To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame. (From the Introit for the First Sunday in Advent)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Like the Last Sundays of the Church Year, the season of Advent provides time for us to be trained in patient waiting. The Sundays just past taught us to patiently wait for the return of Jesus in glory. The Sundays of Advent will teach us to patiently wait for the Incarnation of Jesus. 

This time of waiting is characterized by increased devotion to the hearing of God's Word and to prayer. And in that hearing and praying our trust in the Lord is renewed. We lift up our souls to God, our only confidence, for we have no trust in anyone else. He is our only hope and salvation. We may have many enemies--the world and the devil himself, and even our own flesh--but they will never exalt over us because God is with us in the flesh of Jesus. Those who give in to the enemies, who abandon trust in God will not succeed. They will be ashamed. God spare us from such foolishness! 

In Christ, we wait on the Lord and trust in Him, and not in ourselves, so we will never be ashamed. We trust in the Lord, so we cling to His Word and hear what He has to say. He shows us His commandments, the way to live, and greater still that He sent His Son to take our human flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary. In that flesh He would bear our sins to death on the Cross in order to remove our shame and silence our enemies. In faith we wait for the Lord. We trust in God for salvation all the more. 

The Lord is truly good to sinners like us. He instructs and leads us throughout our lives by His Word. Despite the attacks of enemies without and within, God leads us in His paths of love and faithfulness. He promises never to abandon us, but to be with us always, even to the very end of the world. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Amen.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Pastor Duane Bamsch