Debra K. Brazzel - "Unexpected Company" (November 29, 1992)

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	(joyful brass band music)	0:00
	Like to welcome you to Duke Chapel	1:16
	on this first Sunday of Advent.	1:18
	Lemme call a couple of announcements to your attention.	1:21
	This coming weekend will be a big weekend	1:24
	for us here at Duke Chapel	1:26
	with our annual performances of "The Messiah"	1:28
	on December the fourth at 7:30,	1:31
	December the fifth at two p.m.,	1:34
	and December the sixth at three p.m..	1:36
	Tickets are on sale at Page Auditorium Box Office	1:39
	for those performances.	1:43
	We'd also like to call to your attention	1:45
	an opportunity to be involved in service	1:47
	during this time of the year.	1:49
	Project Share provides opportunities	1:51
	for you to share your Christmas	1:54
	with those who are less fortunate.	1:56
	Let me also call to your attention the Advent calendar	1:58
	listed on the back of your bulletin.	2:02
	It lists the full series of activities	2:04
	that will be happening at Duke Chapel	2:07
	during this busy and joyful season of the year.	2:09
	Please stand now as we continue our worship	2:12
	with the greeting.	2:15
	Now is the time of watching and waiting.	2:23
	(audience murmuring)	2:27
	Now is the season of hope unfolding.	2:31
	(audience murmuring)	2:34
	Let us come before God with receptive and willing spirits.	2:39
	(audience murmuring)	2:44
	Rejoice, God comes to bring the birthday of life and hope.	2:51
	(organ music)	2:58
-	May we remain standing for our opening prayer.	5:30
	In the Advent season,	5:35
	when the past has fled unasked away,	5:38
	and there is nothing left to do but wait,	5:43
	God shelter us.	5:48
	Be our surrounding darkness.	5:52
	Be the fertile soil out of which hope springs in due time	5:55
	and uncertain times.	6:02
	Help us to great the dawn and labor on,	6:05
	love on in faith, awaiting your purpose hid in you.	6:10
	Waiting to be born in due time.	6:17
	Amen.	6:21
	Please be seated.	6:23
-	Let us pray the prayer for illumination.	6:32
	Open our hearts and minds, oh God,	6:37
	by the power of your Holy Spirit	6:40
	so that as the word is read and proclaimed,	6:43
	we might be prepared for your advent among us.	6:46
	Amen.	6:50
	The first reading is taken from the words	6:53
	of the prophet Isaiah, the second chapter,	6:55
	starting with the first verse.	6:59
	The word that Isaiah son of Amos saw concerning	7:01
	Judah and Jerusalem.	7:05
	In the days to come the mountain of the Lord's house	7:08
	shall be established as the highest of the mountains	7:10
	and shall be raised above the hills.	7:14
	All the nations shall stream to it.	7:16
	Many peoples shall come and say,	7:19
	"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,	7:22
	"to the house of the God of Jacob,	7:25
	"that he may teach us his ways,	7:28
	"and that we may walk in his path."	7:30
	For out of Zion should go forth instruction	7:33
	in the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.	7:37
	He shall judge between the nations	7:40
	and shall arbitrate for many peoples.	7:43
	They shall beat their swords into plow shares	7:46
	and their spears into pruning hooks.	7:49
	Nations shall not lift up sword against nation.	7:52
	Neither shall they learn war anymore.	7:55
	Oh house of Jacob, come, let us walk	7:59
	in the light of the Lord.	8:02
	This is the word of the lord.	8:04
	(audience murmuring)	8:07
-	Please stand for the reading of the psalter.	8:14
	Our psalter this morning is Psalm 122	8:21
	which is on page 845,	8:24
	845 in your hymnal.	8:29
	Praise to the Lord's anointed.	8:36
	Great David's greater son.	8:38
	I was glad when they said to me,	8:42
	"Let us go to the house of the Lord."	8:45
	(audience murmuring)	8:49
	Jerusalem is built as a city	8:53
	and is firmly bound together,	8:57
	to which the tribes go up.	9:00
	The tribes of the Lord, to give thanks	9:02
	to the name of the Lord, as was decreed for Israel.	9:06
	(audience murmuring)	9:11
	Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.	9:17
	(audience murmuring)	9:21
	For the sake of my relatives and friends,	9:29
	I will say peace be within you.	9:32
	(audience murmuring)	9:37
	(organ music)	9:44
-	This reading is taken from the 13th chapter	10:50
	of Paul's letter to the Romans.	10:53
	Starting with the 11th verse.	10:55
	Besides this, you know what time it is.	10:58
	How it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep.	11:02
	For salvation is nearer to us now	11:06
	than when we became believers.	11:08
	The night is far gone and the day is near.	11:10
	Let us then lay aside the works of darkness	11:15
	and put on the armor of light.	11:18
	Let us live honorably as in the day.	11:21
	Not in reveling and drunkenness,	11:24
	not in debauchery and licentiousness,	11:26
	not in quarreling and jealousy.	11:29
	Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ	11:32
	and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.	11:35
	This is the word of the Lord.	11:40
	(audience murmuring)	11:43
	(joyful brass band music)	11:54
-	Our gospel text is from the book of Matthew	14:27
	chapter 24 beginning with verse 36.	14:30
	But about that day and hour no one knows.	14:35
	Neither the angels of heaven, nor the son,	14:39
	but only the father.	14:43
	For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming	14:45
	of the son of man.	14:49
	For as in those days before the flood,	14:51
	they were eating and drinking,	14:54
	marrying and giving in marriage.	14:56
	Until the day Noah entered the ark	14:59
	and they knew nothing until the flood came	15:02
	and swept them all away.	15:06
	So too will be the coming of the son of man.	15:08
	Then two will be in the field, one will be taken	15:12
	and one will be left.	15:16
	Two women will be grinding meal together.	15:18
	One will be taken and one will be left.	15:22
	Keep awake therefore, for you do not know	15:26
	on what day your Lord is coming.	15:29
	But understand this, if the owner of the house	15:32
	had known in what part of the night the thief was coming,	15:35
	he would have stayed awake and he would not	15:39
	have let his house be broken into.	15:42
	Therefore you also must be ready.	15:46
	For the son of man is coming at an unexpected hour.	15:49
	This is the word of the Lord.	15:56
	Thanks be to God.	15:59
	Today is the first Sunday of Advent.	16:03
	That annual time of the Christian year	16:06
	that marks both an ending and the beginning.	16:09
	The ending of the calendar year,	16:14
	the beginning of the church year.	16:16
	A time of looking back over the year's accomplishments	16:19
	and failures, successes and disappointments.	16:23
	A time of looking forward to the future,	16:28
	a time of anxiety and anticipation.	16:31
	A time of fear and hope.	16:35
	It's appropriate that Advent comes in winter	16:39
	for winter reflects the ambiguities of this season	16:42
	of the church year.	16:46
	The increasing darkness that makes us long for the light.	16:48
	The barrenness of the land that yet carries within it	16:52
	the seeds of new life.	16:56
	The cold that threatens us with death,	16:59
	but encourages us to huddle closer for warmth.	17:02
	It is a season pregnant with unspoken expectations	17:07
	and yearnings, uneasy yet hopeful.	17:11
	During Advent the Christian community resembles	17:16
	the Greek mythological god Janus	17:19
	who simultaneously looks backward and forward.	17:22
	As a faith community we look back to remember	17:27
	past Advents, the times throughout human history	17:30
	when God has come among us.	17:35
	And we look forward with anticipation and hope	17:38
	to that day when God will come again.	17:41
	Our scriptures tell us of a God who's continually reached	17:45
	toward us to bridge the gap between the divine	17:49
	and the human.	17:53
	Ours is not an indifferent god, holy and distant.	17:54
	But a God who desires to be in relationship with us	17:58
	even as a father with his children.	18:02
	We remember with gratitude many signs of God's	18:06
	self revelation and love that have nourished our faith.	18:09
	God's covenant promise to Abraham	18:14
	to build a nation from Sarah's barrenness.	18:17
	God's gift of the law to Moses on the mountain top	18:21
	to teach the proper orderings of human existence.	18:24
	God's deliverance of Israel from bondage in Egypt.	18:28
	And God's ultimate act of self giving love	18:33
	through the birth, death and resurrection	18:36
	of his only son, Jesus Christ,	18:40
	who became fully human that we might be fully redeemed.	18:43
	We look back and remember these faith stories	18:48
	that have shaped our identity and self understanding	18:51
	as a Christian community	18:54
	and they give us hope to face an unknown future.	18:56
	We can face the future with confidence	19:00
	because of what God has already done for us.	19:02
	Advent is the time when we as a people of faith	19:06
	look at our church and our world and our history	19:09
	and say yes, no matter what else has happened,	19:12
	God has been with us.	19:16
	Even though millions have died of starvation this year	19:20
	in Somalia and countless Muslims have been driven	19:24
	from their homes in Bosnia,	19:27
	God has been with us.	19:30
	Even though millions are homeless on the streets	19:34
	of the United States, and winter's cold	19:37
	and darkness is descending upon them, God has been with us.	19:40
	Even though ours is the most violent industrial country	19:46
	in the world, God has been with us.	19:50
	During Advent the Christian church looks squarely	19:55
	at the growing darkness and proclaims with confidence	19:59
	that the light of Christ has come into the world	20:03
	and that the darkness has not	20:06
	and shall not overcome the light.	20:09
	The season of Advent also invites us to look back	20:14
	and reflect upon our own lives,	20:16
	our hopes and disappointments, successes and failures,	20:19
	our faithfulness and sinfulness.	20:23
	It's a time to look back and listen.	20:26
	Where has God been present in your life in the past year?	20:29
	How have you responded to God's presence?	20:34
	Are you prepared for God to come into your life once again?	20:38
	Most of you have known times when you've felt	20:44
	especially close to God.	20:46
	Perhaps it was during a lonely night	20:49
	when you felt empty and lost and God's love found you,	20:51
	and filled you.	20:55
	Perhaps you discovered the love of Christ	20:57
	through a friend who reached out to you	21:00
	in just the way that you needed to be loved.	21:02
	Or maybe you experienced God's love reaching for you	21:07
	in the same moment that you reached out in compassion	21:10
	to someone else.	21:13
	Mother Theresa says that she never hurries	21:15
	as she goes among the dying children in Calcutta.	21:18
	She says I don't want to hastily pass by even one person.	21:21
	That the eyes of these children I'm looking at	21:26
	might be the eyes of Jesus Christ.	21:29
	Sometimes as we reach out in love to someone who's hurting	21:33
	we're startled to find God's love reaching	21:37
	for us through them.	21:40
	God's Advent usually takes us by surprise.	21:43
	We may be preoccupied with our own lives or pain	21:48
	and suddenly experience the in-breaking	21:51
	of that holy other seeking us.	21:54
	In that moment we know with certainty	21:57
	that whatever else may be happening,	22:00
	God is with us.	22:02
	The experience of God's holiness is awe-filled,	22:06
	unexpected and decisive.	22:11
	We can't encounter God and walk away unaffected	22:14
	by the experience of God's unconditional love.	22:18
	When we experience God's love reaching out	22:22
	toward us it always demands a response	22:25
	of obedient love from us.	22:29
	Perhaps it means forgiving someone	22:32
	we've harbored resentment toward for a past hurt.	22:34
	Perhaps it means making some sacrifice	22:38
	that we've been resisting.	22:41
	Perhaps it means reordering our priorities.	22:43
	It might even mean a total change of life direction.	22:46
	One night when I felt especially down about my work,	22:52
	I prayed for a sense of guidance.	22:55
	For greater motivation, to be better at my job,	22:58
	for better use of my time.	23:01
	Suddenly I felt a powerful sense of God's presence with me.	23:04
	I knew that Christ was with me	23:09
	and I felt that my prayer, my whole being	23:11
	was accepted by God in that moment.	23:14
	I can't describe the sense of joy	23:17
	and peace that that gave me.	23:20
	But the outcome of this encounter wasn't exactly	23:23
	what I had planned.	23:26
	Within six months I had left a lucrative sales position	23:27
	to respond to God's call to attend seminary	23:31
	and prepare for the ministry.	23:34
	God's Advent can definitely be life changing.	23:37
	Whenever we unexpectedly encounter the holy in our lives,	23:42
	it is always an experience of both judgment and grace.	23:47
	Judgment because we suddenly see ourselves	23:52
	as God sees us, selfish, manipulative, prideful,	23:54
	greedy, judgmental, whatever our sin may be,	23:59
	it becomes clear in the presence of God's light.	24:05
	But the encounter with God is never an experience	24:09
	of judgment alone.	24:11
	God came to us through Jesus Christ in order	24:13
	to free us from the power of sin,	24:16
	exposure to the light of Christ reveals our sin,	24:18
	but also God's profound love for us.	24:22
	Like parents who discipline their children	24:26
	because they love them and want the best for them,	24:28
	the encounter with God's love in Jesus Christ	24:31
	both disciplines us and transforms us	24:34
	through the power of God's spirit at work in our lives.	24:38
	God loves us just as we are,	24:42
	but God doesn't leave us as we are.	24:46
	For most of us there are also times	24:51
	when we feel distant from God.	24:53
	During these times it's hard to trust our past	24:57
	experiences of God's presence and grace.	25:00
	We begin to doubt ourselves and God.	25:03
	It may seem that we are regressing in our faith	25:06
	and that nothing is happening.	25:08
	But like the seeds that are dormant in winter,	25:11
	these are often the times when God is working within us,	25:14
	preparing us for some new advent,	25:18
	some new work that God wants to accomplish through us.	25:21
	The times of drought make us appreciative	25:26
	of the rain when it finally comes.	25:28
	The dry barren times are crucial to our spiritual renewal,	25:31
	for these are the times when we must wait	25:35
	to see what God wants to do with us.	25:38
	God often chooses the times when we have no confidence	25:42
	in our own ability and our own power and creativity	25:45
	to do something much bigger, much greater in our lives	25:50
	than we could ever have imagined.	25:53
	God's power is made perfect in our weakness.	25:56
	The son of God was born of a virgin.	26:00
	Death was conquered on the cross.	26:04
	As we enter this season of Advent,	26:09
	let us watch and wait attentively for God's coming.	26:12
	We may discover our lives transformed in wholly new ways	26:16
	by God's ever-seeking love.	26:22
	But as Christians we also look forward during Advent	26:25
	to God's final coming and triumph through Jesus Christ.	26:28
	Both the Romans and the Matthew passages	26:34
	in today's scripture readings point to the eschaton,	26:36
	the end time when Jesus Christ will come again in glory	26:39
	and all of creation will be judged and redeemed through him.	26:44
	We're not especially comfortable with apocalyptic	26:49
	scriptures, we much prefer to reflect upon the babe	26:51
	in the manger, or even the adult Jesus on the cross.	26:55
	But to acknowledge that everything we know	26:59
	will cease to exist in the way that it does now,	27:02
	that history, the Earth, the galaxy,	27:06
	everything that exists will come to its final end	27:08
	in Jesus Christ, is difficult for us to imagine,	27:12
	much less affirm.	27:17
	Yet as Christians we do proclaim	27:20
	that there will be an end to the world as we know it	27:22
	and that that end belongs ultimately to God.	27:25
	Many people throughout the centuries have gotten	27:32
	sidetracked by predictions of the date of the apocalypse.	27:34
	Even Paul expected it to come soon.	27:38
	But as the years passed, the Christian understanding	27:42
	of the Parousia, the second coming of Christ, changed.	27:45
	They began to understand that their hope in the future	27:50
	must be based upon their confidence in the ultimate destiny	27:53
	of all existence in Jesus Christ.	27:57
	That God determines what happens in the end	28:01
	in God's own time.	28:04
	The Matthew text leads us away from obsession	28:07
	with predicting when Jesus will come again.	28:10
	He says that even the son doesn't know,	28:13
	that only the father knows how or when	28:16
	that unexpected day will come.	28:18
	But in that day of ultimate destiny,	28:21
	when all things will meet God's end,	28:24
	Jesus will come again in power to judge	28:27
	and redeem all creation and usher in a new reign	28:30
	of God's kingdom of holiness and peace and justice.	28:34
	As frightening as images of the end may seem to us,	28:39
	it is not a threat, but a call to hope.	28:43
	Not a frivolous hope that denies the pain	28:47
	of human existence, but a hope that can stand	28:49
	in the face of all the darkness of human sinfulness.	28:53
	A hope big enough to confront injustice and cruelty,	28:57
	pain and suffering, death and destruction	29:00
	in all their forms.	29:03
	It is a hope big enough to proclaim	29:06
	that God's love has the final word.	29:08
	It is a hope that says God is ultimately in charge	29:13
	and that God will redeem the whole created order	29:17
	through Jesus Christ.	29:20
	Not one child of God in Somalia or Bosnia	29:22
	or Calcutta or Los Angeles or Durham will be lost	29:27
	to God's redeeming love in Christ.	29:32
	Yet we feel so vulnerable, so small,	29:37
	so afraid to stand and face such a God as this.	29:40
	For as all of existence will be judged,	29:45
	we too must accept the reality of God's judgment.	29:48
	Matthew tells us that one person will be left	29:52
	and the other taken.	29:54
	What we do in life matters to God.	29:57
	And we must ultimately give an accounting	30:01
	for how we've lived our lives,	30:03
	for what we've given our lives to.	30:06
	Doesn't mean we should live our life in constant fear	30:09
	of God's final judgment for God has already judged us	30:12
	through Jesus Christ in order to forgive and redeem us.	30:16
	What it does mean is that we must live now	30:20
	as a people oriented to God's future.	30:24
	We must live now as a people who love	30:27
	because we've first been loved by God.	30:30
	We must live now as a people who are a part	30:32
	of God's plan of reconciliation through Jesus Christ.	30:35
	We must walk in the light of Christ now,	30:40
	believing that the darkness will not overcome the light	30:43
	even in death.	30:46
	I had the opportunity to participate	30:50
	in two very different memorial services recently.	30:52
	The first service was for a man	30:57
	who had lived a long, full life.	30:58
	He had a wife and children.	31:02
	He'd been a success in his career.	31:04
	His friends and colleagues held him in high esteem.	31:06
	Can any of us hope for more than that?	31:10
	As we were planning the service,	31:15
	it very quickly became clear that he was not a believer	31:17
	and that any faith references at his memorial services	31:21
	would be inappropriate.	31:25
	After further discussion with those planning the service	31:28
	about why a Christian minister should be involved	31:30
	in the memorial service at all,	31:33
	it was decided that I would some faith statements	31:36
	for the people of faith in attendance,	31:38
	but that no belief would be attributed	31:41
	to the man being memorialized.	31:43
	The second memorial service was for Amy Geisinger,	31:47
	a first year student and a member of the Duke Chapel Choir	31:50
	who died tragically in a bus accident on campus recently.	31:54
	She was at the beginning of her life.	31:59
	A person who had barely begun to realize her potential.	32:02
	Her life and death were cruel	32:06
	by anyone's standards.	32:10
	As we were planning her service it very quickly became	32:13
	evident that both she and her family	32:16
	were people of strong Christian faith.	32:19
	Even in the midst of their overwhelming grief,	32:23
	Amy's family comforted and strengthened all who met them	32:27
	with their unwavering faith and hope.	32:31
	The chapel was full for that memorial service	32:35
	with students and staff alike trying to make sense	32:38
	out of a senseless death.	32:42
	While the service fully embraced our sadness	32:44
	and grief at Amy's death, it also affirmed our confidence	32:47
	in her eternal life through Jesus Christ.	32:52
	The light of hope shined through clearly	32:56
	in the midst of the sadness and darkness.	32:59
	It was an unexpected advent.	33:02
	God coming among us with the death of one so young.	33:05
	We felt the comfort of the reality of God's presence	33:10
	with us and the hope of God's power	33:13
	to bring life from death.	33:16
	Amy's memorial service proclaimed that God,	33:20
	not death, has the final word.	33:24
	These two services stand in stark contrast for me.	33:29
	In the first, a full life, fully lived,	33:33
	fully over with death, with only the hope	33:37
	of a lingering impact upon life.	33:40
	In the second, a life cut short, fully embraced,	33:44
	fully realized in the life of God,	33:48
	with the hope of eternal life and unimaginable significance	33:52
	in Jesus Christ.	33:57
	The season of Advent reminds us to live now	34:00
	as people who are prepared to die.	34:04
	Whether we face our individual end,	34:07
	or the end of the world as we know it	34:10
	through the coming of Christ.	34:12
	It is a call to live with anticipation	34:15
	and receptivity to God's unexpected advents into our lives.	34:18
	It's an invitation to receive God's unconditional love,	34:23
	God's acts of self-giving and allow ourselves	34:27
	to be transformed by them.	34:31
	It's a reminder that we can face the future,	34:34
	whatever future is out there for us,	34:36
	because we have hope in the trustworthiness	34:40
	of God's love and power revealed in Jesus Christ.	34:43
	In the end, God is in charge.	34:49
	Christ has died.	34:53
	Christ has risen.	34:55
	Christ will come again.	34:58
	Are you ready to receive him?	35:01
	(brass band music)	35:24
	("Wake, Awake, for Night is Flying" by Philipp Nicolai)	37:02
	♪ The watchmen on the heights are crying ♪	37:13
	♪ Awake, Jerusalem, arise ♪	37:24
	♪ Midnight hears the welcome voices ♪	37:34
	♪ And at the thrilling cry rejoices ♪	37:45
	(words drowned out by music)	37:56
	♪ And all her heart with joy is springing ♪	39:01
	♪ She wakes, she rises from her gloom ♪	39:11
	♪ For her Lord comes down all-glorious ♪	39:21
	♪ The strong in grace, in truth victorious ♪	39:31
	♪ Her star is risen ♪	39:42
	(words drowned out by music)	39:46
	♪ Now come, thou blessed one ♪	39:51
	♪ The Lord (words drowned out by music) ♪	39:58
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	40:06
	(words drowned out by music)	40:11
-	The Lord be with you.	42:20
Audience	And also with you.	42:23
-	Let us pray.	42:24
	Please be seated.	42:26
	As we pray at appropriate times I will say,	42:35
	"Together we pray", please respond, come Lord Jesus.	42:38
	Most gracious God, receive these our prayers.	42:46
	We admit that it is difficult to be silent	42:52
	and to focus, especially during this season.	42:57
	For we want too much and we want to do so much.	43:03
	You already know how our expectations exceed reality	43:10
	and how our hopes and desires surpass possibility.	43:16
	Yet, even as we confess this,	43:23
	we celebrate this season filled with hope and expectation	43:27
	of that beyond our most creative imagination.	43:33
	Oh God, we thank you for this time.	43:39
	And for the gift of Advent, which stirs and excites us.	43:43
	Together we pray.	43:50
All	Come Lord Jesus.	43:53
-	We pray for the light and the gift of more light.	43:56
	That we celebrate at Advent.	44:02
	We do need light oh God, for we are people	44:06
	who walk in darkness.	44:10
	Living by trial and error,	44:13
	bouncing from one obstacle to another,	44:15
	stumbling, groping, hoping, failing, falling.	44:18
	Sometimes we even walk in circles	44:23
	to avoid the unfamiliar which we fear as darkness.	44:26
	Together we pray.	44:32
All	Come Lord Jesus.	44:34
-	We have tried to generate our own light	44:38
	using our minds and our best resources	44:42
	to make sense out of life.	44:45
	We have written laws to protect it and us.	44:48
	We've called councils and composed creeds	44:52
	to uphold it and we've lived by following our own ways.	44:55
	But, hard as it is to admit,	45:01
	our light is not enough.	45:05
	We still have wars and people are hungry and hurt,	45:10
	afraid and running alone and unhappy	45:15
	with the darkness closing in.	45:18
	Together we pray.	45:22
All	Come Lord Jesus.	45:25
-	God,	45:28
	God forgive us.	45:30
	Turn us on to the light of life, the light of the world,	45:33
	whose coming we celebrate as the gift of Christmas.	45:37
	Let us receive it.	45:41
	Together we pray.	45:44
All	Come Lord Jesus.	45:47
-	We pray also for the gift of love.	45:50
	Love is what we need oh God, for we are people	45:54
	who are starving for love.	45:58
	We live as if love can be made or controlled.	46:01
	Or as if we don't need it at all.	46:06
	And then we wonder why we feel so empty,	46:10
	so tired and so alone.	46:14
	Together we pray.	46:18
All	Come Lord Jesus.	46:20
-	God forgive us.	46:24
	Help us to be open to your love,	46:26
	the love which we celebrate as Advent and look forward to	46:30
	in Christmas as that which empowers and frees,	46:34
	forgives and renews, heals and comes to us regardless.	46:38
	God, let us receive it.	46:45
	Together we pray.	46:49
All	Come Lord Jesus.	46:52
-	Because we need to and because we trust your gifts	46:55
	we also lift up these our prayers not only for ourselves,	47:00
	but also for others in this one world.	47:05
	For those who are anxious and afraid.	47:11
	Together we pray.	47:15
All	Come Lord Jesus.	47:18
-	For those who are ill, together we pray.	47:21
All	Come Lord Jesus.	47:27
-	For those who are facing difficult decisions,	47:29
	together we pray.	47:34
All	Come Lord Jesus.	47:37
-	For those who are feeling left out and are alone,	47:39
	together we pray.	47:44
All	Come Lord Jesus.	47:47
-	For those who are mourning losses, especially those	47:49
	who are feeling deeply because of seasons past,	47:54
	together we pray.	47:59
All	Come Lord Jesus.	48:02
-	And those who are feeling especially grateful	48:04
	and for those who are filled with joy	48:08
	because of new news, together we pray.	48:11
All	Come Lord Jesus.	48:16
-	Gentle God you know us and all about us.	48:19
	Help us to know you and all about you in new ways	48:25
	that will assure us and free us to life gratefully	48:29
	and hopefully, today, tomorrow and every day	48:33
	and every morrow.	48:38
	In the name of Jesus, together we pray.	48:40
All	Come Lord Jesus.	48:45
-	Amen.	48:47
	In response to the promise of God's coming to us,	48:55
	we are challenged to give both our resources	49:00
	and ourselves knowing that it is in our giving	49:04
	that we are most like Jesus Christ.	49:09
	(brass band music)	49:26
	(organ music)	55:00
	♪ Praise God, from whom all blessings flow ♪	55:53
	♪ Praise Him, all creatures here below ♪	56:00
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:06
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:09
	♪ Praise Him above, ye heavenly host ♪	56:13
	♪ Praise father, son and holy ghost ♪	56:19
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:26
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:29
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:32
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:36
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	56:39
-	In this season when we hear so much about giving,	56:53
	enable us to recognize oh God that you are the source	56:58
	of both our ability and our motivation to give.	57:03
	We are grateful for the richness with which you	57:09
	have blessed our lives and for the humbling privilege	57:12
	of being channels of your continued giving	57:18
	to this needy world.	57:22
	May we join together in the prayer that Jesus	57:26
	taught the first disciples.	57:29
	Our father, who art in heaven,	57:32
	hallowed be thy name.	57:36
	Thy kingdom come, thy will be done	57:38
	on earth as it is in heaven.	57:41
	Give us this day, our daily bread	57:45
	and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those	57:48
	who trespass against us,	57:52
	and lead us not into temptation,	57:55
	but deliver us from evil.	57:58
	For thine is the kingdom and the power	58:00
	and the glory forever.	58:04
	Amen.	58:06
	(organ music)	58:10
	♪ O God of every nation ♪	58:48
	♪ Of every race and land ♪	58:52
	♪ Redeem the whole creation ♪	58:57
	♪ With your almighty hand ♪	59:02
	♪ Where hate and fear divide us ♪	59:07
	♪ And bitter threats are hurled ♪	59:11
	♪ In love and mercy guide us ♪	59:16
	♪ And heal our strife-torn world ♪	59:21
	♪ From search for wealth and power ♪	59:28
	♪ And scorn of truth and right, ♪	59:33
	♪ From trust in bombs that shower ♪	59:38
	♪ Destruction through the night ♪	59:42
	♪ From pride of race and station ♪	59:47
	♪ And blindness to your way ♪	59:53
	♪ Deliver every nation ♪	59:58
	♪ Eternal God, we pray ♪	1:00:03
	♪ Lord, strengthen all who labor ♪	1:00:10
	♪ That all may find release ♪	1:00:15
	♪ From fear of rattling saber ♪	1:00:20
	♪ From dread of war's increase ♪	1:00:25
	♪ When hope and courage falter ♪	1:00:30
	♪ Lord, let your voice be heard ♪	1:00:35
	♪ With faith that none can alter ♪	1:00:40
	♪ Your servants undergird ♪	1:00:45
	♪ Keep bright in us the vision ♪	1:00:52
	♪ Of days when war shall cease ♪	1:00:57
	♪ When hatred and division ♪	1:01:01
	♪ Give way to love and peace ♪	1:01:06
	♪ Till dawns the morning glorious ♪	1:01:11
	♪ When truth and justice reign ♪	1:01:16
	♪ And Christ shall rule victorious ♪	1:01:21
	♪ O'er all the world's domain ♪	1:01:26
-	Bear witness to the love of God in this world	1:01:37
	so that those to whom love is a stranger	1:01:40
	will find in your generous friends	1:01:42
	and discover the light of Christ.	1:01:45
	May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ	1:01:48
	and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit	1:01:50
	be with you all and keep you now and forever.	1:01:53
	Amen.	1:01:58
	(organ music)	1:02:01

Item Info

Title:

Debra K. Brazzel - "Unexpected Company" (November 29, 1992)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 16:03. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 35:05.
The preacher encourages listeners to see Christ’s second coming as a call to hope and action and to reflect on their relationship with God. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: It’s a time to look back and listen. Where has God been present in your life in the past year? How have you responded to God’s presence? Are you prepared for God to come into your life once again?

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r41z4277w

Date:

November 29, 1992

Speaker:

Brazzel, Debra K.

Liturgical Calendar:

Advent

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0305
ref9184_vy2
uachapelsermaud
duke:321626
dcrmv001291
ark:/87924/r41z4277w
534a56cf-31a1-4b45-9530-7ff39089b7fc

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings

Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

The Duke University Chapel Recordings were transferred to the Duke University Archives beginning in 1970.

Rights:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the Creative Commons license indicated here. For more information see https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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