warmth. A flashy, yet fleeting world, commercializes God in a way that acts in image alone, leaving some to be closer to the imagery than to an understanding of what Jesus truly brings at Christmastide. People who stumble into this category feel remorse and emptiness apart from the manger filled with the Christ child. They often fall, besieged by their own guilt. And you will be brought low; from the earth you shall speak (Isaiah 29:4).
Low as the flashy may feel when stripped of the season’s presents without His presence, little do they know that there lies the same original fault in all of us. While some might physically distance themselves from grace, all have acted to further their hearts from the Lord.Keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt (Jude 21-22).
There exists no real reason for any to stray in fear that we have distanced ourselves too far. No distance, no ignorance, no extravagance will keep the light of the Holy Spirit from continuing to seek every one of us.
The Writer’s Aviary of Concordia is a student club on the CUW campus. This spoken word piece was composed by Alana Clark, Rebecca Gehm, Cassidy Mertzig, and Charles Meyers. View a full schedule of “An uncommon Advent” readings here.
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