This sermon addresses where God is during difficult times and in the busy days before Christmas. It summarizes that God is present in helpless people who need care, like newborn babies, and in the frazzled shoppers preparing for Christmas. God is also present within us - we don't need to search outside ourselves, as God is always in our hearts. The sermon concludes that we should make a home for God in our hearts as we prepare to celebrate Jesus' birth, and find God's light and peace during busy and dark times.

1. 18 December 2011 4th Sunday of Advent Princeton, NJ
As we gather on this last Sunday of Advent most are busy doing their last minute shopping,
hanging up the final string of lights and taking to the task of wrapping presents. But this is also a
time where many are dealing with difficult times and great angst. Penn State…Syracuse
University…Occupy Wall Street…Tragic events…personal losses…financial stresses…it is no
surprise to hear – just days before Christmas more and more people asking – Where is God? But if
we step back and look at the readings of Advent, especially today, the answer becomes fairly
clear.
It is not surprising that the Advent readings all point towards the coming of the Christ Child. Within
the first Sunday‟s readings we heard the call to be watchful and alert for we do not know when the
Lord of the house is coming – so we are to Watch! The following Sunday we were introduced to
John the Baptist who cries out – “Prepare the Way of the Lord! One mightier than I is coming after
me and he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” And last week we heard John answer the
Pharisees query as to who he is with: “I baptize with water but there is one among you whom you
do not recognize the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.”
So we watch and wait and know that in six days we will celebrate God incarnate – the birth of the
one who is to be called Jesus. But before we skip right through this 4th Sunday of Advent to get to
Christmas – let‟s look at the readings of today as we seek the answer to the question being
pondered.
In today‟s first reading we hear the discourse between David and Nathan. It dawns on King David
that while he is living in a beautiful home, the ark of God sits in a tent. So David, wanting everyone
to see how kingly he really is, contemplates building God a temple. But through the prophet
Nathan, God simply says, “No”. God‟s message makes it clear that God cannot be confined in any
building constructed by human hands – rather God moves with his people. God tells them, “I have
been with you wherever you went.” Clearly God will not be confined by what people think God
should be, what God should do, who they think God is, or who they think God should like or not
like…it is clear we cannot put God into our self defined boxes. Rather we are told that God
establishes a home for all of us – every one of us – without exceptions.
So where is God? In today‟s gospel we hear Mary‟s ultimate „yes‟ to the angel who tells Mary that
she carries a child who will be called the Son of God. Mary becomes the ultimate vessel for God‟s
life – the tent in which God dwelled. So God comes to us as a helpless baby – a baby that
required Mary and Joseph‟s love and nurturing care. Newborn babies need someone to feed
them, clothe them, cuddle them and hold them in loving arms. And so it is…that is in the lost and
the helpless that we can see and find God. God counts on us to care for all broken people (it
harkens to Matthew‟s gospel that we heard just before Advent – reminding us that we are called to
feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick, welcome the stranger – for as we care for others
we make God present to them.
1 Deacon Jim Knipper

2. So were else can we find God? One of my favorite places is in the shopping malls – especially
these short days before Christmas. I know the grumbling many have about all the shopping that
has to be done and having to face the Rt. 1 corridor traffic and braving the crowds…but I have to
be honest, I enjoying going to the malls to watch the people who at this point are both excited and
exhausted. It makes me think of that teenage, pregnant, Mary and her betrothed Joseph as they
rode into Bethlehem on a side of a donkey, ready to give birth with no place to stay the night. I can
only assume that they, too, were perhaps a bit weary and worried. So seeing the demeanor of the
frazzled shoppers running around with only days left to shop and the faces of the shop owners
worrying about whether they will make their numbers and stay in business for another year – all
gives us another place where we can see the face of God.
But where else is God? Actually some can spend so much time searching for God that they miss
the obvious. We search all over and can forget that God is here and now. It was the German
theologian and mystic Meister Eckhart who said: “God is always home in our hearts; we are the
ones who have gone out for a walk.”
We can get so overwhelmed about the darkness that takes place in our lives…we easily forget
about the overshadowing we heard referred to in the gospel – the ever presence of God in our
lives. We take ourselves on a preverbal walk, or run, and forget that we don‟t even have to venture
outside our own homes to find God. God is there at the dinner table, God is present in your
children, your parents, God is present with you during final exams (at least that was my son, Jake‟s
prayer last week), God is at your side when visiting your relatives (even if they may be
annoying)…and yes, God is most often found in the darkness of our own lives.
So you see, our search to find the answer to – Where is God? – is futile. We do not have to search
for God…and like King David, we do not have build a house for God. It is God who has pitched a
tent among us – and God‟s not leaving!! Indeed - God is with us…more importantly in a few days
we will celebrate that it is God who comes to us – God comes to heal our wounds, to carry our
burdens, to save our lives and to fill us with the never ending joy of the presence of Jesus the
Christ – whose birth we will soon celebrate.
So enjoy and cherish these final days of Advent – and call off the search, make a home for God in
your hearts…for the reality of God is right here, right now, among us and for us.
So when your days seem to be dark, may you find the light of Christ in those around you…
When your days seem overwhelming, may you exhibit the faith of Mary and Joseph that God will
always care for us…
And during these last, hectic days leading up to Christmas, may you allow for some quite moments
to be open to the Spirit of God that dwells within you and yearns to bring you the peace of our
God…the one who makes all things possible.
2 Deacon Jim Knipper