The Candle of Christ

Christmas Day

Advent has been a time of waiting, of dreaming, of healing, and of promise. It is finally time for our preparation to be over as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Each week we lit another candle on our Advent wreath. First we lit the candle of the Prophets, which stands for Hope. The following week, we lit the candle of the Shepherds, which stands for Peace. The third week, we lit the Mary candle, the light of Joy. At last, we lit the Joseph candle, which stands for Love.

Each week the light grows a little more, pushing the darkness farther and farther away into the quiet of the winter evening. Tonight, finally, the Light of Christ, the fifth candle, is lit. It signifies banishing the darkness forever as we enter the world illuminated as God has re-imagined it in its perfect state.

We celebrate! Here in the midst of winter we are reminded that God's love is shown in a most wonderful way-the birth of a child, the one who reminds us of the fullness of God's love for us.

Luke 2

The Birth of Jesus

¹ In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.

⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Thank you for journeying here through Advent together; as we light the Christ candle may we all be grateful for times of quiet, times of stillness, and times of preparation. I pray that we all know the blessings of love and joy, peace and hope, and healing.

May we experience the presence of Emmanuel, God with us, this day and always.

Grace and peace for your journey!

Amen.

Isaiah Got it Right

Four stores and everyone is out of chocolate oranges! Whatever will we do? How can Christmas even take place if Jonathan and Sean have no chocolate oranges in their stockings? Oh, no! For years this has been a Christmas staple in our family. I suspect that Santa started giving them chocolate oranges to ease the pain of getting new socks every year, but I don't really know for sure.

Have you ever eaten a chocolate orange? They are made of either dark or milk chocolate, flavored like an orange, and about the size of a tennis ball. To eat them, you rap them sharply on a hard surface like the kitchen counter and they crack into segments just like real orange segments. They are wonderful.

I knew I should have bought the chocolate oranges last week when I saw them at Trader Joe's, but I happened to be there with Sean; in fact, he pointed them out to me. Call me silly, but I never have gotten used to buying something destined for someone's stocking while in the presence of that person, so I passed on the chocolate oranges.

Now I'm regretting it, naturally. I could have gotten it right the first time since Sean would have graciously (wink, wink) forgotten he'd ever seen me buy them. So, no chocolate oranges. Oh, well.

As I have been saying all along, Christmas doesn't happen because we are ready. It doesn't happen because we have prepared everything perfectly. It doesn't happen when we've gotten our chocolate oranges. It happens because God is ready. It happens because God has prepared everything perfectly. It happens because God knows what we need, and it isn't chocolate oranges.

Isaiah spoke eloquently in his prediction from Chapter 9 about just what it is that God says we need: a son given to us, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God. Everlasting. Prince of Peace. Read the prophet's words...

Isaiah 9

¹ Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—

² The people walking in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
a light has dawned.
³ You have enlarged the nation
and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
when dividing the plunder.
⁴ For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor.
⁵ Every warrior’s boot used in battle
and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
will be fuel for the fire.
⁶ For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the greatness of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.

I particularly notice the last line of verse 7, in which the prophet states, "The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this." He doesn't say, "The zeal of Dori Almighty" or "The zeal of Robert Almighty" or "The zeal of Susan Almighty" will accomplish this. There is no mention of going to four different stores in search of chocolate oranges or any other blessed thing! There is no mention of having to have the Christmas cards in the mail!

Christmas is now, was then, and always will be courtesy of the Lord Almighty. As I worship at the Christmas Eve service I will wonder and be amazed at the grace of the Lord Almighty, and forget all about chocolate oranges. I will marvel at the coming of the Everlasting God, whose reign is forever.

May you also know wonder and delight as we step into the miracle.

Many blessings!


For further reading:

Psalm 96

Titus 2:11-14

Luke 2:1-14, and 15-20

The Eve of Christmas Eve

So excited; son Jonathan is to arrive Christmas eve and today is the eve of that wonderful event! Almost all the gifts are wrapped and under the tree; Dan is fast asleep after a challenging couple of days of medical procedures (glad to get it out of the way) and Sean is out for an evening of karaoke with other college kids from around town and those from high school days who are home for the winter break.

I spent the evening cooking ahead so I won't have to spend all my time in the kitchen while Jon's here. I learned that lesson while he was on the road with his band and used to travel through Davis with 8 or 10 other ravenous young men, eating lasagne, tacos, and anything else I could dream up to make in the millions of servings.

I spent so much time cooking I didn't get to enjoy his or the other guys' company, so I learned. Now the fridge and the freezer are full of meals I can just pull out and heat, adding a fresh salad here or there, and maybe some hot bread.

The prayer that is on my heart the most as we are only a couple of days from the Christmas celebration has to do with sharing table with one another. It's simple but I love to hear my husband offer the words after a busy day:

"Father, thanks for bringing us together. Thanks for the love and the food we share. Watch over us and our family, and keep us safe."

It's usually followed by describing what our day has been like, what our challenges have been, and what our "good news" is for the day.

King David of Israel had a prayer he shared in today's scripture. It comes from 2 Samuel, chapter 7:

David’s Prayer

¹⁸ Then King David went in and sat before the LORD, and he said:

“Who am I, Sovereign LORD, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?

²³ And who is like your people Israel—the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, and to make a name for himself, and to perform great and awesome wonders by driving out nations and their gods from before your people, whom you redeemed from Egypt? ²⁴ You have established your people Israel as your very own forever, and you, LORD, have become their God.

²⁵ “And now, LORD God, keep forever the promise you have made concerning your servant and his house. Do as you promised, ²⁶ so that your name will be great forever. Then people will say, ‘The LORD Almighty is God over Israel!’ And the house of your servant David will be established in your sight.

²⁷ “LORD Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. ²⁸ Sovereign LORD, you are God! Your covenant is trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. ²⁹ Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, Sovereign LORD, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever.”

Isn't the king eloquent in expressing how blessed he feels to be cared for by God, and how reassured he is that God has shown faithfulness to him, his family, and his nation! David's prayer comes on the heels of God establishing covenant with him, suggesting there will never be a lack of favored leadership in Israel. It's a continuation of the covenant relationship God established with his people as far back as Noah, Abraham, and Moses. The New Testament sees this covenant fulfilled in Jesus, who comes as God's son but also as a son of David.

David's lyrical prayer, uttered hundreds of years in advance of the climactic fulfillment of God's promise, might be one of those that is so poetic and lovely that we ourselves feel inadequate when called upon to pray. Yet God doesn't grade prayers, nor are we required to imitate David's eloquence. It is enough for us to use the simplest of words spoken sincerely.

This week we have been reflecting on the fourth candle, the candle of Love, which offers Promise. A thing to hold dear is that God's promise was not only to David and the other leaders of our faith, but to us as well. We live in that promise of God's love today.

Prayer: "God, you established your throne in every heart which welcomes Jesus as king. We are grateful for your promise to be with us and to hold us forever in your love. Let each one build a house for you in our hearts. Amen."

Happy Christmas Eve Eve!

For further reading:

Luke 1:46b-55

Galatians 3:6-14

It Was the End of Times, It Was the Beginning of Times...

Welcome, Jesus! The time of celebrating the incarnation is nearly upon us here at the full of the moon and the winter solstice. How I wish I could have actually seen the lunar eclipse in the sky last night, but alas, it was too cloudy. I have it on good authority that it really did happen. The pictures were all over the internet and the papers. Son Sean even got to see a sliver of it in between the clouds.

Please forgive my continuing with the abbreviated format but I continue to be keyboard-challenged by my broken wrist. All three scriptures today are eschatological, meaning that they pertain to the end times. We witness the intersection of the end and the beginning during Advent, and since I do not have it in my power to launch on a dissertation of any quality, I offer up to you an essay by Debra Dean Murphy of West Virginia Wesleyan College that muses on the subject. You can find it on the Sojourners' web site here:

http://blog.sojo.net/2010/12/14/jon-stewart-the-end-times-and-the-season-of-advent/

Today's readings are:

Luke 1: 46-55 (Sound familiar? We talked about Mary's Magnificat: Now think of it as prophesy)

Isaiah 33: 17-22

Revelation 22: 6-7 and 18-20 (Although you may be interested in Ch. 21 as well)

Blessings as we rest and wait. Come, Lord Jesus!

Illustration Credit: "Tree of Life", Gustav Klimt

I Promise

I genuinely enjoy hearing kids tell wonderful tales and stories, then , to assert the truthfulness of their yarns, they can say, "I promise!" It's as if by tacking those two words on the end, whatever implausible creation preceded, suddenly it is a historical fact, indisputable forever.

"Mom, it's the best movie ever and you're gonna love taking me to it, I promise!" or "You really have to let me go to so-and-so's sleepover this weekend I already have my term paper done I promise!" or the always-popular "Jennifer's mom is gonna be there the whole time so it'll be fine I promise!" Not that I would demean the promises of children, but on the other hand...

Promises tend to mean more from the parents' point of view, in my opinion. Example: a baby is born and immediately seeks to nurse. The new mother cuddles the child to her breast and fulfills the first promise a human can understand-the meeting of the need to be fed.

God has kept promises in so many similar ways throughout God's ongoing narrative.

Abraham and Sarah lived through an incredibly dry spell, during which their promise from God seemed likely to have vanished into the desert dust where they pitched their tents. But finally, miraculously, God came through. Consider our scripture for today:

Genesis 21

The Birth of Isaac

¹ Now the LORD was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what he had promised. ² Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. ³ Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. ⁴ When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. ⁵ Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

⁶ Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” ⁷ And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Some of the most intimate moments in human experience revolve around the moments of promise. Making, keeping, sharing of promises, these are the times of such richness that we rejoice at being human. The moment of sharing the birth of a new baby into a welcoming family, or the moment of saying farewell as a beloved elder slips from the family's grasp and breathes their last breath on this earth-and everything in between. We cherish and hold dear every second of these times.

It is every one of these moments that promises us the shared experience of the divine, of the times which transcend the space and times shared on earth.

It seems that Sarah may have understood the limitless nature of our birthing and our dying-she who was on the dying end of her years, welcoming little Isaac, on the beginning end of his years. None can say exactly where we are on the dying end of the continuum of human existence, so we can't tell how close we might be to ending. But one thing that is apparent, and that is that Jesus coming once more at the beginning of his span of years should fill all our hearts with laughter and joy as we share the experience of the divine once again!

May all our hearts burst with Sarah's laughter!

Further readings:

1 Samuel 2:1-10

Genesis 21:1-21

Galatians 4:21-5:1

December 20, 2010

The fourth candle in the Advent wreath is the candle of Love. It is the Joseph candle. For purposes of this study, it is the candle of Promise. A hard thing to do is to wait out the end result of a promise, even a promise made by God.

Fulfillment of any kind of a promise is predicated on the trust engendered in our hearts by that person who makes the promise. If it is a promise set forth by an unassailable source, that's one thing. If it is a promise made by one whose antecedents are questionable, we have room for doubt.

Joseph gets little attention in the story of the Nativity, but he is an important player in this drama. He is the linchpin male character, the Gary Cooper role, the one who moves the action forward on stage. He gets Mary to Bethlehem, he finds the place for her birthing, he stands stalwart beside her and defends her from all ill.

How great a love do we observe in this humble, blue-collar, godly man? Those who wish to see, are permitted to do so. Consider:

Genesis 17:15-22 (New International Version, ©2010)

¹⁵ God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. ¹⁶ I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her."

¹⁷ Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?" ¹⁸ And Abraham said to God, "If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!"

¹⁹ Then God said, "Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac.^[a] I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. ²⁰ And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. ²¹ But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year." ²² When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.

We know that Abraham waited decades for the promise of God to be realized for him and Sarah, and can't you just imagine how hilarious their private moments were! Not to mention their times of tears as decades passed and Isaac, their promised one, failed to make his debut?

Yet centuries later Joseph and Mary waited faithfully as Mary's pregnancy passed through its weeks and months, finally culminating as, far away from both of their homes, she and her husband shared in the joy of Jesus' birth. Such love and trust they shared, and how he protected her as she faced the rigors of their journey to Bethlehem!

Night divine, when Christ is born! Thanks be to God. Thanks that we can celebrate together, what a divine gift to open together, in families made possible by God's amazing love. What a promise!

Further reading-

1 Samuel 2:1-10

Galatians 4:8-20