Advent – Wonder – nk moments

Advent is a time to wonder. Who of us can truly fathom that Almighty God came to earth as a baby born in a manger? How can we begin to comprehend that the Christ Child is both fully God and fully human? In the song, “I Hope You Dance”, Mark D. Sanders writes, “I hope you never lose your sense of wonder…I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean…”. Wonder is quite critical in our journey to the manger. We will see Jesus and awestruck, we will rejoice at the wonder of it all.

Recently I participated in a time of “wondering” at Lanier Theological Library. A panel of theologians and Hebrew Bible scholars discussed the meaning of the Hebrew word “Hesed”. There are 169 different translations for this word, and it is used 245 times in the Bible. There is not an exact word in English, but those included might be loving kindness, grace, mercy, faithfulness, steadfast love. Hesed is a relationship term and it is always something God gives. Hesed incorporates the understanding that we have no right to expect anything, but God gives everything. God will give Godself. The strong commitment by God to deliver God’s people is wrapped up in the word Hesed.

All of this wondering about the truest meaning of the word took place in a chapel which is a reconstruction of a 500 a.d. church in Turkey. The view in the video is the altar as seen sitting in the pew. In closing, we all sang “El Shaddai” in unison. The Hebrew words in the song are “God Almighty, the Most High God, O Lord, we will love you!” (You may need to turn up the volume to hear)

Voices proclaiming together the magnitude and timelessness of Almighty God seemed to join in chorus with voices of 500 a.d. in a breathtaking stillness. Above the altar the arms of “Hesed” reached out to embrace us all in one holy moment.

A few days later I returned to the chapel with two friends. The three of us were alone there. As they sat in different pews and contemplated the beauty all around, I laid down on the floor, flat on my back in the center of the nave. I looked up at the dome above me.