G. Archer Frierson
Chair, Austin Seminary Board of Trustees
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Advent Devotional for December 4
• Malachi 3:13-18
Like the discouraged people described in Malachi, we tire of obeying God, serving others, and carrying ourselves with humility. Why bother, we wonder, when what we do doesn’t seem to make any difference? Evildoers go unpunished; the arrogant push others to the side on their way to success, smiling. Witnessing these injustices, we might even be tempted to abandon our faith—to forget the God who has, apparently, forgotten us and our efforts.
If we are courageous enough to share our frustrations, we discover we are not alone. Other believers are also watching the twisted dynamics of our world and trying to figure out how to hold faith in the midst of it. How do we go about reconciling what we believe with our actual experiences of life? Why are God’s promises taking so long to come to completion? Does living virtuously contribute anything at all to the actualization of the divine vision? These are some of the crucial issues those faithful people in Malachi no doubt talked about (see 3:11). These are some of the questions Godrevering, life-living people have always discussed, in every place and time. These questions are our questions, the questions we ask because we want to find honest ways to keep hoping.
Our passage suggests God listens in on the conversations of the faithful and is affected by them. When we talk about God with reverence, God is moved by the concerns that lie heavy on our hearts, claims us as God’s own, and recommits to making things right. God even has our names recorded in a book of remembrance. In ancient times, such books were used by monarchs to keep track of the ways loyal citizens contributed to the welfare of the kingdom.
It is not the names of the evildoers or the arrogant who will fill the pages of the Kingdom’s history books. It is the names of the faithful children of God who for now are working hard to discern what God is up to and how to join in.
May we be counted as those who remember and revere you, O Lord, even as we await our Redeemer. Amen.
The Reverend Dr. Cynthia L. Rigby
The W.C. Brown Professor of Theology
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.We hope that you are preparing the way for the Lord in your life as you read these meditations and prayers. And, we hope this Advent season is a meaningful one for you. Please know that Austin Seminary’s dedicated, diverse, and loving community of faith is not complete without you. Did you know?
• Students in our masters-degree programs receive up to 85% need-based tuition aid.
• Historically, more than 80% of our graduates are called to congregational ministry.
• Our students come from more than a dozen denominations.
• Our alumni serve in ministry in forty-eight U.S. states as well as in twenty different countries across the world.
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