Nougat 4

As a child, Advent was not a clear aspect of my life. No wreaths, definitely no candles (colored candles meant something else – witchcraft!); but we definitely were in Christmas prep mode, preparing for Carol Services and the other local and church-related festivities.

What I have incorporated into my own practice these days are the themes that the Advent offer: Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy, with Christ at the center of it all! We pause to reflect on God’s Peace in today’s Holy Nougat

“His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭9‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In the face of the rumble of war around the world, Peace seems elusive. Ironically, the Russia-Ukraine skirmish is global in its reach, given the impact on energy and food security. In Ethiopia, their war is almost forgotten, as with Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, Columbia and several other countries. Peace, for many caught in those conflicts, is but a concept touted by rich governments to keep the poorer ones dreaming.

There are several other barriers to Peace: climate degradation, criminal activities such as domestic violence, trafficking, rape, robbery and murder, and corruption in high places. These sobering and sometimes graphic stories feature daily in the news, obscuring Hope; yielding to increasing bouts of panic and disorder.

But God

We have been assured that this special Son (Sun) of God is a king. In a previous prophecy we learn that He is of Davidic lineage. So it is not surprising that we now hear that His government and its peace will never end; for the word to David in 2 Samuel 7 is proof.

Although of Davidic lineage, Jesus is the Righteous branch. And being God in flesh, the ‘Enmity’, rather the Rift created between us and God is restored through His Love. It is the Rift that truly disrupts the fragile Peace we experience here on earth. For with the Rift, we often lose sight of God and in turn our focus on the Ways of God. (Proverbs 3:16-17).

So we look back to Christ’s birth in order to look forward to His return. Because He came, we know that He will come again. That blessed assurance places God’s Peace despite the circumstances; for Jesus is a sure bet, the victory’s already His! And being The Good Shepherd, we Know He’ll come through. That’s the kind of Peace that keeps us going.

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May all we seek be found in Christ