Reflection for Sunday, December 18, 2011

Reflections on the Lectionary December 18, 2011

2 Samuel 7:1-16, Psalm 89, Romans 16:25-27, Luke 1:26-38

As Abbot Andy pointed out in last week’s reflection, Advent and Lent are the two seasons in our church year set aside for special focus on our inner life.  The Gospel reading this week celebrates Mary’s encounter with the angelic messenger, and her response.  I wonder about Mary’s inner life and how I can learn from Mary.

The phrase that struck me most as I read this very familiar passage from Luke was “Do not be afraid, Mary, the Lord is with you”.

One of my favorite people, Weldon Nisely of Seattle Mennonite Church often starts conversations with these two questions: What are your greatest fears?  What are your wildest hopes?  Two good questions to consider, especially in this season.

As I write this I am about to join my teenage children on an outdoor adventure of high ropes and sliding down a zipline cable.  With snow flying.  Hmmm.  I am not particularly phobic about heights, but there I can already feel my heart beat a bit faster and some tightness in my chest as I imagine clinging to a cable above 40 or 50 feet of open air. I’ve never done anything quite like this before. This is the kind of fear that is a gift of biology.  It is how my forbearers survived and thrived. I know that in my head, but my body still reacts, and sometimes I can overreact and become immobilized by fear. Simply telling me not to be afraid does not help much.  But when my daughter tells me, “Really, don’t worry, I have done so many high ropes. I’ll coach you through it.”  That is different.  She is going to be with me through every step and handhold. I feel my body start to relax and be able to respond appropriately.  This is possible because I know she loves me and I have confidence in her abilities.

It is the same two-fold message as the angel’s: Do not be afraid, the Lord is with you.  I think Mary’s famous response shows something about her inner life. It showed that she had an inner confidence in God, a knowledge of the deep, deep love of a God who would be with her, through it all.   It is the “love that casts out fear”( 1 John 4:18).

Advent Blessings,

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