Promised...

Have you ever waited on the delivery of a promise? One day you'll be big enough to ride that roller coaster...one day you'll get to have your own room...I promise that I'll be back soon.

Promises are important...they hold meaning for us because we put trust in not only the words that someone says to us, but in the person who says them.  If promises go unfulfilled, we lose trust in a person.  If we don't fulfill promises that we make, we may lose trust in ourselves.  They matter.  They are what we remember and sometimes they are what keep us going.

Jesus was "the promised one."  Think about it...the people had been waiting, hoping, telling the tales of how this promised one may come and when.  They had been talking about it and dreaming about that promise for a very long time.  And this promised one and promised moment was underwhelming...in Bethlehem?  In a stable?  With animals?  This isn't the royal entry we had anticipated...this isn't the fulfillment of the promise for which we had been hoping.  This isn't the story grandma told us about.

Look at John 1:

The Word Became Flesh

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John bridges the gaps for the people who thought they knew what the promise held.  John basically said, "Hey, I know what you've been looking for, but he's been here all along...he was with God from the beginning...he was God from the beginning, so he's legit."  Yeah, that's a little lose translation, but the people needed confirmation that what they knew was true..that the history of it all mattered.  Jesus didn't come out of nowhere...he was present all along and a part of it all.  Jesus fulfilled it all...the history, the promise...but Jesus also brought a new law...a new covenant...a new law of love.  The knowledge that this promise wasn't just a fulfillment of the past, but a promise for the future.  Jesus became a promise for all people...

"Did you wrap yourself inside the unexpected that we might know that love would go that far?"

The promise is fulfilled...live with trust in the one who came, fulfilled the promise, and continues to show us just how far love goes...

More on that next time...

The Angels...and the fear

From Joseph:
" But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit."

And Mary:
30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God."

And the shepherds...
9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.
10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

Have you noticed a reactionary theme?  Joseph, Mary, and the shepherds were just going about their normal, every day lives, and then surprise!  A shadow of a figure appears to them...an angel?  A shadow?  A ghost?  What is that?  Why me?  And when the angel appears to each of them, they are scared out of their minds.  I mean really....wouldn't you shake in your boots a little?  A lot?

Fear...it's one of the things we all have experienced and will continue to experience.  Some fears are temporary, like a dark room, a monster under the bed...and some stay with us...of not making this month's paycheck stretch to pay all the bills, of not knowing what the future holds, of not being enough of a mother, a partner...of not being a "good enough" Christian...

Whatever the fear, let's just admit that we all have them.  But read the good news found here...in the lives of some of the most important figures of our faith, they feared...they had moments when they were shaking, terrified of what God was asking them to do.  And even though they were scared, God did not discount them or their faith.  God said you'll be ok...I want to use you any way.  

Even though they were scared and they didn't know what God would do or how God would do it, they moved forward. Each character took that next step, even though they were shaky steps.

Face your fears today, knowing that when you walk forward, God walks alongside you, quieting you with his love.

Uncertainty

For our Christmas program, the ensemble is singing a song that we've done before.  It's one that is from Mary's perspective...no, not Breath of Heaven.  This one is "Be Born in Me."  It gives us perspective about what Mary must have been feeling and going through as she was approached by a heavenly being and came to acceptance of this unusual "honor."  I'll probably have more to say on this in another post, but something hit me last night.  

One of the phrases from the other song we're doing says, "It was not a silent night.  There was blood on the ground." 

Kim was explaining why we're changing those words...I guess we are censoring the story a bit so that parents can decide when they have that conversation with their kids. But he also pointed out that it could mean blood from giving birth, but it could also mean the blood all around from the killing of the first born sons dictated by King Herod.  

I was thinking about that later and I was struck with the thought that Mary was probably scared of bringing a child into the violence of that world.  Has anything changed?  

I don't have kids, but I've often thought about the daunting task of protecting them, of hoping against all hope that they will make it and not be too messed up by all that goes on in our world.  And I have a feeling that most moms have had the same thoughts and questions...will they be ok?  Will I do a good job taking care of them and keeping them safe, but not smothering them?  Can you imagine what Mary faced? She not only had a first born son, but the Promised One... The Messiah.

Women give birth every day, all around the world in the midst of conflict, war, uncertainty....in clean places, in less than appealing surroundings...surrounded by people they love, or doing it all alone.  And the world stops for a moment when the mother hears her baby's first cry.  And when she looks into the face of that small life, her life is redeemed.  She has done something to redeem the world.  

She has given life to someone else.

And day by day, you let go of that little life.  You learn that, just like giving your life by giving birth to that child, you give life to him or her by letting go.  

Mary let go.  Her whole life was a lesson in the sacrifice. First the sacrifice of her heart and body...then the ultimate lesson in sacrifice that her first-born son ended up making for her and for the entire world.  And she still had to let go.

The Work of Christmas...

We had a lengthy rehearsal last night for our Christmas program that is quickly approaching.  We will end the program with this song...

For the next few days I'll focus on the aspects of the work of Christmas...

The Work of Christmas

“The Work of Christmas,” a poem by civil rights leader and theologian Dr. Howard Thurman, reminds us why we stand on the side of love throughout the year:

Dr. Howard Thurman was an influential author, philosopher, theologian, educator and civil rights leader. He was Dean of Theology and the chapels at Howard University and Boston University for more than two decades, wrote 20 books, and in 1944 helped found the first racially integrated, multicultural church in the United States.

When the song of the angels is stilled,

When the star in the sky is gone,

When the kings and princes are home,

When the shepherds are back with their flock,

The work of Christmas begins:

To find the lost,

To heal the broken,

To feed the hungry,

To release the prisoner,

To rebuild the nations,

To bring peace among brothers,

To make music in the heart.

Nicki sang the solo for the first time last night and I'll admit it, I teared up.  Her voice cut through to my heart.  When everything is still and that still, small voice is left within our hearts, the real work begins.  We journey from just knowing the story, to actually living WHY Jesus came in the first place. See, it's not just that Jesus was once a baby and it's not just a nice story to tell once a year....it's work.  And the clarity of that call, that still, small voice, will cut you...if you let it, it will pierce your heart and change you forever, so that you have no other answer than a resounding yes, Lord, I will find the lost.  I will heal the broken.  I will feed the hungry.  I will release the prisoner.  I will rebuild nations.  I will bring peace among brothers.  I will make music in my heart and in this world...and I will do it in your name because I know that's the reason that you came in the first place. 

Enough?

Are you struggling to find "just the right gift" for that one person, or perhaps all the people on your list.  If I had a quarter for every time I've heard, "what do you get for the person who has everything?"  I'd go on a trip around the world.  It's a shame that there are websites dedicated to that question.  My mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas/birthday and sometimes it just feels like I'm grasping at straws to tell her something I "need."  Yeah, I thought of some things that might make life easier or more enjoyable...I'm sure we all can think of those things, but I like to get things that I actually need and I have to tell you, I'm coming up empty on that one.

Do we have enough?  I'm sure most reading this will answer with a resounding YES.  We have enough food every day.  We have enough friends.  Even though we say we don't, we have enough time in the day.  We have enough "stuff."  

And yet, we walk around and live life constantly wanting more, not stopping to realize that we have enough.  There is grace in enough.  The grace of enough is stopping to look at the sunrise.  The grace of enough is hugging that friend of yours that always gets your jokes.  The grace of enough calls your mom to thank her for loving you enough to give life and to even mess up sometimes in raising you.  The grace of enough reads the birth narrative with awe and wonder year after year and says a prayer of thanksgiving that this story is our story.

Have you paused today to experience the grace of enough?  Take it in.  Realize that you are full, not just physically, but of heart, and mind, and spirit. And give thanks.

Anticipation

The dictionary defines anticipation as "the act of expecting or foreseeing something; expectation."  Do you like roller coasters?  Here's a fun fact for you about my family...my mom LOVES roller coasters and my dad is absolutely terrified of them!  I used to be in his camp...I wouldn't even set foot on one when I was younger.  One time I rode the Mine Train at Six Flags with him and he screamed so hard that I couldn't stop laughing at him. That happened again on a ride at Dollywood a few years ago.  I almost wet myself I was laughing so hard.  My mom tricked me one time at Six Flags and said, "The Scream Machine isn't bad at all...it's not scary."  Well, I should have been smarter and realized that it had the word "scream" in the title.  Why do we believe everything our parents say?  ;)  I rode with her and she was trying so hard not to laugh at me.  I was screaming, "You lied!  You lied!  Get me off!  This is terrible!"  And then I was cured...I decided it was worth the gut in your throat feeling and the piercing screams.  Remember that anticipation as you climb to the top of the roller coaster?  Your eyes are wide, your breath is short, and your body tenses up with what you know is coming.  But here's the thing...you know what is coming...you've seen in part from the ground and now you get to experience it.  

Jesus coming to earth wasn't a far-fetched concept.  People anticipated his coming for a very, very long time. They knew in part, but until they experienced it, they couldn't truly put the experience into words.  It takes the anticipation to make the reality meaningful.  

But here's the kicker...most didn't recognize him when he came.  What they had been anticipating and hoping for wasn't at all what they thought they would see or experience.  A baby?  Born to poor people?  To a virgin?  With animals?  Nope, not him...that's not our Messiah...that's not good enough for what we've been anticipating.

We go through life anticipating whatever is next.  Graduating from school...the next holiday season...the next promotion at work...the next meal for some....the next car....the next baby...plan after plan, moment after moment, we anticipate.  We think we know what's coming, but we just can't wait to see how it will pan out.  Do we get lost in the anticipation like many people did waiting for their Messiah?  If we're not careful, we will miss what has already come.  God has answered prayers, but maybe it's not what we were looking for.  God has told us to wait and maybe we just want to keep moving forward with what we think we need.  Your redemption, your blessing, your teachable moment, your grace for the moment....it all may be right in front of your eyes.  

Anticipate, but don't get lost in what you think should come....raise your hands and scream....experience the roller coaster.

Hope...

Here begins my advent journey once again....happy reading and happy holidays to you all...

Much has happened in this last year of life.  I read back to last year's beginning of my advent writings and I was kind of at a low point, but still found ways to rejoice.  And just like the ground beneath the snow, my heart was being softened and prepared for something new.  I met Chris not even a month after Christmas Day last year and we've been together ever since.  My discouragement turned into courage to journey with him into the unknown and it has been a beautiful journey.  My sister met Rob (my future brother-in-law) in March and they will tie the knot two days after Christmas this year.  My brother and his wife had the second most beautiful girl in the whole world on March 1, my mom's birthday.  Life has been busy and full of changes, but mostly just full in the best ways.

This first week of Advent focuses on hope.  Hope that God sent to earth in the form of a new child.  Hope that God continues to send to us, in the form of a new baby, a new relationship, a hard time, a joyous time, a "normal" day...in smiles, in hugs, in holding someone's hand through a difficult time.  

I've known Shelley for about twelve years now...Shelley has been fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to know me from college days of figuring out who I was and being so silly that all we did was laugh together sometimes, to growing into who I am today, which is still pretty silly.  I knew Shelley before Jeremy became her husband, when she was convinced that "he doesn't like me that way...we're just friends" to "I like him!" and then to "I don't want to be the Balls!"  They got married and settled in Dandridge.  I moved away and then I moved back and we continued a friendship that I will always treasure.  I always knew Jeremy and Shelley would be amazing parents and I prayed for them to be able to have a child.  And yet, year after year, it didn't happen.  I questioned, I prayed with desperation, I cried for them, I shook my head in disbelief.  But I still prayed and hoped and asked God to restore hope to their prayers.  

In October, Dana Claire entered our world.  This clear, bright gift of God has been such a blessing to her parents and to all of us who prayed for her and hoped for her for so long. 

Can you even imagine being an early believer?  You've heard all about a Messiah, someone God would send to redeem you and the world...and yet you have no idea what that looks like. Perhaps it looks like the hope we all have experienced...perhaps hope prepares the way for the birth of joy.  The joy of a new baby is something you can't quite put into words...it changes you, softens your heart, and refocuses your purpose. 

Dare to hope...and in that, you will know joy.