6 In that day, declares the Lord, I will assemble the lame
and gather those who have been driven away and those whom I have afflicted;
7 the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation;
and the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore.

8 And you, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion,
to you shall it come, the former dominion shall come, kingship for the daughter of Jerusalem.

9 Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you?
Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor?
10 Writhe and groan, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor,
for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon.
There you shall be rescued; there the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies.

11 Now many nations are assembled against you,
saying, “Let her be defiled, and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”
12 But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord;
they do not understand his plan, that he has gathered them as sheaves to the threshing floor.
13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion,
for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze;
you shall beat in pieces many peoples; and shall devote their gain to the Lord, their wealth to the Lord of the whole earth.

—————

In 1984 Amy Grant released a song, The Now and the Not Yet.  I won’t quote the whole song, but here is the chorus:

But I’m caught in between
The now and the not yet;
Sometimes it seems like
Forever and ever,
That I’ve been reaching to be
All that I am,
But I’m only a few steps nearer,
Yet I’m nearer….

Micah understood this.  He talks about the nations assembling against the people of God and that they will know defeat for a while.  But, although they will go to Babylon, from there they will be redeemed.

We struggle.  We want to be so much closer to God, but we’re not there yet.  When we look back at where we’ve been, we can see some progress, even if it’s not as much as we like.  But we have so far to go.

Advent reminds us that God is working to accomplish His plan for the world and His plan for us.  It may not go the way we think it should or with the speed we would prefer, but God will not be defeated.

As we prepare for His coming, let’s remember that God is still working, we’re still moving closer to Him, and He will bring about His Kingdom in us, around us, and through us.