Advent: God With Us
Matthew 1:22-23
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).”
Immanuel, God with All of Us
For those who (in this season) tap their feet in hopeful expectation,
And for those who serve with full hearts: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) bring glad tidings to weary souls,
And for those who give freely from their overflow: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) speak words of life to the discouraged,
And for those who champion noble causes: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) mourn invisibly for lost loved ones,
And for those who grieve for the living with broken hearts: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) pull the covers over their heads to hide from the day,
And for those who feel their cheese is always falling off their cracker: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) simply cannot seem to remember,
And for those who only wish they could forget: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) panic,
And for those who fill with dread at every new calendar notification: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) live the cycles of addiction and recovery,
And for those who toil in systems that take more than they will ever give: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) look out in wonder,
And for those who exhausted by the complexity of it all: Immanuel, God with us.
For those who (in this season) are considered friends
And for those who are treated as enemies: Immanuel, God with us.
For you and yours and me and mine,
For ours together: Immanuel, God with all of us.
Amen.
McAfee School of Theology
Advent Service: Carols and Lessons
November 28, 2023
Nathan Cost
Nathan is the Director of the Center for Calling and Vocational Formation at McAfee School of Theology, a role he began in 2022 after serving as the Director of Admissions since 2018. He received his MTS from Candler School of Theology and his BA in History and Education from Lipscomb University. Prior to McAfee, Nathan served as a teacher, administrator, and researcher in contexts across America and around the world.