A Message from Kahu Alan Akana

by admin | Dec 17, 2015 | Message from Kahu

HOPE!  PEACE!  JOY!  LOVE!

During the Season of Advent, we celebrate hope, peace, joy and love. We do so as we light the Advent candles each Sunday. We also focus on these four words in our worship themes, Scripture readings, prayers and sermons. We reflect on these four words every year at Advent because they are central to our faith and our lives.

As I listen to the news every morning and read the newspaper each day, I am convinced all the more that we must reflect on these words if we choose to follow Jesus Christ. In the news, I hear of terrorism, refugees, environmental crises, and poverty. Without hope, peace, joy and love in our minds and on our hearts, I wonder if we would all sink into despair.

Yet, these four words are what we need to remember not just during Advent but throughout the year, as we commit to making the world a better place and the lives of others more fulfilling…for we cannot keep hope, peace, joy and love to ourselves. Sharing them is part of their nature.

So, may our lives overflow with hope, peace, joy and love…and may they “flow over” onto the lives of others. I hope to see you on Christmas Sunday as we celebrate the coming of Christ into this world.

Aloha nui loa!

Kahu Alan Akana

A Message from Kahu Alan Akana

by admin | Dec 8, 2015 | Message from Kahu

PEACE ON EARTH

On Sunday, we read the story of the shepherds who were watching their sheep on the night Jesus was born. They were approached by an angel who told them about the birth of Jesus. Then a host of angels appeared, praising God and saying:

“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those on whom his favor rests.”

I talked about the shepherds and what their lives were like. They were a group of people who knew very little peace—especially at night while they guarded their flocks in the dark from dangerous predators. They were among the poorest of the working class; they did the job that no one else wanted. While everyone else was comfortably sleeping in their beds, the shepherds were wide awake and ready to protect their flocks from packs of wolves. Furthermore, they lived in a culture that didn’t know much about peace, for the Romans ruled with brutality and terror.

So news of peace came unexpectedly to the shepherds. They figured they must be the last people on earth to receive news of peace! Nevertheless, God chose them to be among the first people to learn of the good news that a baby was born who would bring peace to all.

My prayer this week for the people of Koloa Union Church is that we would all experience the peace of God, for God’s favor rests upon us all; and may we share God’s peace with others!

Aloha nui!

Kahu Alan Akana