First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL

This is the second in a series for Advent from a work in progress called "Prairie Liturgy." Original artwork by Meg Rift, (C) 2017 Haggai 1:3 - 9, 2:6 – 9; Psalm 63:1 – 8; Luke 12: 35 – 40 December 10, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry The three scripture readings for today may seem at first to be disconnected. The first reading comes from almost the end of the Hebrew Scriptures. Haggai is a prophet of the era of about 520 BC, after the exiled Israelites have returned from Babylon. Haggai is distressed that the Israelites are more interested in restoring their own fortunes than they are in restoring the temple as a center of community life. The Israelites are interested in getting stuff for themselves, but what they don’t get is how meaningless that pursuit has become. Let’s listen for God’s word in the words of Haggai 1:3 - 9, 2:6 – 9: Then the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai, saying: Is it a time for you...

This is the first in a series for Advent from our work in progress called "Prairie Liturgy." Original artwork by Meg Rift (c) 2017 Isaiah 40:27 – 31; Psalm 42:1 – 6a December 3, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling, IL Christina Berry Our first reading for this first Sunday of Advent comes from the prophet Isaiah, as he exhorts the weary nation of Israel to wait for God. As waiting is an essential element of Advent, it was an essential for the Israelites. They were not usually prone to waiting or trusting for very long. They preferred to get on with things and let the God of the Covenant catch up to them. This usually did not go well for them. In this familiar passage, Isaiah insists that they call to mind the faithfulness of God, and the provision that God will make for those who are weary, exhausted, struggling, if only they will wait for God: Let’s listen for God’s word to us in Isaiah 40:27 – 31 Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, “My way is ...