Psalm 146:5-10

Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose hope is in the Lord their God,
who made heaven and earth,
    the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith forever;
    who executes justice for the oppressed;
    who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free;
    the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
    the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the strangers;
    he upholds the orphan and the widow,
    but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

The Lord will reign forever,
    your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord!

Joy Sunday says it all. The third Sunday of Advent is marked by the pink- or rose-colored candle in the wreath in many traditions. It is the one where we are reminded of the news that shall be a great joy to all people—the news that Emmanuel is born, God with us. And we stand in the promise even today, even here, in this place, in your place – God is with you. There can be no greater joy than that.

To help us, we have a psalm of joy and praise, 146. And we have a familiar and beautiful chapter from the prophet Isaiah who reminds us that we are on the way. We are traveling the Lord’s Highway today. We may not yet be all that we can be; we may not yet have reached our destination as the people of God, but we are on the way. We are a pilgrim people, singing our songs of ascent as we go up into the glorious presence of God, even as we are already embraced by our God every step of the way. So, let’s rejoice today. Let us claim the gift of joy, even in the struggles of a difficult world, even as we pray for those who are hurting, who are grieving, who are lost and alone. We celebrate; we are joyful because our God has promised healing and wholeness.

There is also the journey, the highway Isaiah speaks of so wonderfully. How can we depict that road in our sanctuary today? What hints can we give of journeying, of the pilgrimage that marks our way through the life we have been given to live? We may not be coming forward for Communion this week, but can there be a procession of prayer or song? Can we make our way forward to pray before the Table of the Lord? Can we move this week, around the wreath, around the sanctuary? We’re on the way, and we celebrate that traveling as we worship. Going up to sing praise.
 

Isaiah 35:1-10
Psalm 146:5-10
Luke 1:46b-55
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11