Isaiah 40:1-11

Year B - Advent 2 or Needed Change ²

December 7, 2014

Isaiah 40:1-11

We move from knowing, last week, we respond to negative reinforcement to, this week, an appeal for positive action: From “tear open the heavens” to “comfort, O comfort my people”. Both seem to be needed for we are such a various people. Some of us need a threat and some encouragement to move beyond where we are.

For the moment, go with the positive. Here a baptism with Holy Spirit brings a promise that, when all is said and done, both levers in the Great Experiment will bring forth food and we will have more than a wire mannequin holding the food.

So, recognizing both our longevity and constancy are limited, rejoice that when we look back over our life we did remarkably well with what we had available to us. There will remain questions about today and tomorrow, but yesterday is in the book and, all things considered, we played our what we were dealt as well we could. That is a comfortable thought in the midst of continuing uncertainty.

Supposedly we could have optimized more, but there is that longevity and constancy thing we have going on. We’ve done enough to be able to learn from the past and apply it to the present without having to perfect both. This learning so we don’t have to repeat processes ad infinitum does smooth the present a bit more than if we stumbled upon it with no experience that will allow us to live G*D with us, to be gentle with ourselves and others.

Have you not heard? Have you not learned? As we learn compassion for self and smooth the way for others, the presence of Mercy is revealed.