WELL, WHAT DID YOU EXPECT,

FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE?

And the Word became flesh and lived among us.

--John 1:14a

                  We have all had the experience of waiting for some wonderful event, like a trip to a special vacation spot, or a visit from an old friend. Often, when the anticipated moment comes, it is not what we thought it would be. I attended the fiftieth anniversary of my high school class a few years back and I can tell you it was full of surprises. I expected some changes in my classmates; but some of the changes were, well, sobering to say the least. I am sure that they felt the same about me.

                  Some 2000 years ago, a people were expecting a Messiah. They had longed for the coming of their Savior for generations. They had some ideas of what this person would be like. They knew there would be no doubt that that person would sweep in and bring an end to all their troubles. A new age would be ushered in, and there would be peace on earth. They looked for a mighty leader who would transform the politics of the day and run the armies of Rome out of the land.

                  Jesus came, and was not what they expected, not who they were waiting form. He was just the opposite! The quiet “man of sorrows,” who associated with the rejected of society rather than the elite and powerful. He said the “Kingdom” was like a child and was in the heart, and that God is love. This was not what they were waiting for.

                   So, the question remains (Are we any different today?):

           What do we expect, for heaven’s sake!!?

                                                               --The Rev. Lloyd Ewart