Christmas is ...

Christmas is like God, timeless and eternal.
Christmas is not just a season of a day in the year, but a condition of the heart.
Christmas is the message that there is hope for all humanity.

Christmas is love in action ~ giving, sharing, opening ourselves to others ~ loving ourselves and loving others.

Christmas is the celebration of a baby, born in a manger. A baby who lived and grew and loved and taught and gave of himself unselfishly for others and died and lives again. A baby who changed the world that was and changed the world that is and changed the world that will be.

Christmas is so much more than a moment or an hour or a day. It is life and living and death and dying and the event that brought heaven and earth into harmony in a manner that will not be seen again until God only knows. So, let’s celebrate, rejoice, praise God and share the message of a baby born in Bethlehem so many years ago!

Something to Think About - 7

"Veiled in Flesh" - Devotionals from the Peachtree Road Staff; Advent 2010

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; this is the pledge of our inheritance towards redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory." ~ Ephesians 1:3-14

As fall unfolds, it’s not hard to look around and find the presence of God in many places. To see the vibrant colors emerging on trees and the coolness in the air offers credence that there is a larger presence in our world.

While there are visible signs everywhere, there are also every day blessings we receive from others – you just have to realize them. My family went through some health challenges and continues to, yet I constantly see God in my home. My husband has chronic hip and leg pain and it is difficult for him to walk, sit or stand. He can no longer enjoy the activities he use to such as playing tennis or golf, exercising or doing outdoor activities with our daughter. While this might be discouraging for some, he continues to amaze me with his effervescent attitude. Despite his constant severe discomfort, he wakes up happy, smiling and has an incredible outlook
every day – a true blessing by the grace of God.

As a result of witnessing her father’s pain, my daughter has become more sympathetic, empathetic, caring and thoughtful which will hopefully be a part of her soul for the rest of her life. I truly believe that out of an any adverse situation comes many blessings. Through God’s presence, I am lucky enough to be the recipient of many of these and live my life with two of them.

Robin King

Something to Think About - 6

"Bigger Than a Stable" - Crosswalk the Devotional - Dec. 8, 2010

By Katherine Britton, Crosswalk.com News & Culture Editor
"In that day you will say: ‘Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world.'" - Isaiah 12:4-5

My felt Advent tree gains one velcro ornament each day until Christmas. I love this calendar, because each unique ornament tells a little bit more about the story of redemption from Genesis onward. A grey felt heart stands for the Fall into sin. A beaded crown reminds of the Prince of Peace and Wonderful Counselor foretold in Isaiah. A fuzzy lamb represents John the Baptist's announcement of Christ's purpose.

The calendar is paired with devotional readings for children, which have surprised me in their simplicity and breadth. Like the ornaments, these readings tell a continuing story, in which Christ's life is not the beginning or the end, but the event that makes sense out of both. With this bigger context, an otherwise chaotic history becomes simple enough that a child can understand.

How often do we take time to contemplate the magnitude of this story, which began in the Garden of Eden and won't finish until Christ's second coming?

I think my Christmas cheer is too often confined to the stable. To use a loose analogy, I'm a bit like the dwarves in C. S. Lewis's "The Last Battle," who convince themselves that their dingy stable-prison could not possibly hold the miracle of a whole new Narnia. And so, the dwarves get left behind in their imaginary confinement with nothing to celebrate when everyone else begins to explore the beautiful new world. Like the dwarves, I can put my little Christmas story in a little room, and forget to see the whole miracle of redemption.

Sunday's sermon about Herod's massacre in Bethlehem reminded me why the grander picture is so vital. You'll remember the story - only a short while after the angels announced "peace on earth," Herod's blazing temper led to the mass murder of baby boys in Bethlehem. The arbitrary deaths of these little ones seems so disconnected from what we celebrate, so outside the realm of God's grace. That event - like so many other injustices - seems to overwhelm the baby sleeping peacefully.

We can compartmentalize Christmas so it remains untainted by such events, can't we? But that's just it - as the grey heart on my felt Advent tree me, Christmas has to begin with an understanding of sin. We have to see the world's desperate need for grace before we understand why a baby requires such a hullaballoo, and we have to look back at God's plan to see how a baby can redeem even those situations. Therein lies the astonishing glory of what happened at Christmas, and the beauty of what we proclaim to the world.

As the days go by and my calendar grows fuller with symbolic ornaments, I get more and more excited about Christmas Day. Into this world with so much baggage came a child who remained in it and not of it, who knew what we are and loved us anyway. By God's grace, my understanding of Christmas keeps getting bigger - and with it, my reasons to "let [it] be known to the all the world" what he has done, is doing, and will continue to do!

Intersection of Faith and Life: Christ's incarnate birth makes little sense if we forget why he had to come and what he came to do. As you focus on the manger scene with your family, encourage each other with the bigger story of Genesis to the end of time, knowing that this little baby redeemed every moment in time. May your Christmas be big as your consider the grandeur of redemptive history on both sides of the manger!

http://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/crosswalk%20devo/11641720/

Something to Think About - 6

Saturday, December 11th, 2010
CELEBRATE A SPIRIT-FILLED HOLIDAY.
Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God (Luke 2:25–28).
It is hard to hold a baby and not wonder at the enormity of potential in such a small body. Simeon didn’t have to wonder about the baby he held—God had already spoken to him of this baby’s future through the Holy Spirit. Simeon held the “consolation of Israel” and knew the Holy Spirit was upon the baby Jesus.
It is common at this time of year to see Jesus only as the baby in the manger, reserving other thoughts of him for the rest of the year. When Simeon saw the baby, he saw the Savior he had been promised. How did he know? The Holy Spirit told him. Looking back at the passage, Jesus is not the central figure, nor is Simeon. The reason Simeon understood the significance of that moment in the temple was because the Holy Spirit led him to that place and gave him that understanding.
Simeon was righteous and devout. He was righteous because he was “right with God.” His relationship with God was not clouded with on-going sins; his habits and behaviors were in line with God’s will. Simeon was “devout,” which means he had set aside his life for service to God. Victor Raymond Edman, the fourth president of Wheaton College said, “The Spirit-filled life is no mystery revealed to a select few, no goal difficult of attainment. To trust and obey is the substance of the whole matter.” Simeon was Spirit-filled because he was righteous and devout.
Every day, God provides opportunities for his children to be his physical Presence in this world. That is why God gave Christians his Holy Spirit. Look back at Edman’s quote. You can choose to be Spirit-filled, but you must choose to trust and obey. Will you make that choice today? “You will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). This verse does not use “witness” as a verb. In Acts 1:8 God was describing what a Spirit-filled person becomes. May we be what we were gifted by the Holy Spirit to be. And may we, like Simeon, be “righteous and devout.”

By Janet Denison
The Center for Informed Faith

http://www.godissues.org/pdf/Advent_Devotional_2010.pdf

Something to Think About - 5

Thus says the Lord, you redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I, the Lord, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go. If you would hearken to my commandments, your prosperity would be like a river, and your vindication like the waves of the sea; your descendants would be like the sand, and those born of your stock like its grains, their name never cut off or blotted out from my presence. (Isaiah 48:17-19)

Reflection

The use of water as a metaphor of God, or for any good thing, is common in Hebrew Scriptures. Who should know more about the preciousness of water than a desert people like the Israelites?
Isaiah says our prosperity will be like a river. Have we let God’s love flow over us like a river, or are we stingy when we imagine it? Do we imagine God’s love as a trickle or a torrent?

Advent Action

Send a get-well card to someone in the hospital.

Ask St. Lucy to help us not to be blinded our personal goals, but to always seek what the Lord wants us to do.

Prayer

Lord, wash me and I shall be clean, bathe me in Your loving mercy and I shall be truly forgiven.

http://www.ewtn.com/devotionals/advent/index.htm

A Letter To Santa From Mom

Dear Santa,

I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned and cuddled my two children on demand, visited the doctor's office more than my doctor, sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground and figured out how to attach nine patches onto my daughter's girl scout sash with staples and a glue gun.

I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I'll find anymore free time in the next 18 years.

Here are my Christmas wishes:

I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache after a day of chasing kids (in any color, except purple, which I already have) and arms that don't flap in the breeze but are strong enough to carry a screaming toddler out of the candy aisle in the grocery store. I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy. If you're hauling big ticket items this year I'd like a car with fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music; a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals; and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.

On the practical side, I could use a talking daughter doll that says, "Yes, Mommy" to boost my parental confidence, along with one potty-trained toddler, two kids who don't fight and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools. I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting, ....

more at: http://barefootpreachr.wordpress.com

Christmas Card Challenge

Do you enjoy getting Christmas cards? I sure do! Every year I mail out close to 120 cards. These do not go out to the same people every year because some folks have been in our lives for a moment, others for a lifetime.

I do sign every one by hand and try to write a brief personal note inside each one. And yes, it takes up quite a bit of time but I think it is worth every moment I spend doing it!

I also enjoy getting Christmas cards - including the ones with the "Dear Everybody" letters tucked inside of them. It is the one time of year that I spend reconnecting with old friends, remembering friends or family that have passed on, and rejoicing in new friendships.

So, here is my challenge for you - pick 10 or 20 or 50! people that you don't normally send Christmas cards to and sign your name, write a brief note, and share the message of Christmas with them. Then, let us know by posting on the wall how you did ~ how you felt ~ and how folks responded to your efforts.

Better get going - there is no time like the present to pass on some Christmas cheer!
Blessings,
Pat

PS - If you need someone to start with - post a comment and I'll pass mine on to you!

Give Peace

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” - Colossians 3:15

If you’re like me when you think of peace, you often think of the feeling of contentment and calm despite circumstances. God graciously gives us this peace, His peace, the peace that passes all understanding, which has the ability to reign in us even in the toughest of circumstances. I think that God also gives us another gift of peace; and this peace requires our action. God calls us, as members of His body, to exist in peace together. Just as we receive peace from God by accepting His forgiveness for our sins, we also extend peace to others (and ourselves) when we forgive them. Not only does God want us to take action to offer forgiveness, but He calls us to go one step further and to be thankful.

The weeks leading up to Christmas are often packed with too many things to do and not enough time to do it in. Tensions run high and the people who love each other most often grow short and snippy with each other. As all the hustle and bustle goes on around you, remember the Christ Child, who brought peace to earth that glorious night. Remember the forgiveness that God has extended to you through Christ and take the action to extend it to others in your life. But don’t stop there! Be thankful for the people God has placed in your life as we give and receive peace and forgiveness from each other.

Lord, Grant us grace as we extend forgiveness and peace to one another. Help us to be thankful for those you place in our lives.

~ Lindsay

Darkness and Light

“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.” Isaiah 9: 2

Advent is a time of waiting. Sometimes we are tempted to rush into Christmas with angels heralding, and shepherds oooing and awing over a cute little baby.

But we are to wait, to hold back our joyous celebrations until Christmas day. Each year, the time changes and the darkness descend upon us earlier and earlier in the evening. We are drawn back to our homes, hoping we left the porch light on.

Recently, I met my husband and son for dinner after our middle school aged son got out of school at 4:30. We got to the restaurant and enjoyed a lovely dinner honoring the veterans of our country’s military. As we left the restaurant an hour and half later, it was dark, dark, dark! We drove home under the comfort of street lights that began to disappear as we got closer to our home. We arrived at home and the porch light was not on. IT WAS DARK!

Huddling close together, clutching our packages from the day, we moved quickly to the front door, and inside the house. Our first act upon opening the front door is to turn on a light. We could not stand the darkness any longer.

As Christians, we are like this in our journey to Christmas Day when we can celebrate the birth of our Savior. Our journey is in the darkness of the world, as we await our Savior’s arrival both as a baby and as the reigning King of Kings. We need to take time in the dark nights to reflect upon our Christian journey and how we share the hope we have in Christ with those around us. People are clamoring for hope these days. The world is a bleak, scary place but we Christians know God is faithful always and calls us to be faithful too.

Our hope is in the Risen King who once was an innocent baby born into a dark world. Sometimes, we need the darkness to remind us of the hope we have in the Light of the World.

~ Rev. Cindy

From Faint to Hope

Luke 21:26a “Men will faint from terror…”

Some of us travel through life seemingly without any significant hardship or pain. Our lives seem to be charmed, until something arrests our peace and security. For others, the harsh reality of life in a fallen world breaks into our lives at a young age. Such is the case with a friend of ours whose seven year old son is today (at the time of his writing) receiving his last chemotherapy.

I was one of those who seemed to lead a charmed life for almost 45 years. There were no big problems or harsh realities. Of course, I thought some things were hard, but I did not know hard. Then a plane crashed in the Everglades transporting out oldest son into eternity. I will never forget that Saturday in May over 13 years ago.

Talk about “Men will faint with terror…” I understood the kind of pain and fear to which Jesus was referring. My wife and I and our other son will never forget that horrible day and night following the crash. Finally, about 1:00am we were left alone and went to bed. No sleep. We just cried and held each other.

Finally, about 5:00am on Sunday morning I stood in the shower weeping “as those who have no hope.” Faintly at first, then more loudly and boldly I began to hear these words of truth, “God is good, all the time.” For the first time since the news of the crash, I felt the presence of God and the assurance of the Savior. It was at that moment I began to move from fainting to hope. It allowed me later that day to declare to the national media, “We are Easter People!” There is a reason for our hope and it is the Risen Christ. Hallelujah, Praise His Name!

~ Rev. Dr. Warren

Bright Hope

“This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. The LORD'S loving kindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him." The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him.” - Lamentations 3:21-25

Florence Chadwick was the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways. She didn’t quite make it on her first attempt. It wasn’t the cold water. It wasn’t the sharks. It wasn’t the 15-hour swim. It was the fact that the fog rolled in and she couldn’t see the coastline. She quit half a mile from the goal.

When she got out of the water she said, “I’m not trying to make an excuse but I feel like if the fog hadn’t been there and I could have seen the land, I would have made it.” Later she tried again. The fog rolled in again but this time she knew that the coastline was there. And she completed the journey. In fact, she did it in two fewer hours than anybody else had ever done it.

A lot of us are like that. The fog has rolled into our lives and we’ve lost our bearings. Maybe you have given up hope about a solution to a problem. Listen and look for God to give you direction. My favorite hymn, "Great is Thy Faithfulness," reminds me that God is my cheerleader and coach …

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

~ Rev. Phill

Hope, where is yours?

“‘Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day does not catch you unexpectedly,” – Luke 21:34

We live in a time that is full of fear. We move to “safe” neighborhoods just to have prowlers on our front porches. We fear the economy and future as we never have before. America, our nation seems divided with changes we don’t know how to deal with or understand. We are experiencing 1000 year not 100 year floods; feet of snow in areas that in early fall may get an inch or 2 on occasion.

Do we really live in a time to be feared or do we allow fear to invade our thoughts and the very essence of our being? Are we falling into the enemy’s trap that stops us in our tracks? Luke 21: 25-36 describes men’s hearts failing from fear and the future.

This same passage describes a hope beyond all hope, Jesus coming in a cloud. We are told look up for our redemption draws near. Jesus was the hope for Israel at His birth, yet most of Israel missed it. During His ministry, most of Israel missed Him. He is our ever present help and hope today, yet much of our world is missing Him. He is this world’s future hope.

Are you trusting Him? Are you believing Him, not believing in him………… believing HIM, your hope and future. Can you look to Jesus and say I trust You Lord: You are my hope? Can you say, I will show the world You Lord, and Your hope by thought and deed, words only when necessary?

~ Martie

The hope of a Child

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” – Hebrews 11:1

I remember one particular Christmas as a child that still resounds within my heart and whose memory is still able to keep me focused on the hope of things to come. My family lived in New York, in a very rural part of Long Island. Jobs were scarce at that time and my father worked for a gas company driving a truck and delivering bottled gas to people for cooking and heating purposes. Dad was fairly young, about thirty-two years of age, and the father of four. My dad was also a volunteer fireman.

At some point, after working a full day in the cold and snow delivering the gas to his customers, dad was called out to help respond to a large fire involving a local community business. My mother bundled all of the children, as usual, and we all followed down to the firehouse so my mother could help the other women prepare hot coffee and food for the men as they took breaks and rested throughout the night. We children were made a bed in the hall and slept under the tables.

Towards the early morning a fellow fireman and his wife took my mother aside to talk to her. What I found out later was that my father had been inside the burning building when the roof collapsed. Although he was going to be okay, he was at the hospital receiving oxygen and would be released later.

Several days after my dad came home my parents talked to us children and told us that Santa might not be able to visit us that year, but we would still have the decorations and visits with family. Over the next few days I remember watching my father become more and more depressed. He worked hard to provide for his family and due to the medical bills and loss of pay, he could hardly make ends meet. Now, with the Christmas holiday just a few days away, they barely had enough money to keep the gas and electricity on.

These circumstances certainly made an impact on my view of Christmas and the season generally speaking. But what made that particular Christmas so memorable to an eight-year-old girl was what happened in the late afternoon the day before Christmas.

Dad was somewhere in his garage and my mother was giving my youngest brother his bath before we would all eat dinner and head out to church. Suddenly … into our driveway pulls the shiniest, reddest, biggest … fire truck- I had ever seen! And riding on the back with all the ladders and assorted gear was Santa himself! When those men climbed off that truck with bags of wrapped gifts and boxes of food, no one was more surprised than my dad. And when Santa called my name, he sure sounded a lot like my uncle Vinnie. (!!!)

For the most part, I don’t remember what gifts those firemen brought for us. I don’t remember the food we had for dinner, or what the Christmas service was about, or even which of my cousins we spent the next day with. What I do remember is the restoration from hopelessness to hope in my father and my mother.

You see, what we received on that Christmas is what God offers each of us every Christmas. We received a new start, a new birth if you will. My parents found themselves surrounded by friends, family, and unknown members of the community and carried though one of their darkest moments. And since that time over four decades ago, the memory of what those firemen (and Santa!) did for four little kids and their parents has sustained me through dark days and given me hope when I thought it was gone.

Maybe that’s what each of us needs this holiday season – the hope of a child, born in a manger.

~ Rev. Pat

The Season of Hope!

Jeremiah 33: 14 says—"'The days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.”

This reminds me of the story about the aunt talking to her nephew just after Christmas. Being very apologetic she says, "I'm sorry you didn't like my Christmas gift. But I asked if you preferred a small check or a large check. Remember?”

With his head hung in disappointment, the nephew replies, "I know. But I didn't think you were talking about ties." Yes --the gift which that young man received wasn't what he expected. It caught him off guard. It took him totally by surprise because it was so completely unexpected.

Well--isn’t that what Advent is all about? How God catches us by surprise? How God’s Word intrudes upon us and our lives just when we least expect it? And in incredibly unforeseen ways? Yes—that’s part of the joy of this season, part of the joy of our faith, and part of the joy of our relationship with God. You see—God plays by God’s rules, not ours. Thanks be to God!

Jeremiah says—“The days are coming.” Yes--in Advent, the church boldly proclaims the approaching righteousness of God. Proclaiming--The Lord Jesus Christ! I believe this is crucial because it is a real source of hope. You see--the world, our lives, our days cannot live without hope. Anticipating what God is going to do—strengthens us for faithful and fruitful living.

Each year the season of Advent calls the community of faith to prepare for the visit of God’s salvation. Our work is to anticipate that which God will do to bring fulfillment to all people. We are preparing for the event in the stable at Bethlehem which brings together “the hopes and fears of all the years.” Yes--“The days are coming,” and we must make ready. So, lift your heads and let your hearts be strengthened. God is doing a new thing, and to us has come the joyous and holy task of helping the world get ready for the most blessed event of history! Amen.

~ Rev. Kathy

Our Hope in Jesus

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.” - Psalm 130:5

Hope is defined to desire something with the confident expectation of its fulfillment. When we stop to think about it, having hope in our lives, a future to look forward to, gives us a feeling of contentment, sometimes excitement, and peace. There are times that feeling is lost to us for any number of reasons: illness, loss of a loved one, job loss, divorce, just to name a few. Each of us at some time in our lives will have a feeling of hopelessness, and the holiday season can be especially hard for many.

As children of our Lord Jesus, how wonderful it is that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in, we can be assured of His love and constant presence with us. He is with us when we celebrate our victories and He is with us during our times of sorrow. Whether on the mountain top, or in the valley, He walks right along beside us.

The following quote by Roy Lessin is a favorite of mine and I carry it with me as a reminder that God is on the throne, and always watching over each one of us.
“We never need to be without hope. For as we look into the future with the eyes of faith, we will see that God is already there.”

~ Shannon

Finding hope in a hopeless World

“How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken."~ Luke 21:23, 25-26

I stood with my swollen feet rooted to the floor, my hand resting on my stomach as if my small hand could somehow protect our unborn child from the horrors my naive mind could never have imagined. My husband had called from his business trip to tell me the news, but I had run to the television and turned it on to witness this terrible thing for myself. My heart beat a little faster as I flicked on the local news channel and prayed it wasn't true. And then I watched the World Trade Centers go down again and again in the newsreel that played over and over like a skipping record that's been warped and scratched from neglect.

I felt both shock and fear as I watched as the events of September 11 continue to unfold. I called work to tell them I would not be going in that day. I wanted to be home, even if I was alone, because somehow home seemed like a safe place that was separate from the world in which I found myself suddenly living. How could this be happening? Just an hour earlier, I had all that I wanted in life... a loving husband, a steady job, a nice roof over my head and a little money in the bank. We were a happy and healthy young couple, about to become a perfect little family. And now this... this terrible event, this horrific THING, had crashed uninvited into our little bubble and changed our world into something less than perfect. There was such a precious gift growing inside of me, and as I stood in our living room glued to the t.v., I apprehensively wondered what kind of world we were bringing him into.

But despite the tragedies of life, the sun kept rising and the moon and the stars appeared in the sky each night. One month later, our baby boy (not knowing what he was getting himself into), came into this world right on time with a small cry and flailing fists. And in sending our little boy, with his ten tiny fingers and ten perfect toes, God sent me hope. Through him, God reminds me of His nearness. I was never alone, as I had believed. He was near! For who but God could send such a beautiful thing to me in a time of such anguish? And we continue be reminded of His nearness in every milestone our little boy and his sister reach.

Father, help us remember the hope you have given to each of us in the nearness of Your kingdom. Amen.

~ Terri

The Meaning of Advent

*During this month you will see a daily posting of Advent devotions. Some of them have been written by me, others by friends who are clergy or laity. The topics range from personal struggle to thoughtful questioning, but all of them are designed to lead each of us into the wonder, mystery and hope of Christmas. This is the opening introduction:

Many of us have heard about Advent, but have never known its purpose or understood its importance. Through these short writings shared by some of our brothers and sisters in Christ, part of the Body of Christ, it is my prayer that we each may recognize a new vision of the hope we have in the birth of a little baby born over 2000 years ago.

The word Advent comes from the Latin word adventus, which means coming. Christians in our community, our denomination, our country, and around the world celebrate the four weeks before Christmas as a time to reflect on and anticipate the “coming” of Christ at Christmas as well as the “coming” of Christ at the end of time. As we prepare for the birth of Christ let us remember God’s great love for us—a love so vast that Christ lived and died as one of us. Preparing for the final coming of Christ is a reminder of the glory and grandeur that we will one day share in the Kingdom of God.

Advent is a time to discern the yearning that runs through the empty places in our souls. It helps us learn to wait in patience for that longing to be filled rather than masking it or deadening it with meaningless activities like wandering through the local mall, standing in front of the open refrigerator or pantry, or sitting frozen in front of the television. Advent is also a time to embrace the silence and stillness in our lives and listen more carefully and see more clearly the movement of the Spirit of God. Finally, Advent is a time to rejoice with hope and anticipation that what we say we believe will, in fact, be revealed in the ordinary and extraordinary moments of our everyday lives.

May you find a glimpse of God’s spirit in these pages and through these words offered up to His glory.

In Christ’s love,
Pat