Kingdom Come

Dear Lovelies,

Recently, the topic of ‘kingdom come’ has arisen in recent discussions at confirmation class and book club. It is a phrase we say often in the Lord’s Prayer, praying for ‘your kingdom come’. It is a fitting phrase for this time of year, especially as we lean into the thought of peace on earth and celebrate Thanksgiving, giving thanks and sharing in the abundance we’ve been given. It also can be a confusing phrase: we pray for something that Jesus tells us is already here. ‘Now and not yet’ is a phrase that may help …. We live in God’s kingdom and yet we pray for God’s kingdom to come.

I recently saw a quippy church sign that read, ‘we pray for the hungry to be fed and then we go and feed them – that’s how prayer works’. We pray for God’s kingdom to come, and then we go and strive towards it. We feed a hungry person; we provide a coat to one without; we resolve conflicts as we meet them; we smile when we want to complain; we lend a helping hand when we see a need; we leave an area a little better than we find it; and on and on.

We are living in God’s kingdom. We are building God’s kingdom. We are actively waiting for God’s kingdom. So we pray, ‘your kingdom come’ and we go out a make a better day.

Happy Day!

Traci Billman, Director of Christian Education