Luke 1:46-55 ⁴⁶ And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, ⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, ⁴⁸ for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; ⁴⁹ for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. ⁵⁰ His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. ⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. ⁵² He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; ⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. ⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, ⁵⁵ according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

This week we will begin our mid-week Advent services. After we sit down and share a meal together, we will worship using Holden Evening Prayer. This prayer service was written for the Holden Community, a group of Lutherans who gather on the west coast of the USA every winter. Now the group has sparked off a summer camp, and the Evening prayer service has become very popular among Lutherans throughout the states.

One reason that this prayer service is so fitting for Advent is that it uses the words of the Magnificat, which can also be found above. This song, sung by Mary the mother of our Lord, expresses the joy of what God is doing in the life of his people. Mary had recently found out that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit, and that her sister Elizabeth was also pregnant. Elizabeth, who was said to be barren, would become the mother of John the Baptist, the one whom we read about proclaiming the coming of the Messiah.

This story from Luke shows how God was working in the lives of his people, empowering them to be able to accomplish the things that God had chosen for them to bear. They all rejoiced about what God was doing in their lives, giving thanks and praise for the many blessings that they had.

Each of us has many blessings as well. As we approach the season where we see the ultimate gift from God, let us thank and praise and rejoice at the gifts God has given us, and how he is working in our lives, empowering us to be the people that we are.

In our prayers this week: Linwood, Buddy, Ann, Alma (moving to an apartment at Rosecrest), Michael, Chris, Brenton, Lee, and Fairy.

God's Peace,

 Pastor Judson