“Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
-Isaiah 40:5

I cannot read this passage without hearing the magnificent choral music of Handel’s Messiah bursting forth: “And the glory, the glory of the Lord shall be reveal-ed …” As wonderful as Rock and Roll may be to the masses (of we “Boomers”), nothing sets my soul to soaring like the rip-roaring choral production of Handel’s music. It is without peer. Period (no pun intended).

Advent is a dark and dreary season, what with short days, gray and drizzly skies, blustery winds sending the few remaining unraked leaves to dancing in the corner of the yard like manic pixies high on pixie juice, and holiday music to jangle the few remaining nerves of parents and their perpetually home-schooled broods.

I need the high tones of the classics to lift me up, out, and away from the drudgeries of a pandemic life. I need those rich and solemn tones to remind me there is a God away and beyond myself – a God who is NOT content to remain at arm’s length away, but who seeks the warmth and safety of my own belly during these scary, dark days.

The glory of the Lord shall be revealed. And the scary part? It will not just be revealed to us. No, I believe God intends God’s glory to be revealed in us and through us and around us so that the world itself may see it. Not just “some” of the world, but ALL people. I think I’d better get busy getting that manger ready!

Dear God, you want the world to see your glory. You want the world to see your glory revealed in the weakness of human flesh. I am so NOT worthy to carry this honor, but not my will, but THINE be done. God, help me. Amen.
-The Rev. Keith Axberg