From a sermon by

Bill Adams Trinity Episcopal Church, Sutter Creek, CA. USA

"We so often speak of the Second Coming of Christ.... Frankly I don't know where we got such terminology.....

The phrase Second Coming does not appear anywhere in the Bible.... The Bible proclaims loudly and clearly that the Christ... The very Word of God... was with God and is God and became flesh in the world.... not once... not twice.... but eternally.....

The inherent problem with a phrase like Second Coming is that it carries the implication of not here yet.

----- But Jesus Christ is not stuck in traffic.... The Redeemer of the world wasn't sent to us with the wrong zip code... delayed until the Postal Department gets their act together...... the Word of God is present in everything and everyone.... everywhere.... right now!

Advent isn't a season where we hang out for a while until Christmas happens.... Advent is a season where we learn once again to be an expectant people..... a people who anticipate.... a people who read the signs....a people who look painstakingly for the invasion of Christmas everywhere! "

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The superintendent of a large Christian school was concerned about the disarray he found in so many of the classrooms he visited. Papers were often strewn on the floor, and the students' desks were surrounded by clutter.

Feeling strongly that learning could not take place in such an untidy environment, he decided to take action.

He chose one classroom for an experiment, introduced himself to the students and with a smile made this proposition:

"Your teacher, principal and I provide a well-equipped classroom for you to enjoy but we need your help in keeping your desks and the classroom orderly. Many of you have crumpled papers inside your desks with books left open and the pages bent. Often there are pencils on the floor under your desks along with other debris.

"I would like each of you to clean out your desk today and begin this school year resolving to keep it clean. One day I will return and inspect your desks and the person with the neatest desk will be given this $100 bill. I won't tell you which day it will be. It will be a surprise. Not even your teacher or the principal will know the day."

The children squealed with excitement and began immediately pulling things from their desks, filling the trash baskets with crumpled papers, stacking their books neatly inside their desks, and neatly lining up their pencils and pens.

Every morning for the first week, every student checked his or her desk to make sure it was in perfect condition, confident that today would be the day the superintendent returned.

The next week, a few boys grew weary of the exercise and returned to their former habits.

By the third week, several students remarked, "I doubt if he'll come back at all. He just said that to make us keep our desks clean."

After two months, no one in the classrooms bothered to inspect their desks and in fact, forgot the superintendent's promise.

Except for one girl.

Dutifully, she inspected her desk every morning and several times a day, making sure things were in proper order.

For months, she was teased by the other students. "He's not coming back! Why do you keep looking for him? You look stupid believing that promise, anyway."

Still, she remained quiet, kept her desk in perfect condition and waited.

Near the end of the school year, there was a knock on the door and the superintendent entered.

Quickly, the students flung open their desks and began frantically to clean them. But the superintendent held up his hand for them to stop. All the students were asked to stand beside their desk at attention while the superintendent inspected each desk.

One after another, he rejected them for being unkempt. One boy tried giving excuses but to no avail. Another blamed the teacher for not reminding them. Still another blamed the superintendent for making them wait so long.

Finally, the superintendent arrived at the desk of the little girl who confidently displayed her well-kept desk while beaming at the superintendent.

After inspecting her desk, he took her by the hand to the front of the classroom and awarded her the $100 bill.

"Boys and girls," he said kindly, "this girl never stopped believing I would return so she kept her desk in perfect order. She didn't need to worry about what day or even what time of day I would arrive because she was always ready. Always. (1)

(1) from  Illustrator e-mail list

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Several years ago the Peanuts comic strip had Lucy and Charlie Brown practicing football. Lucy would hold the ball for Charlie’s placekicking and then Charlie would kick the ball. But every time Lucy had ever held the ball for Charlie, he would approach the ball and kick with all his might. At the precise moment of the point of no return, Lucy would pick up the ball and Charlie would kick and his momentum unchecked by the ball, which was not there to kick, would cause him to fall flat on his back.

This strip opened with Lucy holding the ball, but Charlie Brown would not kick the ball. Lucy begged him to kick the ball. But Charlie Brown said, "Every time I try to kick the ball you remove it and I fall on my back." They went back and forth for the longest time and finally Lucy broke down in tears and admitted, "Charlie Brown I have been so terrible to you over the years, picking up the football like I have. I have played so many cruel tricks on you, but I have seen the error of my ways! I’ve seen the hurt look in your eyes when I’ve deceived you. I’ve been wrong, so wrong. Won’t you give a poor penitent girl another chance?"

Charlie Brown was moved by her display of grief and responded to her, "Of course, I’ll give you another chance." He stepped back as she held the ball, and he ran. At the last moment, Lucy picked up the ball and Charlie Brown fell flat on his back. Lucy’s last words were, "Recognizing your faults and actually changing your ways are two different things, Charlie Brown!" (2)

(2) Contributed by: Jeeva Sam from SermonCentral

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It seems a Judge was presiding over the courtroom scene in Connecticut during the middle 1700's. Without warning from any source, an eclipse of the Sun took place. The event frustrated the people and they broke into panic. But the Judge maintained his equilibrium and presence of mind. He rapped for order and said: "If this be the end of the world, let us at least be found doing our duty. Bring in the candles!"

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The great British automaker Rolls Royce takes great pride in the reliability of their handcrafted automobiles. An obviously wealthy owner of a Rolls took it to Europe on an extended trip. While traveling in France the car had some mechanical problem. He called the Rolls Royce factory and asked that they send out a mechanic straightaway to fix the problem. The company responded in royal fashion. They put a mechanic on a private jet with all of the necessary tools and flew him over to France to make the repairs.  The owner was so wealthy that he wasn't at all concerned about the cost, and he would not spare any expense to assure that his beloved Rolls Royce was properly repaired.  However, after several months he realized he had not received a bill for the repair.  He directed his secretary to contact the Rolls Royce factory to inquire about the charges.  He received a prompt reply from the Rolls Royce company.  With typical British aplomb, it said simply, "We have no recollection or record of any Rolls Royce having ever had a breakdown or being in need of repair anywhere in France."

When we repent and ask God to fix things that have resulted from sin in our lives, like Rolls Royce, he fixes it and doesn't have any recollection of the problem, and he NEVER sends a bill

from Christian Voices