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I do not know about you, but I am terrible at waiting! In the never ending lines at the grocery store, I first stand on one foot, then the other, strike up conversations with all the other folks in cash register captivity, check out the latest headlines on the sensationalist magazines (by the way did you see the one about the baby who turns green when the moon is full?), count the tiles in the ceiling or engage in any other amusement I can think of to help pass the time. People much better than I probably use the time to meditate. It never occurs to me.

Perhaps it is more than waiting that is difficult for me. Perhaps it is that I really do not like the "Not Yet" time. I want to get there, not to be caught up in the getting there. Like writing sermons. There are two of us on staff who struggle with our sermon writing. It takes us awhile. First we fret over it a bit, then we write some of it and then we rethink it, and re work it. If you ask us to do much of anything else that week, we tell you we can’t. We have a sermon to write. I was working on this sermon, entering and deleting, entering and so on. Finally I threw up my hands, went down stairs and into the main office. I was explaining to Ruth that I was struggling and so was going to take a break. A very mischievous grin came across her face as she said: Oh, are you telling me it is "Not Yet?"

Advent is a time of waiting. It is a "Not Yet" time. Advent began as a six-week season of preparation for baptism at Christmas, paralleling the Season of Lent. Because Christmas was seen as a lesser festival, in the sixth century Advent was shortened to four weeks. Yet it is still intended to be a "little Lent" in which we are to reflect and prepare for the indwelling of Christ in our lives in a new way. It involves both repentance and hope. For many years the color used for Advent was purple, the same color used for Lent as it signifies repentance. Recently, many churches have begun to use a bright, dark blue to signify hope. Some may think that we are moving toward "Advent Light" by doing that. But holding onto hope, living in hope and letting hope lift and carry you through in the holy is very difficult. It actually may be easier to focus on repentance. It is probably easier yet to resist and fret as I do in the grocery line or at the sermon computer screen. During this season of "Not Yet" preparation time it is almost impossible to resist getting caught up in the distractions of the hype around us, or becoming census takers, counting off tasks, names and arrangements. Resting in or waiting in Hope may be the most difficult thing to do.

One way we can begin to grasp onto hope in this season is to hear again our story or stories. And while on the four Sunday’s of Advent we will hear John the Baptist’s call to repent, during this season we will also hear all those wonderful words from Isaiah about comforting God’s people and making rough places plain. Today we hear from Jeremiah. Jeremiah knew what it was like to live in a time of war, destruction, uncertainty, and fear. The Babylonians had just leveled Jerusalem, and those in the kingdom of Judah who survived the attack must have believed that God had abandoned them. Yet in these verses, Jeremiah speaks of God’s continuing promise to the people, bringing a message of hope into otherwise gloomy tidings. God will, keep the covenant with the people. For over 20 years, Jeremiah insisted that the people of Judah remain faithful to God, though he was arrested as a traitor and vehemently contradicted by false prophets. Jeremiah’s waiting through all that time was never passive. His life during that time was filled with hope and a stubborn faith in God’s promises. He was convinced that this God who had done so much for the people before, would surely continue to do so. To demonstrate his faith, in God’s presence and faithfulness to the people, Jeremiah even bought property at the very time others were fleeing from the area.

Jeremiah also reminds his listeners that there will be a new and righteous branch springing forth. This of course can be interpreted as a foretelling of the birth of Jesus, the ultimate promise, which we now experience both as hope and fulfillment. This righteousness of which Jeremiah speaks is however not just to be embodied in one individual; but is a gift of righteousness given to the community, to God’s people. Jeremiah tells those who are waiting that their hope resides in just being God’s people, and living lives that embody justice.

It is amazing is it not, how working together to improve someone else’s life or to bring about justice in some form really sparks the lives of those who are working toward that goal? Indeed we do hope it improves the lives of those we are working to help. But often there is at least as much befit received by those who are doing the giving as by those who are receiving.

It is no accident, I think that this time of year, our "not yet" time, is when we try in many ways to reach out to others, share with them and help them. Like Jeremiah, we are not passive, but living our faith and in that we often find strength, encouragement and hope.

Right now, here at CCC, it is almost like we are in two "Not Yet" times: the time of Advent and pastoral transition time. And so, it may be helpful to see what words Jeremiah speaks to us for both of these times.

First, if we are to have faith in God’s promises for the future, we need to remember God’s faithfulness to us in the past, and see where God has brought us thus far. Jeremiah could hold fast to God’s promises because he remembered and held fast to God’s past with the people. Surely much of his hope was derived from God’s covenant with Abraham, with Moses and with David. CCC is a church founded on a covenant. Each time we welcome new members, we read together our covenant. This church has a long and rich history since that covenant was first made. Periodically we make a kind of recovenant for a shorter period of time. Almost 10 years ago, this church developed a long-range plan. As a part of that plan, there were 7 aspirations. Last year, as a part of our planning for the celebration of the successful completion of the Keystones Campaign, some of us looked through those. It was amazing and energizing to see how far we had come! We had decided to stay in this location so as to be in ministry in and with this community. To do that, we needed to remodel and refurbish our building. We needed parking. It was not always easy, but here we are with a beautiful building and a parking lot. But we can rejoice in the wonderful leadership given by Jim, John and the lay leaders of the church during that time. Now, those who come into our building, comment regularly on the beauty and serviceability of it. And there are groups in mission and ministry to this community who use our space. One of the aspirations mentioned the need for small groups, and we now have 18 or 20 of them. I have lost count. And there is a system in place to evaluate and form new groups each year. Somewhere in that time, there was also a document written and adopted that calls for the development of the children’s and youth ministry at CCC. I came across that document the other day. As I quickly looked through it, I found myself saying: "We did that! We did that! As I thought about that document and the long-range plan, I thought, God sure has brought us a long way! All of the aspirations of the long-range plan may not have been met. But maybe "Not Yet" time is a good time to review those and see how far God has brought us. As we do that we may find New Hope; New Hope for the future and many causes to celebrate our recent past which also gives us hope. Advent is also a time of preparation. So, it may also be a good time to prepare to develop a new long-range plan and begin to think about what promises and ministries God might still have in store for this church.

Dale and I have felt privileged to journey with you. And our departure from ministry with you will be hard for us as well as for you, as he mentioned in his sermon two weeks ago. We will need to find ways to deal with that departure just as you will. One of the best ways I know is to review that time, and tell all the funny stories. I am sure we will do plenty of that. But the perspective we have on that time also makes a big difference. I few weeks ago, I was in a meeting with Shirley Coll. There had been some wringing of hands about our retirement. Then Shirley spoke up. She pointed out that this was also a time to celebrate, because CCC has gotten just what was needed and what was planned. Dale and I were asked to come for 3 to 5 years to develop programs for children, youth and older adults and to help this congregation grieve, and put one foot in front of the other after some very painful losses. That has happened and now you are in the search process. CCC is exactly where we had hoped to be at this time. Search processes are much easier if the church has a full program in place, which it is, here at CCC. And while the search process often produces anxiety, it is a good process and the search committee is an excellent one. And if one borrows Jeremiah’s stubborn faith, the search committee has a simple job. God has someone in mind for this church at this time. The only thing the committee has to do is find that person or persons. This may be the only time a minister will tell you to be stubborn. So enjoy it. During this "Not Yet" time we need to stubbornly hang on to the faith that the God who has brought us thus far will not abandon us now. And there my friends, is real hope.

There is a place in this church where hope is abounding, of which you may not even be aware. That is in the working of the Boards. They are working well, are focused and are off and running. They are definitely not in a passive mode. In particular, I want to mention the Board for Social Witness. Right on schedule, now that we are back in the building and settled in a bit, that are beginning to assess the needs of our community to discover what kind of mission and ministry we need to be about if we are to serve in this community. They are making arrangements for someone who knows those needs, to take them on a tour. They are also visiting programs already in existence. As I left the other evening I thought, yes! A righteous branch is sprouting. And out of that will surely come visions for how both our building can be used for and our congregation can be about promoting justice and witness. This is, real hope, in the "Not Yet" time.

And so, let us pray that as we live awaiting the fullness of God’s promises in all of our Advents, that we will be kept faithful, strong in hope, and active in service. Amen

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