Advent 2020 – December 7

Whom Should I Fear?
Greg Ledbetter

Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14 (NRSV)

¹The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strongholdof my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

⁴ One thing I asked of the Lord,
    that will I seek after:
to live in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord,
    and to inquire in his temple.

¹³ I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living.
¹⁴ Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord!

The day during which I am writing this is having a heart to heart with the day that December 7 has come to symbolize. As I sit and ponder, the knowledge weighs heavy that I am three days past the death of my father. Covid 19 recently struck both of my parents and while my mother came out of it relatively untouched, it proved to be too much for my dad. Our family is now a part of the sad, but growing statistics of the deadly reality of this pandemic. We remember on this day that 79 years ago, on August 6 & 9, the peoples of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were devastated by a horrific pandemic of another kind: the cancer of the mind and spirit that believes that violence can beget anything other than more violence.

In the Psalm for this day, the Psalmist stands on the “light and salvation” of God’s presence and being while asking the ancient question of all sentient beings: “Whom should I fear?” We can debate whether it is a “whom” or a “what” that might cause fear to rise up in us and in our world, but there’s no debating the insidious presence of fear all around. I might argue that fear was a prominent emotion in the hearts and minds of 74 million voters this fall. But fairness demands acknowledgment that 80 million other voters were moved by fear as well. Whom should I fear? What should I fear?  

This is a season of waiting and perversely apropos for Advent 2020 set as it is during this time of Covid—a season of waiting set within a year of waiting … and waiting. With our waiting we do well to reflect: What do I fear and how does that fear shape and move me? Jesus urged his followers to fear less those who can only “kill the body” than those “who can destroy both soul and body.” My dad’s passing is yet another reminder that we are mortal—as if such a reminder was needed. Oy vey. But dad also knew and preached about that which can destroy our souls. I grew up with a portrait of Martin Luther King hanging on the wall and King’s words uttered from the pulpit. King spoke passionately about the corrosive and devolutionary nature of violence which I believe to be one of the faces of fear. Perhaps as deadly as the physical violence we abhor is the spiritual violence that destroys as surely as does the other. And the only antidote for violence and fear, a spiritual vaccine that can reverse and heal the terrible effects of fear, is love.

The Psalmist asks the age-old question about whom or what to fear against a backdrop of profound yearning: yearning to be grounded in God and God’s love; yearning to be at home in God and God’s love; yearning to find courage and hope in God and God’s love. This is a season to get in touch with and give voice to our yearning for love, belonging, security, and hope.

Musical Setting by Greg Ledbetter, November 2020
(Click here)

Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14

The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?

The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?

One thing I ask of the LORD; this I seek:
To dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
That I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD
and contemplate his temple.

The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.

The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?
The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Whom should I fear? Whom should I fear?

LABC Zoom Gatherings

LABC Youth Group – 7:00 p.m. Monday

No Soup, But Study -6:00 p.m. Tuesday

Wednesday Prayer and Bible Study – 10:30 a.m.

Together In Spirit – 6:00 p.m. Thursday

Looking Ahead

Blue Christmas Service – 2:00 p.m. Sunday, December 13