A Word from Luke 2

Today, as you probably know, is “Groundhog Day”—the annual observance when some folks, at least, will be eagerly waiting for the groundhog Punxsutawney Phil to come out of his burrow and to reveal if spring is coming soon. Of course, given the winter weather we’ve had recently, the hope of spring would definitely be good news. But what if I told you that today also invites us to wait eagerly for something a whole better than warmer weather?

You see, for those who pay attention to such things, today is also “The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord”—an annual observance that commemorates the day when Jesus was presented in the Temple after his birth and was met by the prophet Simeon, who (in today’s word from Luke Chapter 2) said this:

“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,

       you may now dismiss your servant in peace.

For my eyes have seen your salvation,

       which you have prepared in the sight of all nations:

a light for revelation to the Gentiles,

       and the glory of your people Israel.” (2:29-32)

Now, if you know this story, you know that Simeon had been waiting for the Lord’s Messiah for many years. And that’s why he said that he could now “depart in peace,” because—in seeing Jesus—the deepest wish of heart had been granted. And I can’t help but wonder: What’s the deepest wish of our hearts? What are we eagerly waiting for? Is it just warmer temperatures? Or do our hearts long for the Lord’s Messiah to be revealed to us and through us?

So today, I pray that you will eagerly wait. And even more, I pray that the One for whom you wait will be revealed to you! So that, no matter what the groundhog says, you’ll know that the darkness of winter is passing, and the light of God’s glory is on the way, because of the hope we’ve been given in Jesus. Amen.