Advent Devotional | 4th Monday in Advent | Year C | December 21st, 2015

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Psalm 113

Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord;
   praise the name of the Lord. 

Blessed be the name of the Lord
   from this time on and for evermore. 
From the rising of the sun to its setting
   the name of the Lord is to be praised. 
The Lord is high above all nations,
   and his glory above the heavens. 

Who is like the Lord our God,
   who is seated on high, 
who looks far down
   on the heavens and the earth? 
He raises the poor from the dust,
   and lifts the needy from the ash heap, 
to make them sit with princes,
   with the princes of his people. 
He gives the barren woman a home,
   making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!

Today is the shortest day of the year.  December 21.  The winter solstice.  I don't know about where you are, but where I live, the sun will set at 4:23 P.M.  That's a long night!

On this, the shortest day of the year, when darkness seems to have the upper hand over the day, it is important that we remember that our God, the true Light, is still reigning and worthy of praise.

In fact, Psalm 113, literally, both begins and ends with praise.  From the rising of the sun to its setting, we are told to praise the Lord (which means that from here on out our praise will only increase, thanks be to God!).  

There are many things in the world that claim to have dominion over us.  Perhaps tonight, like me, you are tempted to think that the darkness has the final word.  May the words of Psalm 113 reminds us that something bigger, someone bigger is in control.  The God that is worthy of our praise created everything and is in control, even when the darkness makes that hard to see.

Praise the Lord, folks!  Who is like the Lord, our God?

Prayer of the Day:
God of Light and Love,
thank you for caring for me even when the darkness creeps along.
On this longest night of the year, keep me in your loving arms
until the sun blesses me with her presence tomorrow.  Amen.

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Stephen Fearing

Stephen was born in 1988 in Cookeville, TN, where his parents met whilst attending Tennessee Tech. Shortly after, they moved to Dalton, Georgia where they put down roots and joined First Presbyterian Church, the faith family that taught Stephen that he was first and foremost a beloved child of God. It was this community that taught Stephen that it was OK to have questions and doubts and that nothing he could do could every possibly separate him from the love of God. In 1995, his sister, Sarah Kate, joined the family and Stephen began his journey as a life-long musician. Since then, he has found a love of music and has found this gift particularly fitting for his call to ministry. Among the instruments that he enjoys are piano, trumpet, guitar, and handbells. Stephen has always had a love of singing and congregation song. An avid member of the marching band, Stephen was the drum major of his high school's marching band. In 2006, Stephen began his tenure at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC where he majored in Religion and minored in History. While attending PC, Stephen continued to explore his love of music by participating in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Jazz Combo, Jazz Trio, as well as playing in the PC Handbell ensemble and playing mandolin and banjo PC's very own bluegrass/rock group, Hosegrass, of which Stephen was a founding member (Hosegrass even released their own CD!). In 2010, Stephen moved from Clinton to Atlanta to attend Columbia Theological Seminary to pursue God's call on his life to be a pastor in the PC(USA). During this time, Stephen worked at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Silver Creek Presbyterian Church, Central Presbyterian Church, and Westminster Presbyterian Church. For three years, Stephen served as the Choir Director of Columbia Theological Seminary's choir and also served as the Interim Music Director at Westminster Presbyterian Church. In 2014, Stephen graduated from Columbia with a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Arts in Practical Theology with an emphasis in liturgy, music, and worship. In July of 2014, Stephen was installed an ordained as Teaching Elder at Shelter Island Presbyterian Church in Shelter Island, NY. Later that year, Stephen married the love of his life, Tricia, and they share their home on Shelter Island with their Golden Doodle, Elsie, and their calico cat, Audrey. In addition to his work with the people who are Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, Stephen currently serves as a commission from Long Island Presbytery to the Synod of the Northeast and, beginning in January of 2016, will moderate the Synod's missions team.