Today’s post is by artist Robyn Sand Anderson.

By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us.

Luke 1:78

Copyright Robyn Sand Anderson

Tender mercy.

Those two words came to me the other night, when I wondered what I would write for this Advent blog. I let the beauty of those two words wash over me as I said each word with a pause after, so as not to rush the beauty that lies within them. Tender. Mercy. The tender mercy of our God. We don’t hear about that side of God very often and so this verse from Luke 1:78 stands out. It is hard to take in this extraordinary gift. We cannot fathom it, really. But then. A baby was born to a common, young girl named Mary. In this birth we are promised that “…the dawn from on high will break upon us.”

As I wrestle with all that is happening in our country, the anguish of those who have been separated from their children, the deceit and raw grab for power by some, the disregard for certain groups of people, the fomenting of hatred and violence, these words stand in deep contrast. Some equate the words tender and mercy with weakness. But here we see that in the midst of this turmoil, these words are strong with the promise that God so loved the world that God chose to speak to us of this Love in the form of a child named Jesus. And so we wait during this Advent season, and we open our eyes, hearts, and minds to what God is telling us in this place and time.

It is God’s tender mercy, not vengeful, not punishing, but a tender mercy that is bestowed on us in our misery, in our sorrow, in our mistakes and blunders. And that Light will guide us and will seep into our darkness from on high. For God so loves the world. We are not abandoned, but are held in God’s tender mercy.

As we turn to one another this season, where can we show the same to those we meet and know, to those who are persecuted now, to this beautiful planet that God has given us with all of its plants and animals? God promises we are not alone in this, but that God’s Light is in, under, and over us as we seek to speak a word of love, mercy, and justice in the name of Christ Jesus.

By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us.

Today’s post is by Pastor Janelle Rozek Hooper, Program Director for Ministry with Children, ELCA.

I often hear that children participating in the Christmas story, whether rehearsed or spontaneous, holds strong emotions and memories for family, friends and especially grandparents. The time, energy and availability of children, family and youth leaders has changed over the years but the desire to have children participate in worship during the Advent/Christmas season has not. We can’t even fathom only hearing the Christmas story with words; we want to see donkeys in fur and angels with glitter piping. We can’t imagine not using as many of our senses as possible or the beauty of the imperfect perfect telling of the Good News that happens when real people tell this amazing story.

So why not the rest of the year?  How come we can only handle kids voices leading worship or acting out scripture once a year? Were the kids engaged in worship of God? Yes! Were the adults? Yes!

How can we involve children in such leadership throughout the church year, trusting the Holy Spirit is imparting spiritual gifts at all times? Not every Sunday has to have the same high production value. If our places of worship would commit to even one more way of engaging young people in worship over the course of a church season and then be open to another way the next season, I truly believe the engagement of all ages would double.

Here are seven suggestions to get you prayerfully thinking about what might be the “one thing” to continue past the Advent/Christmas season for engaging young people in worship.

• Songs accessible for children who can’t read, such as repetitive choruses, Taizé, camp songs.
• Scripture reading geared toward children’s learning style, such as a children’s Bible with lots of verbs
• A senior and a young person co-reading a lesson or leading the prayers
• Experiential aspects of worship, such as a youth pouring water into the font
• Children’s artwork for slideshows, bulletin covers, or other places in the worship space
• Adults and youth working together on Audio/Visual (AV) ministry
• Congregations with SundaysandSeasons.com can download and print “pre-reader” and “reader” versions of children’s bulletins

And many more! I offer a whole host of ideas about how to offer intergenerational worship and engage young people in worship at www.ministrylinks.online. In fact under the tab “Ministry” there is a drop down for “Seasonal Resources” that begins with the liturgical calendar. Wonderful and yet easy Christmas Plays can be found there. As Program Director for Ministry with Children for the ELCA, I’m also available to chat about your specific needs in your context. Janelle.Hooper@ELCA.org. Please be in touch!

Photo courtesy of Amanda Faucett Photography

Today’s post is by Linnéa Clark, pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Melrose Park, Pennsylvania.

One of my favorite features of Evangelical Lutheran Worship is its “End Time” section (#s 433-441). When the end of the lectionary year arrives, I find myself turning to beautiful, timeless hymns that long for the fulfillment of God’s reign and the coming of Jesus. Many of the “End Times” hymns hold longing in tension with joy as they celebrate God’s promises and proclaim that God’s reign is already at hand.

Lately, I have been drawn to “On Jordan’s stormy bank I stand” (ELW 437). The text, drawn from a longer hymn written in 1787, describes the contrast between where we are – waiting on “Jordan’s stormy bank” – and God’s promised kingdom, where there is no sickness, sorrow, pain, or death. The text refuses to resolve: with a pair of questions, the final stanza voices a deep yearning to see the face of Christ. Each stanza of the hymn culminates in a refrain that empowers us to join in God’s work ourselves: “Oh, who will come and go with me? I am bound for the promised land.”

This hymn lives a parallel life outside the pages of hymnals like Evangelical Lutheran Worship in the Sacred Harp community which sings traditional a cappella American shape-note music. Originally developed in North America and England in the late 1700s, shaped notation was intended to help congregations sight-read hymns and sing well in harmony. Shape-note “singing schools” quickly acquired a life of their own outside the church. Today, Sacred Harp groups can be found around the world, and they welcome first-time participants.* “On Jordan’s Stormy Bank I Stand” appears as “The Promised Land” (128) in the 1991 revision of The Sacred Harp.

In Sacred Harp performance practice, the melody of this song is carried by the tenor part, a mixture of high and low voices. It is surrounded by bass (low), alto (high), and treble (mixed low and high) voices. When sung, the melody weaves in and out of the six-part harmony. The most striking feature of the song is its minor key, a sharp contrast to the major key printed in ELW and other hymnals. When Sacred Harp singers sing “The Promised Land” in its customary minor key, they tend to sing it quickly. It has a powerful forward energy, as though the singers are already pressing onward through the storm toward the promised land. You can listen here to a video from the singing community in Cork, Ireland.

If you choose to sing “On Jordan’s Stormy Bank I Stand” this season, I invite you to lean into its longing for God’s coming reign by experimenting with your interpretation. Alternate interpretations help to illuminate different aspects of the text. Try singing it faster, interpreting its time signature as 2/2 rather than 4/4. You might even choose to read its key signature as E minor instead of E-flat major, adding an air of conviction and resolve. The stormy bank, the wide extended plains, the longing, and the journey toward the promised land come vividly to life.

As Advent approaches, may love and longing for God’s promised reign of justice and peace enrich your shared song.

*Interested in exploring this hymn in its Sacred Harp context? Visit fasola.org to find a regular singing near you. No experience is necessary, and people of all ages, abilities, and experiences are welcome to sing and lead songs.

Today’s post is by Linda Witte Henke, an artist specializing in the creation of liturgically purposed work for congregation, synod, and churchwide settings (www.lindahenke.com). This is the first of quarterly posts by Linda that will provide suggestions and templates for an expression of liturgical art.

When asked, most congregants would likely describe Advent as a time of “preparing for Christmas.” While this description may be technically accurate, the reality is that most people’s experience of the month of December is focused on extensive “to-do” lists that, at best, are only distantly related to the essence of Advent.

Thankfully, the lectionary texts for Advent in Year C offer stirring words and rich imagery to draw us into deeper understanding and appreciation for these precious four weeks. Advent is a time of preparing our hearts and lives for the coming of Jesus the Christ encompassing past, present, and future:

• On Advent I, Jesus speaks of “signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars” and urges us to “stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” (Luke 21)

• On Advent II, the voice of John the Baptist crying out in the wilderness directs us: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth.” (Luke 3)

• On Advent III, the one who is coming is heralded by John the Baptist using language that calls for us to repent the brokenness of our relationships with God and one another in order that our lives may “bear fruits worthy of repentance.” (Luke 3)

• On Advent IV, Mary lifts her voice to proclaim God’s greatness in turning our up-side-down world right-side up. (Luke 1)

This post offers a way to incorporate imagery of the season into the assembly’s worship through use of a four-panel design linked to the weekly texts. The panels may be used as stand-alone designs, one per week, or as a composite that evolves from one to four panels over the course of the four-week season.

Some possibilities for utilizing the design include:

• Creating banners, using silver markers and silver paint on blue “fadeless” paper (available by the roll in craft stores or education-supply outlets) or using silver lamé and silver organza fused or stitched/appliquéd onto blue fabric
• Using a “print on demand” service to reproduce the digital design on paper or fabric
• Incorporating the digital design in the congregation’s projected worship slides
• Including the digital design in the congregation’s print and/or electronic communications

Regardless of the way(s) in which you choose to integrate the design into your congregation’s Advent journey, the effectiveness and impact of the design’s use will be enhanced by intentional references to the design throughout the season, particularly within the context of worship. For example:

• How might it feel to lift up our heads and hands in anticipation of Jesus’ coming? (Advent I)
• How might heightened awareness of the sun, moon, and stars awaken our longing for God’s coming close to reside within and among us? (Advent II)
• How might repentance of our human brokenness pave the way for faith’s fuller fruition in us? (Advent III)
• How might Mary’s song engage our more enthusiastic participation in the in-breaking reign of God’s up-side-down order? (Advent IV)

The attached PDF includes a modest-resolution image of the complete design, as well as patterns that can be enlarged to create banners in whatever scale is right for your congregation’s space. A higher-resolution image for large-scale reproduction may be downloaded from:  https://www.dropbox.com/sh/x69s78odh0gqcks/AACdV0LxnzVn9BvvoRwgwaFya?dl=0.

Last year, at an indoor farmers market we host, I was asked with some amount of disbelief, “Wait a second—is this still a real church?” (I replied with an emphatic “yes!”) But I’ll admit that there have been more than a few Sunday mornings when I’ve arrived to worship in a sanctuary that looks more exhausted than sacred. First, I gently remind myself that I don’t always look so good, either—and I remember that in our worship, our hearing of God’s Word, our praying, and our singing, not only are we renewed to serve our community, but so is this Common Room. For that, I give extra thanks and praise.

Today’s post is by Philip A. Gardner, Pastor of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Congregation in Sandusky, Ohio. 

It was to have been “the war to end all wars,” but that was a dream that didn’t last long.

World War I began in Europe in 1914.  Two years later, President Woodrow Wilson campaigned under the slogan, “He kept us out of war.” But that was short-lived. The United States entered the conflict in 1917, at a cost of over 100,000 lives before an agreement was reached on November 11, 1918, to end hostilities. Total war deaths are estimated at between 15 and 19 million.

Be it happenstance or serendipity, the 100^th anniversary of Armistice Day, November 11, 2018, falls on a Sunday. It seems a perfect opportunity for a commemoration of those who served on all sides in one of the most brutal conflicts in human history.  It also offers an opportunity to raise up the hope of peace even as other wars continue, notably those in Syria, Yemen, and Afghanistan.

Our congregation worships at 8:00 and 10:30 am each Sunday, and I am planning a regular service at 8:00 using the appointed texts for the day (Lectionary 32). But, given the tradition of tolling bells at “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month,” we will offer a two-part worship opportunity at 10:30, with the bell toll in between.

The later service will open with a time of remembrance. Interwoven with Scripture and song will be snippets of the history of the war. Canadian Anthony Hutchcroft has written and performed a marvelous setting for the poem “In Flanders Fields,” having produced a video available on YouTube with dancing choreographed and directed by his wife Lee Kwidzinski. We’ll show the video as part of the war commemoration. Our congregation has also contacted our local American Legion Auxiliary to secure small paper poppies for all who attend.  While in the United States poppies have been more associated with Memorial Day in May, our British and Canadian friends have employed them on and around November 11, which, for them, is called “Remembrance Day.”

Our carillon will offer the sound of a tolling bell for a minute at 11:00 am (done at local time,) joining in a “Bells of Peace” nationwide observance.  See https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/546-events/bell-tolling/bells-of-peace/4558-bells-of-peace-concept.html for more information.

Then, indeed, we will turn to peace, using the texts suggested for “Peace” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p. 63). We have ordered copies of “World Peace Prayer” by Marty Haugen and Satish Kumar, intending to include it as either a choral or congregational piece.  Likely the single meditation/sermon will take place in the second half hour.  We will likely close with “This is my song.” (ELW 887). A peal of bell sounds from our carillon would be a fitting conclusion as candles are extinguished.

Additional resources for Veteran’s Day are available from the ELCA website. There will also be an interfaith observance on Sunday, November 11 at 10:00 am, at the Washington National Cathedral.  I’m told that the service will be streamed on the Internet, and will likely be available via recording.

Options are many, but the observance seems worthy of our attention as God’s people, particularly as we lift up the One who is our Prince of Peace, our Lord Jesus Christ.