Have you ever been driving along in your car and seen a whole bunch of big orange cones? Or bright orange signs?
What’s happening when you see that?
Road construction.
Did you see any of those orange cones and those signs in church today?
That’s funny, because I noticed that there’s some road construction in our scripture readings today.
We heard from the prophet Isaiah about building a highway in the wilderness:
Make it straight! Every valley will be filled up, all the mountains and hills made low; the bumpy ground will be leveled out and everything rough made smooth.
And in the Gospel, Mark tells us that John the Baptist was out in the wilderness preparing the road for God.
Isaiah and John are both talking about building God’s Highway, the way to the Kingdom of God.
Where do you think God's Highway goes?
God’s Highway is the way for God to come into our world, and a way for us to get to God. (Because a good highway goes both directions)
The season of Advent is like the construction zone for God’s highway. There are signs to help us pay attention. Can you think of what some of the signs of Advent are?
[Advent wreath, label on the hymn board, purple vestments]
Our Advent signs aren’t usually big and orange, they help us remember that this is a special time and place for building a way to God, and a way for God to come to us.
Do you know what you need to do in a road construction zone?
Be careful, pay attention, slow down.
That’s true in Advent, too. When we’re in God’s construction zone, we need to slow down and pay attention. We have to help ourselves be quiet inside so we can hear God talking to us, and giving us directions.
Plan a time in your day, maybe right before you go to sleep, or after dinner, when you are very quiet. No games, no homework, no talking. Take nice deep breaths to help your body be quiet, close your eyes, and tell God you’re listening. Pay attention to the quiet for a few minutes. Sometimes God may come into your heart to tell you something. Sometimes, you’ll just hear the quiet, and that’s okay.
God made quiet, just like everything else.
We don’t use bulldozers in our Advent construction zone, but there are other things we can do to help build the road for God to come into our world.
Helping other people fills in the holes and levels out the road, and it helps us get closer to God.
Sit down with your family and talk about a way you can help someone. Think about whether you can donate chickens or goats to help a family get food, or help people at PADS get gloves and warm hats. Or maybe your grandmother or your neighbor just needs some help around the house.
And making peace smooths out the bumps in the road God uses to come to us.
Next time your brother does something to make you mad, instead of telling Mom, stop and tell your brother you love him, and do something nice for him. (It will surprise your brother and your mom)
And next time you’re about to do something that will make someone mad, stop and think if there is a way to make that person happy (you might even get more of what you want that way)
I have some Advent signs here for you to take home. [orange "God's Highway: Under Construction" signs]
You can put them on your fridge, or on the wall in your room, or on your notebook for school. These signs will remind us that it’s Advent, and God’s highway is under construction right now. They’ll remind us to slow down, pay attention, and help make a highway for God!
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