Sermon for the Third Sunday in Advent — December 15, 2019 The Rev H Elizabeth Back — St James Episcopal Church Isaiah 35:1-10 — James 5:7-10 — Matthew 11:2-11 — Canticle 15 & 3

Painted Turtle Entourage In a minute I am going to read you a tiny story from a story book. First, let’s set up the story.

You know you are in the presence of Jesus when you meet his entourage. By entourage I mean people who sparkle with an energy unique to those who have spent time in a quiet conversation about the way things are and the way we wish things are. Jesus describes the difference between the way things are and the way we wish things are as “on earth as it is in heaven.”

John the Baptist belongs to Jesus’ original entourage. In the gospel of Matthew John spends a lot of time considering how the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And people who take no offense at God’s plans and purposes are blessed. John is impatient for the revealing of Jesus as the Messiah and urgently wants to know how much longer he has to wait.

All baptized Christians claim to be Jesus’ entourage. We recognize that God wants things to be on earth as they are in heaven and we hope to participate in God’s efforts to that end.

I spent the past week on a silent retreat with thirteen other women. We claim ourselves as Jesus’ entourage. Because it is Advent, our focus was to wait. And watch. Wait for God to speak. Watch for God to appear. Will God’s voice be heard in the sound of the wind? Will God’s face be seen in the sunrise over the Blue Ridge mountains? Those small things might not sound as newsworthy as a blind person receiving sight. For those of us in God’s entourage, who trust that the Creator of all creates connections for us in every atom then yes, the sound of the weather and the movement of the stars are as amazing as any miraculous healing.

While on retreat, I found this book about Advent that touched my heart like no other Advent reading. Every year I receive a catalogue of important books about Advent. These grown up books tell me how to wait, how waiting is hard, how to be patient and your waiting will all be rewarded, trust in God etc etc. I set those books down feeling like I’ve been assigned a project I feel powerless to execute. But I discovered this innocent looking book on the windowsill of the retreat house, All Creation Waits by Gayle Boss. The words ...all creation waits… are scripture from Paul’s letter to the Romans (8:19) where Paul reassures the reader that God’s plans and purposes are being fulfilled right now, season by season, both in and by every creature created.

The book All Creation Waits looks like it is designed for children. Very young children might be bored with it but I think the 5th grade reading level would really like it. If you’ve ever taken one science class you will appreciate the research the author did on each creature. It brought to my mind all the children running around Creasey-Mahan Nature Preserve looking for creatures and how connected children are to handling wildlife in all it’s species — reptiles, insects, furry critters.

All Creation Waits describes what waiting looks like in the animal kingdom and how different animals weather winter. Depending on their design, some animals hibernate, while some forage in scarcity. Each creature is designed with specific survival mechanisms synchronized with the changes in the earth based on temperature and light.

The story of the Painted Turtle rocked me to my core, not because of the author’s theological exegesis, but because it felt so personal to me. My personal family story is the same as many family stories. I don’t regard my story as unique and I certainly didn’t regard my story as beautiful — until I read the Painted Turtle. She and I belong in same entourage. I get her. The story of the Painted Turtle makes the six bitter winter months I once spent hibernating in my friend’s basement while my family dissolved waiting to breathe again feel like something beautiful and hopeful.

If you spend time in the company of people who pray, things like, “please make earth feel like heaven” you might appreciate this story. It’s ok if you don’t feel the same way about this story as I do. Nevertheless, I commend to you in this season of waiting that all creatures are included in God’s plans and purposes for our Lord’s returning. Scripture like Isaiah mentions deer, jackals and ravenous beasts to name a few but there are so many more.

Time to read you a beautiful story of great suffering and great hope. "One day in the fall, as water and air cooled, at some precise temperature an ancient bell sounded in the turtle brain. A signal: Take a deep breath." [Elizabeth continues reading the story*]. * All Creation Waits by Gayle Boss, Paraclete Press, 2016 https://www.creaseymahannaturepreserve.org/