Proclaim by Word and Example

This sermon was preached on November 29, 2015 for the First Sunday of Advent at Grace Episcopal Church in Medford, MA. The readings for this sermon were:  Jeremiah 33:14-16 ,  1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 ,  Luke 21:25-36 , and  Psalm 25:1-9 . So here we are again, staring December in the face. Some of us, of course, would prefer to skip over the stress of preparing for the holidays--the shopping for gifts and food, the flight delays, the endless renditions of "All I want for Christmas"—and wake up right on Christmas morning. I know others of us who wouldn't mind fast-forwarding right on through December to the end of the year. Though, honestly, there seems to be more and more fast-forwarding every year. I can't be the only one who heard "Last Christmas I gave you my heart…" on the radio a full week before Thanksgiving. But then here's Advent. In a culture of skipping straight from candy corn to candy canes, here's Advent. In the Episcopal tradition,

This sermon was preached on November 8, 2015 at Grace Episcopal Church in Medford, MA. The texts for this sermon were:  Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 ,  Psalm 127 ,  Hebrews 9:24-28 , and  Mark 12:38-44 . When I was a freshman in college and trying to figure out how to fit in, I started volunteering for the local Habitat for Humanity chapter. I liked that the volunteer builds were very much “come when you can.” Whenever I had a Saturday morning free that I wanted to spend doing something productive I’d show up and the leader would drive us over to the site. I’d really only been on a few builds when the graduating leader in charge of the club approached me about taking it over. Now I need to say here that this wasn’t because I was super qualified or even a dedicated member. It turns out that I happened to be the student who had shown up to the most builds that fall. Of course as a freshman I was flattered enough to yes, without quite realizing what it would mean. What it meant, I soon learn