Saint Michael's Anglican Church

The light is already breaking in. The desert is still singing. The story in not over. Today’s gospel on the third Sunday of Advent, which is traditionally called Gaudete Sunday—using the Latin word for “Rejoice”, is a call to transformative generosity. It’s that mid-Advent breath when the church continues travelling to Bethlehem. Yes, waiting is weary work, but joy is part of the waiting too.” Yet the joy Isaiah offers isn’t the Hallmark kind. It’s not about pretending the desert isn’t real. It’s the kind of joy that takes the desert seriously and still believes something living can grow there.

Faith in Practice

This week, do something small but holy—one act that makes a bit more room for life to grow. Write that apology note, plant something green, fix what’s torn, or cook for someone who needs the comfort. When you light the Advent candle, name the ache that’s still here and let it sit beside your joy. Don’t rush to certainty; pray instead for courage to keep walking the road between ruin and bloom, trusting that God is already turning the desert into dialogue.
Where in your life might God be clearing space for something new to grow? How can we practice joy as resistance? Where are you being called to mend what is broken?

Prayer: God of power and mercy, you call us once again to celebrate the coming of your Son. Remove those things which hinder love of you, that when he comes, he may find us waiting in awe and wonder for him who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. 

A new Christian convert, Ebenezer, attended a church service for the first time. As he stepped into the church and walked toward the altar, he heard the catechist proclaiming aloud, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near”—one of the sentences often read at the beginning of every service according to the Book of Common Prayer.

On hearing these words, Ebenezer broke down in tears. When asked what was wrong, he replied, “Why now? Why is the kingdom near today of all days, when I am just beginning my Christian journey? I have not even been baptized or confirmed. How can I be sure I will make heaven if the kingdom is already near?”

The catechist gently explained that the sentence is read every Sunday as a ‘wake-up call’ to everyone, not as a warning directed at him personally. He reassured Ebenezer and continued to guide him as he grew in his Christian walk.

In our Gospel today, we hear that same message from John the Baptist echoing: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2). It is a reminder to prepare our hearts to welcome Jesus into our lives as we look forward to celebrating His birth. The kingdom of God became incarnate in Jesus and entered human history in human form.

May God grant us the grace to embrace this kingdom as we look forward to Christmas.

⁴⁴ Always be ready! You don’t know when the Son of Man will come, Matthew 24: Advent is the first season of the church year, beginning with the fourth Sunday before Christmas and continuing through the day before Christmas. The name is derived from a Latin word for “coming.” The season is a time of preparation and expectation for the coming celebration of our Lord’s nativity, and for the final coming of Christ “in power and glory.” It is also a time for reflection and renewal of hope and for a movement towards a beginning.

Traditionally, Anglican parishes set up in the church with four candles. These traditionally represent 1) the Patriarchs, 2) the Prophets, 3) John the Baptist, and 4) the Blessed Virgin Mary. Another popular representation is 1) Hope, 2) Peace, 3) Love, and 4) Joy. Often a fifth candle (white) is placed in the centre of the wreath to be lit on Christmas Eve and throughout the Christmas season.

In a world that is filled more and more every day with tempting distractions, like cell phones, tech gifts, and pop-up advertisements everywhere, it is easy to fall into the trap of trying to consume the newest trend. This Advent can be a time to prepare for Christmas by stopping the drunken consumption of the newest thing. To put our phones down and stop the worry that is only a notification away. “Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life.” —Luke 21:34.

Prayer: Almighty God, as your kingdom dawns, turn us from the darkness of sin to the light of holiness, so that we may be ready to meet you in our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Common Worship: Additional Collects (2004) alt.

Pray Hopefully and Constantly! Central to our Anglican-Christian devotion is our practice of common worship. We believe that prayers are theologically and spiritually transformative. For our worship today, it might be appropriate to ask what belief is being shaped through the persistent prayers of the widow in Jesus’ parable.

What rule of belief is shaped by this parable about prayer? In praying like the persistent widow, we see that prayer is about both our relationship with God and our relationships with one another. In prayer, we expand our ability to believe in God’s just work in the world and our role as partners in that work.

Distilling the message of being faithful, Jesus seeks a way to teach his disciples: Do not give up! Do not lose hope! Perhaps Jesus, knowing the scope of God’s abundance says to himself, “Ah, here it is: a story about a stubborn judge and a woman who does not give up hope.”

How are you being invited to remain persistent in proclaiming the salvation you have received? In what ways has your participation in the prayers of the church shaped your own belief? How have those beliefs shaped your practice of prayer inside and outside the walls of the building?

Prayer: Almighty God,  who inspired Luke the physician to proclaim the love and healing power of your Son, give your Church, by the grace of the Spirit and the medicine of the gospel, the same love and power to heal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. 

(For All the Saints, The A.C.C.) 

Happy Thanksgiving! We often invite families and friends over to share our meal during this time and celebrate Thanksgiving day. We, Anglican Christians, also celebrate the “riches of God’s creation” and the bounty of the earth. 

By the time of the Hebrew Bible, this tradition was well established. For instance, Deuteronomy 16:10 says, “Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you.” This shows that the Jewish people were expressing their gratitude to God for a successful harvest, a tradition carried into Christianity.

Canadian Thanksgiving is a time to relax, reflect, and to be grateful for the blessings we have and the friendships that continue to be cherished gifts in our lives.

Prayer: Almighty one, today we lift our prayer of thanksgiving to you for the blessings and gifts seen and unseen. We thank you for the sun which courses across the sky to remind us of the precious moments that we are granted this day and every day. Grant us the wisdom and vision to see these days and moments as the true gifts that they are, guard us from being distracted by the busyness of the day and the work before us, that we might see the other beside us and you who goes with us. Bless us this day to be a blessing to others, open our hearts to go forth in love as you have called and loved us first. This we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.