← Brew City Church
Brew City Church
The Birth of a King | God Shows Up
00:47:59
January 11, 2026 | Brew City Church | Shelly Schmor
Loading summary
Transcript1 lines
- [00:01]
A
Welcome to the Brew City Church Podcast. We are a Christian church following in the way of Jesus and located in the heart of downtown Milwaukee. We're glad you've joined us and we hope you enjoy this week's message. Well, good morning, everyone. Good morning. Can I say Happy New Year? Are we still in the frame that it's okay to say that? I know it's getting borderline, but I say January 15th, so I'm making the rules right now. But happy New Year. Glad you're here. Glad you're in this space. Wow, the sun really came out. It was so dark just a little bit ago and now look at it. It's so beautiful. But I'm glad that you made your way here today. I'm glad that you were here together. And we hear like we see sunlight now. It's a new year. All the things are happening. And yet we find ourselves in winter and in the darkness of winter. Does anybody get tired of the darkness of winter? I'm tired of the darkness of winter, person. But I know there's hope. I know days are getting longer now. People keep telling me that when I say that I don't like the dark, they remind me. But I just have to remind them sometimes that I looked it up and spring doesn't start till March 20th at exactly 9:46am and you can better believe I will be rejoicing at that moment that we have moved to spring and that we can move into maybe a little bit more light. But it's winter and I hope that you are finding time to be gentle with yourself, to look at nature, to let nature guide us and realize that nature is resting. It's not keeping a thousand resolutions and beating itself up when it doesn't match the them or meet them. It's resting. It's taking time to renew. And so I want to just invite you into a space that allows for that. We're going to be thinking about light today. And sometimes in the midst of darkness, it's hard to think about the light and to see the hope in this one, this Christ candle that we light that represents Jesus, the hope, the light that comes. So can I just ask you to close your eyes and maybe plant your feet on the floor, maybe place your hands on your lap, if you would, and just receive. Receive a moment. Pay attention to how your body feels. Is it tired? Is it in need of some light? Feel the rhythms of your own breath taking a deep one, letting it out, slowing your breathing and paying attention to your body. Is it holding sadness? Is it holding anger or exhaustion? Is it holding goodness, beauty, Whatever you're feeling, let's just take a moment and ask the Holy Spirit to meet us, to speak to us, to calm us, and to teach us. Amen. Amen. And if you need to do that throughout this time together, please do. It's called centering prayer. Take a moment, if you need a moment at any time, to just allow yourself to be centered back on this one. Who's light? Well, in these days of darkness, one of the things our family loves to do is watch movies. Anybody movie people in here? And, yes, I love to still go to the theater. Like, there's this place you can go and watch movies for those of you that don't know. And it's pretty cool. And a lot of times it's the best place to see a really epic movie. Right? But we love good stories. We love those movies that you walk away and you go, whoa, whoa. That was a lot. Who has a movie that's a favorite like that? That's just an epic story, one that you love to watch over and over. Maybe. Or maybe it's a franchise. Does anybody have one? I know you. Yeah. Philip. Yes. Your parts are speaking out. The King's Speech. That's a good one. Good one. Anybody else have an epic story? Take all. The Lord of the Rings. She would. She would. Anybody else? An epic story? Yeah. Cadence. Stranger Things. All right. I haven't watched it, but I've been told over and over and over and over. I need to. Anything else? Star Wars. All right. Yeah. Those are all ones that came to mind for me. Schindler's List came to mind for me. That was a movie. I walked away and I was changed after I watched that movie. Or I liked the series, The Hunger Games. A little scary now to think about sometimes, but, man, that story drew me in. And I love a good story, and I love to be surprised by a good story. I love it when the protagonist is somebody I didn't expect, and it's like, oh, they're a good person. Or the antagonist even is like, whoa, that happened. And I can be so trusting of certain kinds of people, and yet here in this story, they end up the bad guy. And I just. I love that element of surprise. I love also in music, a song that surprises me. Anybody ever have a song, surprise them? I've had it numerous times. You know how I talk about Summerfest, So I'll spare you. I won't. But I will tell you that there have been times where I've stood there and gone. Oh, my gosh. I didn't know. My heart needed that. I didn't know that. That song kind of just saved a part of my life. And it's beautiful. Movies, Same thing. Poems. Have you ever heard somebody reading a poem and it just kind of stops you in your tracks and you go, whoa, wow. My heart needed that. And so I love the arts, and I just love that the way the arts can portray those things. But I think you know what I'm saying, those epic stories, those moments that stop us and say, pay attention within our souls. Well, today we're going to be finishing up this series that we've been in called God Shows Up. God Shows Up. And folks, I just want to say that we have one of the most epic stories of all time as part of our faith journey. God shows up. The king of the universe shows up to be with his people. Like, let me say that one more time because I'm not seeing enough excitement in yet. The king of the universe shows up to be with his people. That is something to get excited about. That is something, when God becomes king, that we can rejoice about. And it gives us hope and it helps us and it reminds us. And we've been working our way through this old song, oh come, oh come, Emmanuel. And I hope by now you figured out it's not just an Advent song and it's not just a Christmas song. It's a song that calls us to rejoice in this epic story. And we've looked at little snapshots along the way. We looked at what is it like to be people of exile, to live in a place that's unfamiliar, to trust in a God who will meet them there. We've looked at wisdom personified in this one named Jesus. We've looked at the law and its fulfillment in Jesus. And just last week we looked at the genealogy of Jesus that Megan walked us through. The Davidic Messiah, this one who has come. And I love the fact that Megan started us in Matthew last week because we're going to continue in Matthew. And I love that Matthew was all about reminding people who Jesus was and saying, I need you to get this. But before we get ahead of ourselves, let's just look at the verse that we're going to be looking at for this week. It says this. Oh, come O bright and morning star, and bring us comfort from afar. Dispel the shadows of the night and turn the darkness into light. And this is the old school version that was Randy's been talking about. We've been looking at the old school version of the song. That would have been the old school where it says O bright and morning star, referring to Jesus. A little more modern one says this. O come thou day spring come and cheer our spirits by thy advent here Disperse the gloomy clouds of night and death's dark shadows put to flight. And I love that I got to choose this verse to do after all the other ones were chosen. The one one that was left, because I love that it refers to a bright morning star and a day spring and light. Light Jesus, this one who called himself light. And it reminds us, and I don't know about you, but there have been some days that have felt like pretty gloomy clouds of night and even death's dark shadows seeming ever present around us. And it says in this song that he promises to dispel it, to get rid of it, to remove it. And so let's see what this song and maybe some more of Matthew can teach us about this. Like I said, last week we found ourselves in this book. We looked at the genealogy of Jesus. Megan pointed out some unlikely characters in that genealogy, namely women. Women were usually part of most of the lists of genealogy. And so the fact that they were included causes us to pause and to pay attention. Why were their names there? And it listed people like Tamar, who was a prostitute or a sex worker. Bathsheba, who was Uriah's wife, who was also a victim of sexual abuse by King David J. She talked about Ruth, who gave the beautiful and embodied example of chesed, that faithful, loving, committed love, and even the circles of compassion that Marianne reminded us of that Megan taught. And then of course, Mary, the mother of Jesus is listed there. And this morning we're going to keep looking in Matthew, we're going to conclude this series, and we're going to look at some snapshots that maybe seem really familiar. This last week was Epiphany. For those of you that are familiar at all with the church calendar. Tuesday was the day of epiphany, a day of revelation when God reveals himself to the Gentile people. And I think I can say that everybody in this room would fall in that camp. I don't know that we have any Jewish people here, but maybe we do. But there's revealing of the Gentiles being a part of the kingdom of God. And so let's start reading in Matthew 2, starting in verse 1. And it says this. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the East Came to Jerusalem and asked, where is this one who's been born King of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and we've come to worship him. And so I just want to pause there and ask, who are these star people? If any of you have seen the Avatar movie, you know that there's a reference to sky people. But here we have star people. Who are these star people? And as we think about them, and as I studied them, I found them even more interesting the more I kept studying. And honestly, we could stop in these two verses and do a whole big long time of teaching. But I'm going to give you just a couple highlights. Who were these wise men, as they're referred to, or kings, or magi? They were most likely people from Persia, which would be modern day Iran. And they were likely part of the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism. There's a word for you, Zoroastrianism. And the magi, these ones especially were likely the priestly class of these people that came from the Medes. Now, maybe that stuff all means something to you, maybe it doesn't. But it's interesting as we think about it, because they're unlikely characters again in the story, they're unlikely. We have people from a priestly class of a non Jewish religion coming and looking for the one who had been born king of the Jews. Why? It's not their religion. It wouldn't be their king. But they came and they came searching. And these people who were known for searching the heavens for signs so that they would note a new star, they would have noticed that the heavens were stirring, something was happening. And so they come and they're unlikely and they travel the darkness of a desert to get there. In a time in a place where darkness and upheaval are very, very present, this star leads them to search for this newborn king of the Jews. And then all of this happens in the time it says of King Herod. It says, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, who was this guy who is King Herod, also known as Herod the Great? Another character in this story for sure. But let's just start by saying this dude was not good. He was not a good king. He was not somebody that they would have been thrilled to have as their king. Let's look at the context for just a moment. Things were dark for the people of Israel. The Roman Empire is literally crushing them. Taxes are extraordinate. They're just feeling like they can't get out from under it, the oppression is literally thick and palpable. It's been over 500 years since Israel has had a king. The last king of the Jews was King Zedekiah, who died in chains in prison in Babylon after he rebelled against Babylon, which led to the fall of Jerusalem. He was captured. He was forced to watch his son be executed. He was blinded and he was brought in chains. These were some dark days. 500 years of dark days. 5 centuries since there was a king of the Jews. But then they get a king of the Jews appointed to them by their oppressors. Do you feel the darkness? Do you sense what might have been going on in those moments? He was horrible. Herod was arrogant, he was calloused, he was cruel. He was corrupt. And he is existentially threatened by this one who has been born king of the Jews. And so it says when King Herod heard this, that these wise men, these magi, were coming and looking for this one, born king of the Jews, because a star led him. It says when King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, and all of Jerusalem with him. And I wanted to ask, what do you think disturbed him? These ones were coming and they were asking, where is the one and key word there? Where is this one born king of the Jews? Not just appointed. These people show up and they say, a king has been born and he's born king of the Jews. And it was probably more than three wise men. I know it makes for really lovely little nativity scenes to have just three. But it could have been a hundred, it could have been 200. We don't know. It could have been any number of people coming looking for this one born king of the Jews. And Herod was disturbed because he knew he was not born king of the Jews. He was appointed to it, but he was not born to it. And this is important to think about because he's frightened by it, he's disturbed by it. He knows who he is. He knows enough about a bloodline that he is not part of. And Megan established that last week and why it was important that this one would come from this bloodline. And just an important thing to note that I found really interesting. As I was studying for this, I was reading in a commentary that said, keep in mind that Matthew is writing this near the end of the first century when it was becoming clear that most Jews were not becoming Christ followers. And he, that is Matthew, is establishing some things by tying the story to so many Old Testament prophecies, reminding the people why it mattered, the fulfillment of prophecy the one born King of the Jews. And so Matthew's got a job here. And I think sometimes when we read this story, we can read it thinking like, oh, we're just reading it, like, as it's happening. He's just following along and writing it down. And I think Matthew wrote a lot and took a lot of really good notes, but he's actually bringing this all together at the end of the first century. And so think about how many years that would be that had passed since the birth of Jesus. Hundred years or so, give or take, can go back and forth, but he's saying, okay, you guys are missing something here. Like, I want to tell you and prove to you again and show to you again that Jesus is who he said he was. He's born King of the Jews. And that's a really important thing for these Jewish followers because they're seeing people of Gentile coming in, Gentiles coming into the faith, and they're troubled by it. These aren't our people. What's going on? Who are they? And Matthew goes, let me remind you, this is a good thing that these Gentiles are coming in. And Jesus is who he said he was from the beginning. He is, he was and he will be. And so it's an important part of the story. And in the Magi, Matthew's anticipating even more Gentiles to come and saying to his Jewish friends, believers, family, like, it's okay, it's okay. This is actually how it's been all the time. His plan from the very beginning, even fulfilling prophecy. But again, King Herod is disturbed, and so are the people of Jerusalem with him, it said, and all Jerusalem with him. And I just think when a crazed leader gets disturbed, it disturbs his people. Can we relate? I couldn't help but thinking this week, you know the headlines of the week. I don't need to go into all of them, but there's been a lot going on. And when a disturbed leader gets disturbed, it disturbs its people, right? The people that he's leading get disturbed. And I just want to say that I think Matthew has some things to say to us, some words of hope of this one who comes as light in the darkness. And so let's keep reading in this story and see what we can learn. Starting in verse four, it says, when he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. In Bethlehem, in Judea, they said, for this is what the prophet has written. But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah are by no means least among the rulers of Judah. For out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel. And that's found that portion, that prophecy in Micah. And again here Matthew is clarifying that Jesus was born King of the Jews and he remains King of the Jews. Prophecy has been fulfilled. Prophecy has been fulfilled. He confirms it. And he's showing, Matthew's showing that the appointed king, Herod didn't even know the prophecy. He's pointing that out and going. And just so you know, this one he doesn't even know because he's not the true king of the Jews. And so he's making a case and he's reminding them of their history. And then it says, if we keep going. In verse seven, it says, then Herod called the magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and he said, go and search carefully for the child, and as soon as you find him, report to me so that I too may go and worship him. After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose, went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. And when they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. And then they opened their treasures and presented them with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another way. Well, here it is, the part we've been waiting for. The magi make it to Jesus, they follow the star, the nativity set is complete. We can close the book and be done right. Maybe not. Maybe there's a little bit more to the story. And I just want to note as we even move on in this, that as they went and it talks about the gifts that they bring. That's reflecting back to Isaiah, which also talks about magi, or wise people or different people coming and bringing gifts. And in Isaiah it only says gold and frankincense. And here there's a third gift, myrrh, which is a burial spice. Interesting gift to give a child can. And we could talk about that a lot, but I think we'll save it for Lent because I think that's a good time to talk about that. But it's something to note. Who is this king and why bring such strange gifts? But here we are, the part we Waited for the magi make it. They're led by a star. Maybe a drummer boy showed up. I don't know. I don't understand that whole concept, to be honest, because most new moms of newborns or even toddlers, the last thing they want is somebody showing up with a drum and they're trying to put their kid to sleep or calm them or whatever. But interesting to think about. But here we are, and there's theories about this star. What do we know about this star? Not a whole lot other than it led these people. And there's some theories. One is that it was Jupiter and Saturn lined up just perfectly at the right time, made for a really bright star. Could be. I don't know. I'm not a Zoroastrian that would study all of that. Maybe I've read that it was a supernova and that people who study stars, astrologers, others, would know and they'd notice and go like, oh, big star, we need to pay attention. And then there was a third theory that I read about, and I found it so interesting because it said maybe, just maybe, the king of all creation, Jesus, the creator himself, manifested a light in himself that led people to him. Could that happen? Yep, because God is God. Did it happen? I don't know. And I would venture to say neither do you, and neither do many scholars, but I find it interesting. I find it to make me pause in the story and go, wow, even at that early of an age, could the creator of all, the king of the universe, manifest in himself as the Creator himself? Oh, light that would lead people to him. That fascinates me, and I think it should fascinate all of us. But this we do know. Whatever the theory, the magi led to Jesus who manifested light in some way, whether it was just through a star, through himself, any number of ways, and they were changed. And it says that they went home by another way. And I think that means a physical road because there were listening to the angel that warned them about Herod. But I also think they went home another way and they were changed because they had come to this. One was born King of the Jews, not of their religion, not necessarily their king. And they were invited and responded to worship him. They were changed and I think they went home another way. All right. And as we're man, I just love that thought. Sorry, just having a moment here, because when I think about Jesus as this light, this light that changed everything that they worshiped, that they were invited into, when they were nothing in the eyes as far as the Jewish people, right? They weren't a part of this chosen family. And yet they said, we saw your star and we want to just bow down and worship you. And I think it's so significant because In John, verse 8, or John chapter 8, verse 12, Jesus says this about himself. It says, when Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. And I don't know about you, but I find that incredibly encouraging in these very, very dark days. I find it incredibly encouraging when the light of the world tells me if I follow him, I'll never walk in darkness. And that doesn't mean everything's just going to be shiny, happy and good, but it means that I don't have to lodge myself into a place of darkness with no hope that he actually enters into those spaces and is light for me. And being made in his image, I reflect it. I reflect that light. You reflect that light. And that is encouraging. So let's go on back to where we were in Matthew, where it says this, Starting in verse 13, I believe is where we left off. It says, when they had gone on, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. Get up, he said, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you. For Herod is going to search for the child, him. So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet. Out of Egypt I called my son. When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious. And he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and in its vicinity who were two years old and under in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled. A voice is heard in Ramah weeping in great mourning. Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more. And before we get too into that, it can be pretty dark again. Can I just make a side note about Joseph? Joseph was awesome. And he does not get a lot of airtime in this whole story, not at all. But he was an amazing person. He takes Mary as his wife. Mind you, I'm sure there were all kinds of rumors, talk behind his back, but he takes her and he protects her. And this is the part that always strikes me. He submits himself to her and to the calling on her life. And he says, I will go with you, I will protect you. I will give up a lot for a man in that time especially. And he says, yes. And he's obedient to the voice of God revealed to him through dreams. A man not afraid to listen to his dreams. That is remarkable. And I just don't think Joseph gets enough attention. Like we need to say, yay, Joseph. Go like amazing, amazing. But he's an amazing person who submits himself. And why does he do all of this? Why is he obedient to this dream? Might I say because the current crazy appointed king of the Jews is about to lose his ever loving mind. And I don't say that lightly, but he is. He's about to lose his mind because the magi themselves had been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod. And he loses it and he bursts into a rage of anger and he decides that, well, you think you outwitted me. I'm going to kill all the kids that age, all the boys born that age. Crazy. And though the mass murder of several babies isn't actually documented in a lot of historical accounts, the ancient church has paid attention. And that may have been because it could have been as few as 20 children. And I find myself cringing when I read that as few as 20 children is still a lot of children. And maybe it wasn't hundreds and maybe it's not in a lot of historical accounts because it was common. There was a lot of crazy leaders doing crazy things and the people just started getting used to it. It. And the church, the ancient church reminds us and they say, no, we're going to have a day that we remember the holy innocents. We're going to have a time that we remember the slaughter of innocent children, because it matters and every life matters. And so I find it interesting that it's not necessarily recorded and I'd love to do even more study to figure all of that out. But the fact is it happened. And the ancient church said, let's set some time aside and actually remember this. Not the cleaned up version, not the version that we'd like to hear because it feels good and we can pat ourselves on the back a little bit. No, let's sit in the pain of remembering lives lost for all sorts of reasons that don't make sense. And why? Because a crazed appointed leader flew into a rage. Let's name that. Let's name that we sometimes blindly followed and we need to repent. And I think we can learn some things from the ancient church, don't you? As we sit here in America today. So then when Matthew compares Jeremiah's prophecy, that's where this prophecy comes from, to the killing of Hebrew children. It's a reminder. It's a reminder. It calls us back. It asks us to remember one thing in particular, that the story of Jesus, the nativity story, is more than just a nice story. And I love when we can tell it nicely and beautifully and reflect and remember the time of his birth. But it's also a story that's marked by pain and suffering that Jesus entered right into. And it's so important to think about it, otherwise it's just a nice story, right? But when we can say, like, no, this is the king of the universe coming to be with his people. And he didn't say, you need to clean it all up for me. He said, I'm going to enter into this blood soaked, stained world and I'm going to meet you right there in the midst of it. He's faced with danger from his birth. He's driven with his parents as refugees into Egypt for several years. And it reminds us that he was a participant in human distress, our distress from the very beginning. This one who had at his birth the angels singing peace on earth, goodwill toward men. He's born into this world soaked in blood, where tyrants cling to their power and mothers cling to their children in vain. This is the true account of Christmas, if you will, this one who's the day, spring and the bright morning star, entering in, saying, I want to redeem my people and this is how I'm going to appear and how I'm going to enter in to do it. This is how God sets about liberating all, all his people, the Jews and the Gentiles. This is how he would bring justice to the whole world. And I can almost hear him saying, there's no point in arriving in comfort when the world is in misery. So I want to enter and I want to be with my people. I think I can imagine him saying, there's no point in having an easy life when the world suffers violence and injustice. If he's to be Emmanuel God with us, he must be with us, where the pain is not floating above it or outside of it or far off from it, but in it, facing it with us. And don't forget this part, conquering it right alongside of us, us. That's the story of Jesus. And we get snapshots and Christmas is beautiful and it's one of them. But he entered into a world that was unconsolable. When he talks about this prophet from Jeremiah, about a voice is heard in Ramah weeping in great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because they are no more. If you would keep reading in that verse, which. Or that chapter, rather, which is Jeremiah 31, when you get to verse 25, this is what it says. I will satisfy the weary soul. And every languishing soul I will replenish. I will satisfy the weary soul. Is anybody weary this week? Has anybody felt like their tears could not be consoled? I felt that this week my heart broke. As a mom lost her life and a baby lost its mom. My heart broke and there was a part of me that just thought, how long, God? How long? And then I read this in verse 25, I will satisfy the weary soul and every languishing soul I will replenish. Jesus was born to engage in a battle to the death, a battle to the death with the enemy, the one who would stoop to whatever way he could, whatever way whatsoever, to maintain his power to hold on his grip around the throats of God's people. And Jesus said, no more. No more. I'm going to meet them and I'm going to enter into that pain and I'm actually going to receive it onto my body to set them free. He is King of the Jews and Lord of the Gentiles. And my, oh, my, did Matthew have a job of proving that? And did he do a job of proving that this is the King of the Jews and the Lord of the Gentiles? And even as the words of J.R. tolkien reminds us, an epic writer in himself, everything sad will come untrue. Everything sad will come untrue. And so as we've considered this snapshot, this portion of one of the most epic stories ever, I wouldn't say one of. I would say the most epic story ever. God became king and entered into suffering and pain with his people to set them free. And I'm reminded that we might never know the whole meaning of the star or what exactly happened and how it illuminated and all the details. And we can get so caught up in that stuff sometimes, right? And I'm not saying don't study. I love to study. I spent, like, four days at the library this week, and I loved every minute of it. But I don't think the point is always to figure those things out, to literally have an explanation for every little word. Sometimes I think God's voice whispers and says, believe, Just believe. Believe that I am for you that I've entered your pain, that I love you that much. And maybe he even whispers, believe I am the bright morning star, the day spring that brings light into darkness. Isaiah 40, verse 26 reminds us, Lift up your eyes, look to the heavens who created all these, he who brings forth out of the starry host one by one and calls each of them by name because of his great power and mighty strength. Not one of them is missing. This is who's talking, and this is what I'm talking about. This one, this creator God himself, who through a star led Gentiles to a place where they were comfortable, ready, wanting, searching and doing a thing that would seem unreasonable. Kneeling before a king who was not theirs and worshiping and giving gifts. Jesus himself, the light of the world, self proclaimed. And in Revelation 21, it reminds us, when all is come to fullness, when all is come to full culmination, this is what it says. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. And yet, even with that hope, we can say, but today is so dark, it's filled with so much darkness. And this is where I would say maybe we need to echo the prayer of the psalmist. There's a lot of lamentations in Psalms, right? A lot of lament. But Psalm 4 kind of stands out. And this is what it says in verse six. It says, there are many who say, oh, that we might see some good. Let the light of your face shine on us, oh Lord. Oh, that we might see some good. This was my prayer this week, and I have a feeling it's going to be my prayer for several weeks. Oh, that we might see some good. Let your light let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord, And I love that prayer like, turn your countenance towards us, Turn your face towards us. Us. And let your light shine on us, that we might reflect your glory, the glory of the light of the world. Would you pray with me as we consider this? God, I find myself in a place that, to be honest, this week has been hard. It's been hard to consider your light shining in the darkness. And there's times I can be so blinded to that because I take my eyes off of you. And I place them on the circumstances around me. And I just think, is there any hope? And then I light a candle and the light pierces the darkness. And I'm reminded again that you have come into this world as the light. You have come into this world to pierce the darkness. You are the light of the world. And so when things around me make me think that you aren't there, would you remind me? Would you turn your face towards me? Would you let the light of your countenance fill me? May you do that for each of us. And may we reflect you in beautiful ways to the world around us. Not saving the whole world, but lighting our part of it, being the one that reflects the very attributes we looked at all through advent of who you are. Our peace, our hope, our joy and our love. And may we walk in confidence, knowing that you have entered into every single part of our story. The joys and the goodness and the darkness and the pain. He said, I'm not going to live outside of it, but I'm going to come in and I'm going to redeem it. And I'm going to enter into it with you. And ultimately, I will conquer it. So go be strong, my children, and shine your lights. Amen. If you're able, and it seems right for you, if you'd stand. And let's worship together one more time as we close our time together. Thank you again for being with us. We would love to have you join us if you are ever in the Milwaukee area. And we hope you have a healthy place to gather wherever, wherever you are from.