Tag: Advent

Incarnation & Benediction: The Christ Candle

Every Sunday morning at the church where I worship, we hear one particular word without fail. We are told to greet one another because of it. And then, as we end singing together the doxology, the final words sending us out into the world to be the church center around this same word. I suspect you are ahead of me at this point, perhaps hearing the same word at your place of worship: Peace. “Go in the peace of Christ.”

That heavenly host, announcing with joyful anticipation the birth of Jesus, burst on to the earthly scene, a handful of shepherds their audience. Heaven’s exuberance could not be contained, the supernatural momentarily exploding into our world. To those unnumbered and unnamed shepherds, they sang a message centered around one word: peace. God’s peace. 

Years later, thirty-three to be exact, the baby was now the resurrected God-man anticipating his departure from this earth. The message spoken at his birth to a group of frightened shepherds would now be the message Jesus breathed over a frightened group of disciples: Peace be with you. Not once but twice Jesus would say these words to those whose hearts were not at peace. They were overwhelmed, troubled and confused. Into their frightened hearts, Jesus would speak peace. His birth, his life, his death and resurrection brought peace. The Apostle Paul understood this when he would years later write, He is our peace. And the good news is that it’s a peace possible in the middle of difficulty.

Peace with God is ours. Peace within our own hearts is possible. Peace even amidst the broken relationships. Earlier, Jesus had said to the disciples, My peace I give to you. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart, for I have overcome the world. Peace has won, is winning, and will win out in the end despite what we now experience.

As we engage with this holiday season, remind yourself and others that all is well. Shalom. Someday, we will know it in full. Until that day, work for peace where it is in your power to do so. Peace to you.

Saturday Self-Awareness

If your heart were like a mall map, what’s your “red dot,” your “I am here” reality today? Knowing where we truly are, not just where we wish we were or who we pretend to be, is the first step to drawing near to God.  

• What has you anxious?
• What recurring thoughts are you mulling over today?
• Is there anyone you wish you could avoid being around right now? Why?
• What do you long for or look forward to?
• Where have you seen God show up this week?
• When have you experienced joy or relief or peace today?

Bring all that you are into God’s presence and let Him meet you with all that He is.

Friendship on Fridays

Divine Intrusions

Intrusions to our carefully crafted plans can be annoying. To plan one’s morning, set on accomplishing a number of tasks before settling in to do what we really want, and then to have those plans interrupted by an unsuspecting event or person can easily derail us. But intrusions can equally be life-giving.

Part of the Christmas story as recorded by Luke in his Gospel involved an intrusion. Call it a divine intrusion. On an ordinary evening in the back fields of Bethlehem, a number of shepherds were going about their business. Perhaps they were even napping. Suddenly, a heavenly host interrupted the darkness of a quiet, starry night. The passion of heaven was exploding into the earthly realm, heaven unable to contain its excitement. This angelic choir’s joy was matched however, by the shepherds’ terror. An unexpected intrusion can do just that: terrify us because it is unsettling, leaving us no longer in control, and uncertain what will be required of us. Because we live in a fallen world, such significant intrusions can even feel unsafe. But as the joy of heaven spilled into our world, the announced news was good, better than good. It would be life-altering, starting with these ordinary men doing ordinary work. 

As I think back across the landscape of my life, divine intrusions, while often initially troubling and confusing, perhaps even frustrating, have in fact been life-giving. Sometimes these interruptions come from the unexpected words of a friend; at other times, they appear in the form of suffering. We may even receive news that deeply discourages us, altering our sensible plans, whether short-term or long-range. But God is in the business of intruding into our lives to announce the good news of the Gospel–over and over again. And His intrusions it seems are ultimately designed to move us off our smaller stories to get a glimpse of His larger story in which we are being invited to participate. 

Perhaps during this Advent season, we could consider and give thanks for those past intrusions, and then pray for an openness to how God might want to break into our worlds going forward. Peace to you.

Thankful Thursdays

One of the major ways that God reveals Himself in our lives is through other people.  Take a few moments to make a list of some of the people that have blessed your life through the years.  

• What was it about each of these people that made such a powerful impression on you?
• Have you thanked God lately for the people who enrich your life?
• How might you best express appreciation to those people, letting them know that their impact was meaningful and has not gone unnoticed?

Worship on Wednesday

One of the greatest barriers to genuine worship is our human propensity for making God in our own image, for centering ourselves even in the way we relate to God. When God set aside Israel as His people, He did so for the salvation of the world, for their relationship with Him to be a light to other nations.  Instead, they repeatedly sought to claim the benefits of relationship for themselves without living in a way that brought Him glory and drew other nations to revere Him as the true God.  

In Jesus’ day, the Jews were so focused on a Messiah who would save them politically that they failed to see that God had come near, living in their midst.  Throughout church history, we see the same failure to delight in God for His own sake instead of using His name for power, prosperity, or prestige.  If we’re honest, we can see this happen in our own lives as well.

• While it’s legitimate for your culture to shape your life, are you aware of ways that it can act as blinders to seeing God clearly and to loving others well?
• Take some time today to be quiet before the Lord and ask Him to show you ways in which so you’re caught up in your own plans, your own comfortable habits, and familiar community that you’re not seeing what He longs to reveal to you and through you.
• With whom will it be most difficult for you to spend time over the next few weeks? 
• How might interactions with that person be an opportunity to think “story of the soul,” as well as an invitation for God to enlarge your perspective?

We also have a Larger Story playlist on Spotify to help you center your attention on Jesus this season, and we’re continuing to add music to it throughout Advent.

Tea Time Tuesday

In this season of Advent in the midst of the darkness of this world, I’ve been pondering Peter’s words to live “looking for and hastening the coming of the Lord” (2 Peter 3:11-12).   I often ask myself what does it look like for me to hasten the coming of the Lord? On the small speck of the earth that I inhabit, how is my life making a difference in the darkness of this world and into the lives of others? How does an ordinary person like me, living an ordinary life, hasten the awareness of the One who is Light in the darkness?

While pondering these thoughts, an unexpected remembrance of my mother came to mind. Mother often expressed her love for others through gifts…and for her, baking was an avenue of gifting. So each year as we approached Christmas, she began a list of those for whom she would be making fudge.  There were always the assumed recipients of her fudge, but each year there would be a new name on the list. One year, that new name was our school bus driver, Vick. Mother noticed that as teachers and school staff received gifts from students, rarely was Vick seen. In her ordinary life and in an ordinary way, through a pan of fudge, a friendship was formed that lasted well beyond our bus-riding days.

 Years later, Vick became terminally ill, and Mother was one of the first friends his wife called. I believe she hastened the awareness of the love of God to Vick and his wife, and it all began in her awareness of an overlooked school bus driver to whom she was grateful for his service of getting her children safely to school and back each day.

 In True Spiritual Community (pg. 128) by Larry Crabb I find this quote by Pascal;

“The slightest movement affects that whole of nature: one stone can alter the whole sea. Likewise, in the realm of grace the slightest action affects everything because of its consequences; therefore, everything matters.”

So, in this remembrance of my mother and the words of Pascal, I find deeper understanding to my questions… There are no ordinary people or ordinary actions. And when the Life and Love and Light of God that resides within His children is released toward another, there are no ordinary moments. The smallest actions open doors to relational connection in ways that I believe bring light into this dark world.

Marshmallow Fudge

Directions:

1. Butter: 1- 11×13 pan OR 4- 8 ½” x 5 ½” x 1” aluminum pans (I use gas grill drip pans)

• Put in large Bowl: 12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips and 9 oz. marshmallow cream

• Mix in large sauce pan and bring to a boil. Stirring to keep from sticking and boil hard for 8 minutes.

1 can evaporated milk

½ tsp salt

½ pound butter

5 cups sugar

• Pour over chocolate chips and marshmallow cream add 1 tsp vanilla and stir until well blended*

• Pour into pan(s) and cool.

*Optional: Pecans or walnuts can be added to your preference. 

 Makes 5 pounds

Memories on Mondays

With Ken Crabb

For me, what jumps to mind when I think about my Dad and Christmas is Bing Crosby and Christmas Carols.  We listened to Bing Crosby’s Christmas album nonstop when I was a kid, and our family sang along with every song.  

I remember our old farmhouse in Warsaw, Indiana, we had the record player set up by the fireplace.  (Wow, I am aging myself as my kids don’t even know what a record player is!)  Our Christmas tree was always in that room as well, and Bing’s record was on from 12/1-12/25.  We even had it playing while we opened Christmas presents.  

About one in four Christmases, we took a family vacation, and I remember as a child loving those vacations, but missing Bing singing Christmas carols.

Worship & Welcome: The Hope Candle

Each Sunday we have lit a candle as a physical celebration of a profound spiritual reality. The first Sunday we enjoyed the Beauty of this story and God’s design for bringing His creating forward to shalom. The second Sunday we remembered that God heard our cry and embarked on a massive Rescue that began in Exodus, was furthered by the first coming and will be completed in the second. On the third Sunday we were grateful for the Hope demonstrated when God pitched His tent among us, suffering to wander the barren land with His rebellious children. And on this fourth Sunday we experience the Joy of God’s demonstrated commitment to reside in a permanent dwelling, the Temple, with His people, His “special possession.”

As a family or community, take some time to light each candle again, expressing your praise and worship for each magnificent gift God offered you in this story. Welcome God as He moves nearer to you this season.

Saturday Self-Awareness

During the holiday season, past and present disappointments in our relationships can make it difficult to love well.  Taking stock of what has shaped your relationships can prevent you from being blindsided by unhealthy patterns.

• If you look realistically at past interactions with high-conflict people in your life, what characteristics in them seem to contribute to that conflict?
• What patterns of behavior in you feed the conflict?
• Why are you prone to choosing those responses?
• Is the conflict something you can address with the other person, or would that be ill-advised based on your past experiences with them?
• What choices can you make to shift the dynamic of your interaction with them so that you can offer a taste of Jesus’ goodness without getting looped into old patterns?
• What can you actively do to stir either affection toward, concern for the well-being of, or redemptive prayer on behalf of the other person?
• What places in your own heart are in need of God’s tenderness and your own patience?

Friendship on Fridays

My first time to sit with Larry and discuss a problem I was facing happened in 1995. I had completed my Masters Degree in Biblical Counseling the year before under Larry but had never scheduled a time to sit with him in his office. I’m certain I was too intimidated to share and was overly concerned that Larry see me favorably. Now, however, I was an intern in the same program, with Larry as the department head. I still wanted to be seen favorably, but wanted help in a particular area even more.

I scheduled a time and sat down. In classic therapeutic fashion, Larry began with, “How can I help you?”

I went on to tell him about a problem I had with sleeping. Or better stated, my lack of sleep. I was a chronic insomniac and hated the medically-induced sleep remedy of sleeping pills because of the fog they left me in the next morning and grogginess throughout the next day.

It was then that Larry took a different approach than I was expecting. I thought he’d try to come up with another alternative to fix my problem. Instead, he asked me to tell him about a typical night for me when I couldn’t sleep.

“It doesn’t happen every night. But some weeks I’ll be up 4 or 5 nights. I usually get to bed about 10 or 11, and then somewhere between 1 or 3 in the morning, I start to stir. Often a particular thought or problem will come to mind and my mind will get going on it. For the next half hour or so, I start a battle with my will to go back to sleep or get up, filled with countless pleads with God to help me sleep. After a while I eventually get up and try reading, praying or journaling y way through whatever has captivated my attention. After an hour, or two, or three, I eventually crawl back in bed for a quick nap before I finally get up between 5 and 7.”

Without missing a beat, Larry asked, “What usually happens before you get back in bed?” “Well, I guess I eventually end up flat on my face most nights, crying out to God that I might know him better or have courage to face some new challenge or in utter worship of some new kindness he’s made me aware of…”

The next thing said to me lingers to this day, “And you want to get rid of this, why?”

Taken about, I said, “What do you mean? I want to get some rest. Waking up keeps me from getting the rest I need.”

Then the clincher, “Perhaps, God is committed to a different kind of rest than you are. Perhaps, He’s more committed to your soul finding rest, than your body.”

Confused, I said, “So, what are you saying, that my insomnia isn’t a problem?”

Again, without missing a beat, he said, “Are you trying to tell me your most intimate tastes of communion with God are a problem. Maybe your restless nights are the only time he can get your attention without all the other distractions of life crowding Him out.”

Still taken back, I respond, “So you really don’t think I have a problem.”

“Oh, of course you do,” he said with a lightheartedness that surprised me. “But it’s not God interrupting your sleep. From one insomniac to another (referring to himself), you need to realize you’re in good company when God wakes you up in the middle of the night. Go back to your Bible and see how many people God visits in the middle of the night. So, do you have any other non-problems we can fix?”