Advent with The Well

This past weekend, we concluded the church year with a weekend full of celebration & thanksgiving.  Part of our time together was spent at the New American Welcome Center, sharing a "First Thanksgiving" meal with families who are newcomers to America. There was a beautiful blending of cultures as we shared a ton of food & conversation & even some singing & dancing together.

I couldn't help but imagine what had brought some of these newcomers here to America. There were people from Sudan, Congo, Cuba, Iraq and other places who had experienced a range of conflict, violence, loss & suffering. Amidst all of their challenges though, they were finding home here.

I was reminded that even when death & darkness & despair seem to have the final word, a new way forward is always on the horizon & in the making.

According to the prophet Isaiah (Is. 43:16, 19, MSG),

This is what God says,
the God who builds a road right through the ocean,
who carves a path through pounding waves...

'Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new.
It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?' 

Images of God as Builder, Creator, Artist, Maker & Shaper of the new abound in the story of Scripture yet we struggle to see the new creation. Our imaginations fall short, our attention spans grow weary, our patience wears thin, but God...God is the Eternal Artist who is always conjuring up a better, more just & loving way forward. 

Advent invites us to pay attention, to look, to see & to imagine how that has happened, is happening & will happen in our lives & in this world. How is the Artist creating a new way foward? How is hope, peace, joy & love coming to us?

During our Sunday gatherings this Advent, we'll anticipate that new way foward together through song, story, candle lightings & communion. We'll listen to ancient texts & to our friends as they invite us to see how God is at work shaping a new future. We will prepare for the celebration of Christ's coming as the new King who invites us into a new kind of kingdom.

We gather at 10:30 a.m. at the Karpeles Manuscript Museum and no matter where you've been or what you've done, we would love to welcome you.