Some of us are angry today.[i] Some of us have been angry at various points this year. Some of us have been angry the past several years, over the way things went. Some of us are angry that people can seem so inhuman to us. And some of us are angry that others misconstrue their perceptions of us to turn us into their enemies.

Some of us are angry. And some of us direct all of our feeling, all of our worry, all of our fear, all of our frustration at others – labelling them our enemies, pinning all of our problems on them.

Some of us are still unsure the water we drink is safe. Some of us are living neighborhoods where the pipes are old and watermains regularly burst in the freezing cold of winter. Who would you direct your anger at when you are unable to access water that you have paid utility bills for, but cannot count on, at least not as much as you’d expect?

Some of us don’t have enough money to put dinner on the table.  Some tens of millions of Americans will have experience food insecurity each year – unable to afford groceries, skipping meals, making sure that their children eat, while they sip on water. Grocery prices have risen over 25 percent from what they were four years ago.[ii] Who would you direct your anger at if you were unsure your family would have enough eat?

Some of us are living in tents in the woods or out on the streets, wearing socks and shoes that don’t keep out the cold, and wishing for an ounce of warmth as the weather turns. Some of us are laboring under the weight of insurmountable debt, or of growing costs of living, or of shrinking savings.

Some of us are ailing – in spirit, and in body – and wish they knew they were not alone. Some of us are depressed, anxious, recovering from surgery, or still recovering from unexpected illness, including members of my family, and members of yours as well. Some of us are ailing.

Who would you direct your anger at when you contemplate disruptions to your life, when you consider poverty, when you ruminate on illness?

When we face difficulty, we want to fix it, and we want to solve it. Our anger alerts us to a problem we need to fix. Too often, we believe that fighting will get us what we want. We hope to see our enemies get what they deserve. We  want some sense of justice, even if it’s retributive and not restorative.

But that is not for us. God didn’t make us a people who are angry all the time. God did not make us a people who nurse grudges and cultivate plans and dreams of harm done to those we blame for the evils of the world and the trials we have endured.

God made us a people of the Way, the Way of Christ, the Way of love and grace, the Way of reconciliation and peace, the Way of patience and hope, the Way of welcoming those we do not know, the Way of learning to care for others. And God will call us sheep on that final day, and welcome us as well at his right hand.

But some of us will scoff at that promise, deny its power, and refuse to allow the God to deliver us from evil. We can choose, if we want to dwell in our anger. We can choose if we want to live self-centered, petty, calculating, and hateful lives – have things just the way we want it. We can choose.

Or, we can believe in that word, “When:” When the Son of Man comes. When we see God among us, when we see the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned, when we see the hurting, then we have seen God. When we see the vulnerable and needy, then we have seen God. When we see the powerless, then we have seen God.

Have you seen God this week? What if our attention could be pulled beyond our grudges and grievances? What if we could be lifted out of our tired stories of the world and about our enemies? What if we believed in that word, When? That word, When, is a statement of faith. It declares, that the presence of God is near. It demands of us our compassion, when we find someone whom we would rather ignore. Because it is then that we have seen God.

Maybe you’ve felt a little distanced from others. Maybe you’ve felt, because of that isolation, that you haven’t seen God’s face recently.

It is my prayer that we can overcome this unintended distance from each other by sharing our experiences. Over Advent, I hope to make time in each service for individuals to share how the past few years have affected you and your loved ones: How have you been blessed? What have been your major concerns? What major adjustments have you had to make? What enlightenment or insight have you acquired recently? If you have personal Bible Study, what passages affected you the most or have given you the greatest difficulty to come to terms with?

In this way, your words, your growth, your wanderings, can be known to others. You can be known to those in this congregation.

And beyond this place, you are known, to the One who is above all, and with all, and in all. That One knows your name, and is close at hand to be your Shepherd, your Guide – never to abandon you or forsake you, always to care for you and bring you through whatever trials and tribulations come your way. It is a promise which can bring calmness and peace.

And there is a prayer, uttered by a faithful person, which brings me calm:

Holy One,

in this turbulent world I seek your peace,

for you are the rock in the river, unperturbed.

Or is it: you are the flowing of the river, unceasing.

Or, you are the sea that gathers them both.

Ah, I see: you are the gravity that holds

the rock and the river and the sea and the sky.

Beloved, I belong to you.

That is enough.[iii]

Whatever you are hoping for, whatever you are lacking, whatever you are missing, of course it will cause anger to grow in you. And your anger will push you to find an answer. You can look for something to be angry at over which you have power. Or you can search for a response to your cries, a healing balm, a guide, a protector. You will find it in Christ, the grace and love of God, which wins over the forces of the world – unruliness and capriciousness, selfishness and callousness. The lamb that was slain, is the shepherd and savior of all things.

So what do we have to do? All we need is to understand in our hearts that Jesus is Lord. Jesus is our Lord, our Good Shepherd, our guide to bring us at last to green pastures and still waters. All we need to do is to look forward to that day: When we see God, when we encounter someone else whose needs demand a response of love.

What if that day is today? What if you will see God when you meet someone in despair? What if you give that person what he or she wants – a response of love, healing, guidance, protection? What if you make today the day that someone else has been looking forward to? What if you decided to make “When” turn into now? Now, the Son of Man comes. Now, is the day of the Lord.

Would you believe this? I pray you would, by the power of the Holy Spirit, which is alighting upon us, and alive within each of us.

I invite your response. Amen.

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[i] https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/11/david-french-secession-divided-we-fall-gist-transcript.html

[ii] https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/food-inflation-in-the-united-states/

[iii] Steve Garnaas-Holmes, “The Rock in the River,” Unfolding Light, November 19, 2020, http://www.unfoldinglight.net