God Cares

Listening to these readings from the Bible the one overriding theme that speaks to us, I think, is that God cares. He cares whether we’re thirsty. He cares whether we’re scared; he cared enough to send his Son, Jesus, to save the world, a world that was pretty messed up then and I think you’d agree is still pretty messed up today.

God loved us enough to send us an Advocate, his Holy Spirit, after Jesus ascended into heaven, which means we’re never alone. God is always with us.

For some folks that gives them hope and for others it leaves them uncomfortable because if God is always with us he knows every mistake we’ve ever made.  By the same token he also knows how often we’ve succeeded in walking in the Way of Jesus.

God knows our needs before we ever get around to talking to him in prayer. His invitation to us is always an open invitation to “come” when we’re thirsty, when we’re hungry, when we’re too scared to step out alone, when we’re grieving a loved one dying.

God has told us time and again to not be afraid, but we still are.  Even though we forget, even when we try to go it alone, even then God still cares. He never abandons us. God’s always ready to give us his best.

And there’s no hidden agenda with God. He just asks us to come, listen, seek, and believe. 

In this season of Advent when nights are too long and days are too short we are reminded that God sent his Son to be the Light of the World, a world that was hiding in the darkness, a world that still hides in the darkness.  In John’s gospel reading Jesus says, “whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.” God cared for this world so much he sent the Light into the world to drive back the darkness.

          God cares. God cares that a family is missing their mother, their grandmother, their great-grandmother, their friend. God cares, that’s why he has us gather together to celebrate the lives of these saints so we can support each other, so God’s love can flow from friends to family and back again.

God cares. He cared for Norma and he cares for her family. And he cares for every one of you gathered here this morning. And my friends, that the Good News for us, God cares for us. God loves us. God desires an intimate relationship with us.

Thanks be to God for his loving grace. Amen.