"Make Straight the Way of the Lord"

In this second Advent sermon, Reverend Holt passionately calls the congregation to prepare their hearts for the coming of the Lord, echoing the cry of John the Baptist: “Make straight the way of the Lord.” Framing the message around a childhood game of Hide and Seek—“Ready or not, here I come”—Holt likens our spiritual condition to children hiding from God because of guilt and shame, just as Adam and Eve did in the garden.

He draws a powerful distinction between guilt (linked to actions) and shame (linked to identity), and warns that both can become spiritual roadblocks. John the Baptist’s call to "make straight" isn’t merely metaphor—it’s a prophetic wake-up to remove the valleys, mountains, and crooked places in our lives that obstruct the Lord’s presence.