Rejoice in the Midst of Doubts

This Sunday marks the third Sunday in Advent, as such it is known as "Gaudete Sunday," or the Sunday of Joy.

Rejoice in the Lord always! I say it again. Rejoice! Everyone should see how unselfish you are. The Lord is near. Dismiss all anxiety from your minds. Present your needs to God in every form of prayer and in petitions full of gratitude. Then God's own peace, which is beyond all understanding, will stand guard over your hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4: 4-7

In the aftermath of the horrible murders of innocent children at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, it's difficult to think about joy. Our Pastor addressed this very concern in his sermon today at Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word.

Here's one excerpt from Pastor Allen Lunneberg's sermon Rejoice in What You Have Heard...

For all our hopes and dreams that God will be with us, for instance, and pull us through, that still doesn’t stop the continuing onslaught of trials and tragedies, trembling and terror. Where is God? Where is God, after all, when obviously mentally disturbed individuals randomly gun down and murder innocent movie goers, mall shoppers or, of all things, elementary school children? Where is God, on the other hand, when the legal murder of millions of pre-born babies hardly causes concern anymore? Where is God when our own children go astray, or our husband or wife seems to lose interest in the marriage, our boss threatens to fire us for whatever little reason he or she can find or manufacture, or when our careful plans for the future are suddenly dashed by economic stress or disaster?

So where is God now in the midst of our doubts? Pastor Lunneberg quoted author and Pastor Frederic W. Baue...

Yet is God here?
Oh, yes! By Word and promise clear,
In mouth and soul
He makes us whole -
Christ, truly present in this meal.
O taste and see - the Lord is real.

Is this for me?
I am forgiven and set free!
I do believe
That I receive
His very body and His blood.
O taste and see - the Lord is good. (LSB 629)