Choose to hope

“We could choose to despair over the problems of the world. We could choose to be silent about the injustices we see. We could choose to close our eyes to the pain of others and become more isolated and insular as the threats of the economy loom.

“Or we could choose to hope. We could choose to speak. We could choose to see the brokenness—remembering that wounds are also doors for opportunity, for transformation, reconciliation, and healing. We could choose to take the chaos that lies before us, and use it to be creative, to reshape a world in which people are more valuable than money.”

I read this quotation as I was exploring the World Hunger page on the ELCA website the other day. These words, spoken at the opening of a fundraiser for the World Hunger Appeal, struck me as very simple and very wise words—words to ponder in our hearts as we enter into this Advent season. These weeks leading up to Christmas will not be like other years. Usually this is a time of conspicuous consumption and excess. Rather than being about the coming of Christ into the world, it is too often about us and all of the “stuff” we want. Our behavior during this season too often makes the discrepancy between rich and poor all that much more apparent, but we don’t want to see it. We want only to see the pretty lights and shiny presents with our name on them.

What makes it possible to comprehend the words in the quotation is the promise of Advent, the coming of Emmanuel, God with us. In his weakness, in his vulnerability as an infant laid in a manger, and then as a homeless, crucified, and resurrected man, Jesus showed the power of God to heal, reconcile, and transform not only us, but all of creation—even death. We do not need to try to prove to anyone or anything that we are powerful or mighty or important, whether it’s through violent means or by outspending our neighbor, especially when what our neighbor actually needs is food on the table or a warm coat. As people of faith, we do not need a lot of “stuff’ to give us our identity. We have our identity in Christ Jesus, who walked humbly and poured himself out for the sake of the world. Through his brokenness, we are healed. Through the power of God’s love for us, we are empowered to live as people of hope, as Christ’s Body in the world.

As we enter into Advent, I invite you to immerse yourself in Scripture and hymnody that recalls the agony and expectation of those who waited for and then experienced the coming of the Messiah into the world. I invite you to immerse yourself in prayer that recalls how we still wait in agony and expectation for the fulfillment of God’s promises, for that time when there will be no more suffering, no more tears, no more war. And in the meantime, I invite you to celebrate Advent and Christmas differently this year, by giving to those who have too little, rather than by giving more to those who already have plenty. I invite you to consider giving to the ELCA World Hunger Appeal or to Lutheran Disaster Relief. Gifts can be given in honor or in memory of people you love, and cards can be sent to them letting them know you’ve made a donation in their name. There are local charities as well, such as our own hunger ministry, the Sharing Place.

In this chaotic time of economic turmoil, the poorest among us are suffering the most. Let us not despair, but begin to live a new way. Christ called us to be salt and light for the world, and that is what we are.