Advent is a time of preparation for the coming of Christ.  It is a time of expectation when we wait for Christmas but it is also a time to look forward to the final coming.  For Isaiah 2:1-5 this will be time of justice and judgment but also a time of peace which encompasses all peoples and nations.  The hope of this day encouraged and comforted God’s people through times of struggle and hardship.     

However, Matthew 24:36-44 was written when the hope of Christ coming was diminishing.  So Jesus encourages his disciples not to give up hope but to be ready to welcome in the kingdom whenever it comes. 

We live between the first and the final coming of Christ.  Yet Christ still comes in our ordinary, everyday lives, for “when two or three are gathered in my name there am I, in the midst of them.”  

We too are waiting and hoping for justice and peace but in the meantime we are reminded to be ready to welcome Christ whenever and wherever the kingdom breaks through, not at the end of time but in our time.

Some major roof maintenance started this week. The old roof is being re-covered but with new upstands and skylights ( to replace the existing, many of which are broken). The new ones are triple glazed, improving heat performance.