The Third Sunday of Advent

If you started the family Christmas tradition of having an Advent wreath, you might like to use these words to celebrate the lighting of the third candle this Sunday.

The shepherds in the Christmas story (Luke 2:12-14) were out tending their sheep. They were outcast and mocked.  Shepherds banded together as they shared in the dirty, smelly work of sheep farming. While on the night shift one evening in the hills close to Bethlehem, the sky lights up, and they hear the sound of angels singing. They were told to go to go to Bethlehem to see the king who has been born there. When they see Jesus, they are filled with joy: “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.” (Luke 2:20) Joy was pulsing through their veins that night because they believed what they had been told.

Happiness is a word we use for a temporary state of well-being brought on by positive experiences. If we get a bonus check at work, we are happy. If we go on a fabulous vacation, we are happy. Joy is different in the Bible. Joy is not fleeting like happiness and does not change with our circumstances. Joy is a constant state of well-being. Joy is when we know that believing God is trustworthy and then acting on that belief. Joy grows inside us as we learn to thank God in all circumstances. The shepherds’ hearts were filled with a lasting gladness that night.

The Christmas scripture, John 3:16, tells us “For God so loved the world that he gave us His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This Christmas miracle of Emmanuel, meaning “God with us,” can fill us again with Joy if we become like a child and simply believe!

As you light the third Christmas candle, light the first and second candles and be reminded that “Joy” can dominate our day. Let God deliver the joy! Joy is a gift that comes from God. We cannot manufacture it, but we can welcome it. Joy is more powerful than happiness!

Prayer: God, like the shepherds, our hearts are filled with gladness. Thank You for sending Jesus so we may have eternal joy! Amen.

Luke 2:20 – “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”

By the Rev. Tommy Herndon
Image: Adobe iStock