“Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel!  Rejoice and exult with all your heart,  O daughter Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away the judgements against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more.  On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak. The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. I will deal with all your oppressors at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. At that time I will bring you home, at the time when I gather you; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.” (Zephaniah 3:14-20) The little book of Zephaniah is something like the year, 2021.  It is one awful thing after another!  Zephaniah speaks judgment against God’s people; judgment after judgment after judgment.  And then these last six verses.  Talk about a dramatic shift.  Trouble has come and is coming but the last word is a promise.  My guess is that for many of us, 2021 is a year to leave behind quite happily.  Perhaps it has been a year of great sorrow and loss; perhaps even some judgment.  Still, Advent is promise.  The Lord has come and he will come again.  That little manger baby is a warrior who gives victory.  And he invites us to join in his song of triumph.  What exactly is the nature of his victory?  It is quite simple: he has beaten all that can harm us and he has won you and me back to himself.  Let that sink in.  Listen to his song.  It will still be ringing when 2021 is a dim and distant memory.  Ready to join the song?  Have a great week!