Sunday, November 30

Today’s Readings: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Isaiah 64:1-9; Mark 13:24-37; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9

As we head into this Christmas season, many Americans have been seduced by the notion that if only they get that perfect Christmas gift, all of their problems will be solved. “If I can get that trip to Hawaii…”, “If only I can get that flat screen television set…”, “If only I can get the latest Blackberry...” The lists go on and on. The long Christmas wish list that many of us carry with us only reinforces the notion that it is absolutely impossible to feel content with what we currently have. Just as we are about to succumb to this notion, along comes Paul’s words to us today from his first letter to the Corinthians that blow that sense of longing right out of the water. In the letter, Paul writes: “… you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale” (1 Corinthians 1:7 from The Message). What a great message for us to hear on this first Sunday of Advent! Today, as you officially start your journey toward Christmas, take time to be thankful – not for what you hope to receive in 26 days, but for what you’ve got today! Til next time…

Saturday, November 29

Today’s Readings: Psalm 123; Micah 7:11-20; Luke 21:5-19; Romans 8:18-25; Psalm 132

Today’s words from Romans hit particularly close to home for two reasons. The first reason might be obvious for some - for during this season of Advent leading up to Christmas, we Christians are particularly tuned in to the notion of waiting for something better. That part is pretty straightforward. The second reason the readings from Romans hit home is probably much less obvious. You see someone who I’ve been in ministry with for over the past year entered into hospice care last Monday evening. Consequently, I’ve been at the hospice nearly every day this week. As I sit with his loving family during this time of transition, I couldn’t help but think of today’s words from Romans: “All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs,” Paul wrote. “But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs. These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting” (Romans 8:22-24 from The Message). During this season of Advent, Paul’s words remind me that things aren’t always the way they appear at first glance. Things that we label as hardships or losses are often agents of transformation and new life. We tend to forget just how fraught the Christmas story was with hardships at every turn (i.e. Mary & Joseph’s displacement due to the census, the arduous journey to Bethlehem, the inability to find safe and sanitary lodging, and the birth in a stable). If you are experiencing difficulties this holiday season, remember Paul’s words to us from Romans that invite us to think about the pain as birth pangs. Take some measure of peace in knowing those birth pangs may ultimately “enlarge” you in ways you never imagined if you let them. Til next time…

Friday, November 28

Today’s Readings: Psalm 98; Isaiah 24:14-23; Mark 13:24-31; 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12; Psalm 125

This Black Friday marks the official (or should I say commercial) beginning to the Christmas shopping season. For many, it is a day of celebration as millions of Americans will spend time reveling in joy as they bask in the warmth of family, friends, and fun. In many ways the spirit of the day reminds me of the mood captured in the first three verses of today’s reading from Isaiah. But not everyone experiences the kick off to the Christmas season in quite the same way. Study after study shows the increase in the rates of both incidents of depression and suicide attempts during the holidays. This feeling was also captured in today’s passage from Isaiah as the prophet responded to the joyous opening words by saying, “That’s all well and good for somebody, but all I can see is doom, doom, and more doom” (Isaiah 24:16 from The Message). So how can we negotiate our way through the roller coaster that many of us know as the Christmas season? We can do that by acknowledging the role the season of Advent plays in our spiritual lives. You see Advent is the season leading up to Christmas that helps us prepare for the coming of the Christ-child on Christmas Day. It’s a time that creates room for us to acknowledge both the joyous times of anticipation as well as the darker times when we come to terms with the hard work that needs to be done in order to create room in our hearts for the coming Christ-child. In other words, Advent helps us see the ups-and-downs of the season not as a frivolous roller coaster of emotions, but rather as an essential process of house-cleaning that will make our experience of Christmas much more meaningful. This Advent season may we come to peace with the fullness of our emotional and spiritual responses and see those responses for what they are: necessarily parts of the process we go through in order to receive the Christ-child. Til next time…

Thursday, November 27

Today’s Readings: Psalm 76; Zephaniah 3:1-13; Mark 13:17-23; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-6; Psalm 121

Last Sunday evening, I watched the film “What Would Jesus Buy?” with a group of people from the church I serve. The film showed how consumerism has overtaken Christmas and allowed us to lose sight of what the holiday is really about. The challenge of the central figure in the film – a fictional character named Reverend Billy - was to help others get back to the basics and re-claim the essence of what the holiday is really about. The storyline of the film reminded me a great deal of today’s words from Zephaniah – for in that passage the prophet moved from words of judgment and wrath directed against those who missed the point to words that established a hopeful vision for the re-establishment of a spiritually grounded community. What struck me about the words from Zephaniah was how the prophet raised the notion that sometimes people have to live through difficult times that serve as a type of sorting out process in order to get things back on track. “I’ve gotten rid of your arrogant leaders,” the prophet quotes God as saying. “No more pious strutting on my holy hill.” (Zephaniah 3:11 from The Message). Once that sorting out process occurred, God promised: “I’ll leave a core of people among you who are poor in spirit – what’s left of Israel that’s really Israel. They make their home in God” (Zephaniah 3:12 from The Message). Both the film and the words from Zephaniah challenge me to remember that sometimes – in order to find our way – we have to lose it for awhile. On this Thanksgiving Day, when it’s easy to give thanks for those things in our lives that are obvious sources of joy and celebration, I would ask you to do something much more challenging: stop and give thanks for those difficult times in your life that rocked your world –times when you thought you had lost your way. For often it is through those difficult moments that we are able to recognize the need to be led “home in God” and then arrive there with a newfound sense joy and appreciation. Til next time…