PREPARING THE WAY: What Shall We Do?
“Go Out in Joy”
January 12, 2025
In 587 bce, Jerusalem was utterly destroyed by the powerful Babylonian empire,
headed by King Nebuchadnezzar. All the leaders of the Jeruslam
were carried off into exile to Babylon, today’s Baghdad.
Some fifty years later, Cyrus of Persia, of today’s Iran, defeated the Babylonians,
and Cyrus decided to send the exiles home to Jerusalem.
There, they would help lead a tremendous rebuilding project.
The walls of the city, the Temple, and the people themselves would need rebuilding,
renewal, transformation.
In this context, the prophet scholars call Deutero-Isaiah wrote Isaiah 40-55.
Though the Jewish people are being allowed to return to their homeland,
they faced tremendous uncertainty and unforeseen challenges.
The prophet offers them a message of hope, and an invitation to lean into God’s blessings.
Written around 538 BCE, the grandchildren of those who were exiled are encouraged
to go home with joy in their hearts, to leave behind the fears of their captivity
and discover a renewed life of fulfillment and peace, at one with God and all creation.
Ultimately, the prophets message to the grandchildren of those who had been exiled was this:
“You shall not go out in fear, anxious about what may happen to you.
You shall go out in joy, hopeful about the wonders of God’s blessings.”
Hear the Word of God from Isaiah 55.
Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money,
come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labour for that which does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live.
I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. See,
you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.
Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song,
and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall be to the Lord for a memorial, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.
I love snow days.
Some of the most memorable days in my life were snow days.
Some of you will remember that major ice storm of 1973.
The power was out for days in the Atlanta area;
we had pine tree covering our driveway in Marietta.
But I was in elementary school and this was my first introduction to real sledding,
and I loved it! I stayed out for hours flying down the slopes, then trudging back up the hills,
dragging that dependable old wooden sled with metal rails.
Others will remember the winter of 1982, I think it was.
I was a junior in high school. There is a story about some old water skis and a tow rope,
and a pickup truck…Enough said. Let’s just say, we were glad to be in one piece.
In January of 1986, my junior year at Rhodes College in Memphis,
we had three snows in 10 days; and each snow was over 10 inches deep!
My roommate and I spent a whole afternoon building an igloo on the lawn in front of the library.
We just rolled up snowballs and they got bigger and bigger,
and we started stacking them in a circle.
We built an igloo so large that four of us could gather inside for a conversation.
My roommate, Mark, was 6’3” and could stand straight up inside our igloo.
We were so impressed and pleased with ourselves.
Snowjam 1988! A significant day in my life.
It started snowing and I was invited to my sister’s house across town.
I believe it was a Thursday night.
Everyone was going to be out of school on Friday, including my sister’s friend,
a young teacher named Melanie who had grown up down the street.
We had the best time ever playing in the snow and later, playing cards and hanging out
with my sister and brother-in-law. You might say, the rest is history.
Fast forward to March 15, 1993, the Ides of March. Do you remember?
A 14” snowfall hit the Atlanta area when azaleas were already blooming.
Our eldest son, Hall, was only 6 six weeks old, and somehow the whole family ended up
at Mom and Dad’s house. We just wanted to be together and share the joy.
Every time we get a snow day, I recall those lifelong memories,
especially those with Melanie and our sons.
When our boys were young, there was certainly the requisite hot chocolate
and maybe a fun movie to watch, but before that, there was always a grand adventure,
or three, in the great outdoors.
Some years, the snow was perfect for epic snowball fights or building snowmen, like this year.
Other years, the ice was wonderful for sledding down hills, sometimes even down grassy hills.
Sometimes, we would get out there for an hour or so and be drenched with melting snow.
Other times, we would have to cut the playing short due to howling winds
and dropping temperatures.
Often, we would spend time with other neighborhood families,
with excited kids, and hats and gloves drying everywhere, and lots of hot chocolate,
and plenty of good chaos.
These days, in a different season of life, I still love a snow day in Georgia.
Taking long walks in the snow with Zoe, my Springer Spaniel.
Enjoying the dozens of wild birds that find their way to our backyard stash of birdseed,
all the old favorites ones along with some I’ve never seen before.
Hearing the delighted screams of our neighborhood children as they sled down the hills
and build snowmen and throw snowballs at their dads.
Stopping to witness the beauty of the ice crystals on the forsythia, a sparkling wonder.
Snow days can be wonderful days, but snow days also hold potential peril.
What if the power goes out? What if someone slips on the ice and needs to go to the ER?
Are there enough groceries in the house for a few days?
What if a limb, or worse a tree!, falls on the house?
For some people, snow days are lonely days.
Their lives, which are already somewhat lonely, become even more isolated.
For others, snow days become dangerous days.
When you are in your 90’s and using a walker, snow days are best spent indoors.
For many, snow days are workdays.
Hospitals and fire stations and power companies don’t shut down when everyone else does.
Just like daily life, snowy storms can bring uncertainty and anxiety and peril,
especially if you have had some negative experiences in the past.
For a moment, let’s use a snow day as a metaphor
for engaging with the uncertain and anxious world of January 2025.
Facing life’s challenges at the beginning of this particular year
could be considered a bit like venturing out of the house on a snow day.
When we decide to venture out on a snow day, we bundle up.
We prepare ourselves for the elements, for cold winds and wet feet.
When we depart the house, we do not do so fearful and worried about what might happen.
We go out with joy, hopeful about what will happen.
We go out, looking for the wonders of God’s blessings, engaging the beauty all around us.
When we venture out into an uncertain and anxious world,
like venturing out on a snow day, we always seek to prepare ourselves
for whatever conditions we might find.
We try to make sure everyone has what they need.
Has everyone had something to eat and drink? Have you been to the bathroom recently?
Do you have shoes on that will keep your feet dry?
Are you wearing enough protective layers?
Hat? Gloves? Now, where’s that sled? OK! Let’s go!
And, to be fully transparent, occasionally when venturing out into the unknown,
there are tears. On snow days, the tears may be due to a frozen glove
or a snowball to the face or someone getting left behind
or, occasionally, just too much play and not enough rest.
In the anxious and uncertain world in which we live, there are tears there as well.
For the most part, when we go out in joy and hope and love, looking for God’s blessings,
we return with peace in our hearts.
This does not mean that everything will go to plan.
This does not mean that everything will turn out well or that we will not suffer in some way.
This does mean that when we follow Jesus’ ways, we will always know peace in our hearts.
Philippians 4, written by the Apostle Paul from prison, by the way, says it best:
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
That passage reminds me of former President Jimmy Carter.
Jimmy Carter faced tremendous challenges during his presidency,
both globally with the Iran hostage crisis and at home, with the depression and oil embargo.
But Jimmy Carter, the Sunday School teacher, the nuclear physicist, the faithful man of God,
tended to engage the world with joy. He tended to lean into hope and not fear.
He had a strong mind and a gentle heart.
And many who knew him well experienced with him a peace that passes understanding.
When we seek God’s joy, when we are gentle and compassionate in our love,
when we lean into hopefulness rather than worry and concern,
when we are thankful and prayerful,
the peace of God tends to find us and protect us.
Isaiah 55 is a prophet’s song of hope,
an encouraging song for grandchildren returning to their ancestral home,
a home that has been destroyed and needs to be rebuilt.
Isaiah 55 is an encouragement to seek joy in whatever circumstances they find themselves.
Isaiah 55 is a reminder that God will be with us, that God desires to forgive us,
that God’s blessings are all around, as close as the warm breeze enlivening the cypress trees.
Listen to me, that you may live! the prophet declares.
The everlasting covenant with God continues.
Even though you are in this terrible situation.
Even though your old life is gone; even though it does not seem like it can possibly get better,
God has not forgotten you. God has not left you orphaned.
The covenantal promises still stand, despite all the evidence to the contrary.
This prophetic word rings true for all of us, but perhaps especially for young adults
in the world today.
We have some 150 young adults on our church roll who grew up here
or were active in our youth group.
They went through confirmation; they were baptized.
Now, social scientists report that many young adults are finding themselves in an exile of sorts,
living unsatisfied lives, living all over the city and country,
separated from their families and their communities.
Many will spend their money for that which is not bread.
Many will spend their time and resources on things and activities that do not satisfy.
Seek God while he may be found, the prophet encourages.
Call upon God while God is near.
Leave behind any sinful ways and unrighteous thoughts.
Turn to God and God will abundantly pardon.
God will forgive all that separates us from God and others.
God will have mercy upon us. God will bless us in unexpected ways.
The Word made incarnate, Jesus Christ, has come and will come again.
God’s Word, made known in Jesus Christ, and made real in the ministries of the Church
and its people, will accomplish, ultimately, what God intends.
God’s Word that was implanted in your heart in those younger years shall not return empty.
In this New Year of 2025, as devastating fires rage in California,
as uncertainty and anxiety grip our nation, as we ordain and install a new class of elders,
including four relatively young adults:
“We shall not go out in fear, anxious about what may happen.
We shall go out in joy, hopeful about the wonders of God’s blessings.”
In closing, I witnessed an interview yesterday of a middle aged couple
who had lost their home and everything in it in the California wildfires.
The woman said that when she drove away, she thought for sure
she would return to her home just as it was. She was sadly mistaken.
When they got back to the neighborhood, they found their home burned to the ground,
along with all their treasures.
She said that the one thing she most wished that she had gone back in to retrieve
was her framed family pictures, especially her father’s pictures from his service in World War II.
What surprised me most about that interview was their joy.
Even in the midst of their grief and loss, they were joyful.
They were not happy, which is based on circumstances, but deeper than that,
they radiated a joyful confidence that they would rebuild.
Though they had lost many things, they still had each other.
Their neighbors down the street and their family members nearby were still alive,
and they would join them in their tremendous rebuilding project.
As the Apostle Paul wrote from prison: Rejoice in Lord always, again, I say, Rejoice!
Do not worry; do not fear. The Lord is with you, even when all the evidence suggests otherwise.
In this New Year, with these new elders,
may this congregation go out in joy, and discover once again
the peace of Jesus Christ that passes all understanding. Amen.
Rev. Dr. Todd Speed
Decatur Presbyterian Church, Decatur, Georgia
