Thresholds: Crossing into God’s New World

Threshold of Silence 

Next Sunday, as the last of the Thanksgiving leftovers disappear, we step into Advent with a new theme: Thresholds—Crossing into God’s New World. Advent is a season of holy tension. We stand between what has been and what might be, listening for God’s invitation into something braver, deeper, and more aligned with the love of the Christchild. 

Our subtheme this week is “Threshold of Silence.” We’re taking a look at Daniel 3 this week. On its surface, this story is not silent. It’s filled with noise—trumpets blaring, officials shouting orders, a furnace roaring hot enough to burn alive anyone who comes too close. The power of empire is loud, and its goal is obedience through fear. Nebuchadnezzar builds a golden statue and commands everyone to bow. And yet Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego choose another way. 

Their resistance is not loud or violent. They don’t rally troops or shout. They simply stand. 

Quietly. 

Steadily. 

Faithfully. 

In a world defined by imperial noise, their refusal becomes a holy silence—a threshold moment separating the demands of the empire from the courage of faith. They don’t know if they’ll survive the furnace. They don’t know what comes next. But they trust that God meets us precisely in the space between fear and hope. 

Many in our community know something of that space right now. We know transition. We know anxiety. We know exhaustion, uncertainty, hurt, and the search for solid ground. 

Advent invites us to something different. 

To stand in the quiet. 
To listen for God’s whisper in the dark. 
To wait—not passively, but faithfully. 
Not resigned, but ready. 

This is a season for lighting a candle when the world feels cold, for crossing the threshold into God’s new world one step at a time. 

So this Sunday, we begin again. We gather in worship, and later in the week for midweek prayer, to breathe, to wait, to listen, and to trust that Christ the child is already on the move—right here, right now, at Bethany and beyond. 

Come and stand with us on the threshold. 

Peace, 

Pastor Katie