Advent and God

It's Christmas Eve Day. This is my last entry for our 2010 Advent devotional. Less people seemed to follow this year's devotional than last's, but I've had more substantive feedback about it. The point of all of this is: God is worth talking about. And we tend to talk about Him in groups. Call it church, the real thing. Christmas Eve is a day for church, a day for talking about God, a day for worshipping Him. Think of what He's done for us. The story of the birth of Christ tells many things, here are a few:

1) God has had a plan for saving us since before we needed saving. I know this one can raise new questions, but, for me, not even the meanest, widest question blocks the light of hope and care that emits from the idea of God's timeless love.

2) This timeless love of God is a person, not an idea. Jesus was born of a woman on earth. He was and is a person.

3) Though Christ is timeless, He's also timely. His birth was perfectly timed in history. Everything He does in our lives is perfectly timed. He came when, where, how, and why the prophets foretold.


Micah 5:2
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

Isaiah 9:6
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.

Luke 2:11
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

PRAYER: Lord, in the fullness of time You came and You'll come again to set us free from sin and death and restore all that's been lost or taken. You've come to set things right. By faith in You we can live and rejoice. Thank You for this season and this life of Advent! Amen.

Advent and Caroling

One Advent, while in seminary, I took the small Bible study group that met at my house up and down Route 17K caroling. I'm amazed at this memory. It was a group of college kids without much singing experience, but we managed to get everything together and venture out. The weather matched us, snowy and cold, and people received us graciously.

The truth is, at every house we went to the people were in tears. They smiled, laughed, got everyone in the house to listen, and told us that we were like angels. Two or three houses into our tour we came across a family whose father was in the last stages of cancer. He sat in his wheelchair by his sliding door with his hospice worker and family surrounding him. I was told a few weeks later, after he had died, that our visit was a groundbreaking blessing for him. I'm still humbled by the memory of his wife's voice that January as she thanked me and us. All we did was sing. All we did was sing songs about Christ and the hope He brings that nothing can take away.

PRAYER: Lord, even today, days from the end of this season, give me eyes to see and ears to hear Your hope and love. May I be an instrument of Advent and Your Gospel. Thank You for the power of simple songs praising You for the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and God

Advent and War

Many people speak of Jesus as the cure for war. He doesn't. Even at His birth there was conflict. Lives of boys two and under were lost soon afterwards directly because of it. In the end, Jesus Himself would pay with His own life for His words and actions; they were too threatening to those in power who encountered Him.

I remember when I first joined the military and went to Officer Training School in Montgomery, Alabama. One of the first lectures I sat through explained that all military action, all war in other words, is about political power. The US military is an instrument of US political policy. Once learning this, the story of Christ's life took on new meaning for me. The expectations for Him as Messiah were political expectations.  He was born to usurp all existing authority. He was killed to prevent this, but His death actually facilitated it.

War comes in many forms. Some I know are far away from their homes this Christmas due to one kind of war. Others I know are losing their homes as they lose another kind of war. In all wars, Jesus is our Savior and Advocate. He was born to win the war for believers' souls. He was born to rule and defeat all pretenders to His throne.

PRAYER: Lord, teach me the reality of war and how you overcome it. You were not born into peace or to bring the kind of peace nations sing about. You were born to fight by laying Your own life down and to win a peace that transcends this world and its wars. Thank You.

TOMORROW: Advent and Caroling

Advent and Ginger

Ginger is one of the scents of Christmas. Along with cinnamon and pine, it never fails to communicate Christmas to me. Ginger has a long history of nontraditional medicinal use. It can be used to prevent morning sickness, motion sickness, and even skin cancer in mice, according to one study. Another I read about found that ginger actually killed ovarian cancer cells. Like most folk medicine, all claims are dubious, but they're usually ancient. I'll sometimes buy raw ginger root with a sugar coating at a local health food store. Another claim that I can affirm is that ginger has "warming" properties. People would eat it or make a tea out of it on cold days. All the scents of Christmas are warm, but ginger stands out for me. I'm really not sure if my body temperature goes up after eating it, but there are other, nonphysical ways foods like ginger seem to warm us.

The gospel is the account of how God saves those who trust in Jesus Christ for salvation. Ginger reminds me of the gospel. (I guess lots of things do, especially Christmas things.) We live in a cold world, even if the outside temperature isn't as low as it is these days, the spiritual temperature can chill us to the bone. Nothing fights this chill like the message of hope we call the gospel. Gospel means good news and it is. I suppose I'm in a unique position to testify to the amazing power of the gospel to warm our souls.  As a church pastor I get to see the best and the worst of people. When I'm facing a blizzard of the worst, the gospel itself never fails to help me through it. The gospel is bigger and better than the church. It's bigger and better than all religion and moralism. It the shining star of Christmas Eve and the brilliant sunrise of Easter morning.

PRAYER: Lord, I'm cold today. Your people and your church are cold more often than we'd like. This world sometimes seems permanently cold, like we're stuck in a spiritual ice age. Melt away the sin and sadness. Like ginger to our souls, remind us of the simple fact of Your love. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and War    

Advent and Cats

Close, but not actually Murdoch. He was better looking, of course.

Cats don't care about Advent. Cats care about cats. We have now have two gray female cats that get shut in the basement every night. Children have shoved them down the care chain. They've adjusted under protest. Earlier in our Marriage, however, Shannon and I had two jobs, no kids, and one yellow male cat. Murdoch was his name. He was our stand-in for children and he knew it. He slept on our bed. We made room for him, even though he had his own bed. He was my mom's grandcat. There were gifts for him under the tree for Christmas. Sometimes they were even wrapped with a bow and a tag that said, "To Murdoch." Even though cats don't care about Advent or Christmas, Murdoch liked it. Every year, he destroyed Christmas ornaments and peed on our handmade tree skirt. As we became wiser cat-parents, we would set up sacrificial ornaments within his reach on the lower part of the tree. We placed the more valuable ones higher up on the tree. The tree skirt always had that funky smell, despite cans and cans of Febreze. The sentimental side of Murdoch came out every year. He peed in that same spot on the tree skirt. That was Christmas for him.

A soiled tree skirt and dead ornaments point to Jesus. Jesus was born to occupy a place on the lower part of the tree. We place the star on top and heirloom ornaments near it. Jesus was born to be shattered. He was treated more like a litter box than a tree skirt should be. Jesus was and is The King. Only hints of this appear in his life as we have it recorded in Scripture. His love and grace always loom larger than his majesty and power.

Murdoch got cancer in 2003 and we lost our dear cat on June 4th of that year. Married 15 years while wanting kids and having none, the loss hit us hard. Pet losses sometimes do. We felt petty and empty, like foolish people who would never know a life we thought God had promised to us. In the years since, the life that Murdoch represented has reappeared. What we love about pets says more about us than our pets. We want life and hope. We want affection, relationship, and fun. Anyone who lives long enough can feel the loss of all this. Jesus took His place at the bottom of the tree so that despair and loss would only be temporary. Life, by faith in Him, is eternal.

PRAYER: Lord, thank you for the blessings and goodness of life. Though Advent represents eternal gain for me as a believer, help me understand that it meant immeasurable loss for You, Father. A Son who had nothing to do with sin and death became both for us who deserve both. The pain that follows shows up starkly in our simple losses, making them so deflating. We miss people and pets as well as the best of the past, but in You there is always more hope and more life. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Ginger    

Advent and Sales

I've noticed that the one thing everyone thinks of around Christmas is money. Whether people step into a church or not all season, if they're participating in Christmas at all, they are out shopping. They are considering, more than at any other time of the year, how much things cost. Many are surprised at high prices and disappointed in how much they've spent. All are looking for a good deal. Some people complain about this. "Christmas is all about money. It's a commercial holiday." We've all heard it. Many of us have said it.

What I've not heard in relation to the money focus of the season is how appropriate it may be. Everything having to do with Christ is costly beyond imagination. His birth, life, and death are all amazing examples of a good deal for believers. Jesus pays the high price and we get heaven and everything in this life that leads up to it. In His ministry, Jesus talked about money and hell more than any other topics. Both point to value. How we handle money teaches us much about what we really believe. What we believe about heaven and hell flows from what we think is needed in terms of value to stay out of hell and get into heaven. Some think a good life earns us credit with God. Christians believe that Christ's life and death alone earns us, who trust in Him, credit with God.

PRAYER: Lord, help me, even as I shop, to think about true value this Advent and Christmas. The birth of Christ represents an expenditure I cannot begin to imagine. What you gave us at Christmas is the most expensive gift ever. Help me realize this. Help me believe in You, Lord Jesus, as the One who really has paid the price for my sins and set me free. No one else has done or can do this for me. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Cats

Advent and Traveling

The story of the Nativity is a story of a family on the road. After the birth of Christ, angels kept their trip going by warning Joseph to flee to Egypt. The newborn Christ being shuttled out of the Promised Land and "back to Egypt" is quite a thing to consider. My 4-year-old daughter has already traveled more than Jesus Christ did in his entire lifetime, but he did make this one long trip away from home. He was born running. He was born on a journey. His three year ministry is a journey on foot through the Promised Land; it is a journey to Jerusalem and death on the cross. Advent is a journey from promise through perseverance to provision. The Christian life is a journey. We tend to want what we want now. Doesn't it say "ask and you shall receive?" Doesn't it say that anything we ask for in His Name we will receive? Yes and yes, but it doesn't say when. Traveling is a discipline. It demands two things: action and waiting.

1) Action. Christian life is a life on the move. It is not stationary. For Christians, settling down is heaven. Here we move. Here on earth we sojourners know that we aren't home yet. It's all Egypt. Action is about doing something today. What am I doing today? What steps am I taking toward Christ and Christlikeness and Christ's service today? This day is given to me so I can cover some ground for God. At the same time I'm ...

2) Waiting. Christian life is a waiting life. To talk about the promises of God is to acknowledge that we have not participated in all of them yet. A promise is a check. You have to cash it to get the money. Some of the best checks written to us by God through Christ can only be cashed upon death. So, if we are living, then we are, by God's design, waiting. Even the birth of Christ was only a respite from the journey.

PRAYER: Lord, give me the power to wait and the patience to act. I tend to complain about both the work You give me and the waiting You assign to me. Root out this complaining and replace it with gratitude and expectation. There is no greater honor or adventure than to live for You. All live and die, not all have a reason to live or a reason to die. Thank You, Lord, for traveling with me.

TOMORROW: Advent and Sales

Advent and Diets

Christmas and diets don't go together well. They shouldn't. Christmas is a time for feasting. The good news, for those who don't want to gain weight, is that the feasting doesn't have to be on rich food. It can be on other things, better things, more satisfying things. We can feast on...

1) Tradition - Tradition gets a bad rap, but it is meant to be enjoyed. We don't worship it, just like we don't worship food. Advent and Christmas are pregnant with tradition. (Strange pun intended.) Few things are as sweet as special family or personal traditions. If you don't have any, this is the year to come up with some. The best traditions teach Christ. Advent wreaths and carol singing can serve as examples. Cooking, crafts, special films and shows, outings to get a tree, and old CDs of Christmas music are a few other examples. These are things that can be feasted on.

2) Rest - Christmas for many (not me at all!) represents time off and rest. Employers struggle sometimes to know when to let employees take off. Work production slows as people relax and their minds get carried away with the season. This is good. Millions and millions of working people are remembering their humanity and what matters most in life. What matters most is never work. The final days of December are a sabbath for many. They are meant to be feasted on as such. Rest and rest some more. Sleep in. Resist all temptations to be productive. If you have shopping, cleaning up, wrapping, or other things left to do, make sure you rest in doing them. They're fun, not work. Have fun. (Fun, at its best, is a powerful form of rest.)

3) Scripture - The season, obviously, is rich with Scripture. You hear it piped into the malls via Christmas songs. You see in on signs and it comes in the mail on cards. The Bible is not window dressing for a holiday. The Bible defines and offers us this remembrance and celebration. Jesus Christ was born. The Father did not hold back. All hope is reborn. Take the time to read your Bible during Advent and Christmas. Just open it up and feast. Life is good. God is good. Let His Word open you up to the fullness of what is good.

These are three things for which no limiting diet is appropriate. Fill up on them. These are three things which daily life seems to slowly rob us of.

PRAYER: Thank You Lord, for the celebration. Thank You for tradition, rest, and Scripture. Help me combine all three through plans to worship You with Your people in Advent and Christmas worship services this year. Let me privately enjoy all three and all the other aspects of this season. Everything wonderful points to You. Take me to You in my spirit even as I'm praying now. Let me enjoy You, Lord. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Traveling

 

Advent and Scotch Tape

According to its web site, the makers of Scotch Tape (a brand like Kleenex, whose name is often used as the name for the product itself) produce enough tape each year to go around the earth 165 times. It is about 80 years old and started as a "make do" product to help people in the depression. It is a major ingredient of Christmas. "Where's the Scotch Tape?" is a serious question in millions of homes in December. Many children's shows about Christmas begin with the plot twist of Christmas being cancelled this year. None have yet used the obvious. If the Scotch Tape isn't found, all Christmas processes and production are threatened. Forget Santa. I need the tape now.

For some of us, there can never be enough Scotch Tape. If it's time to wrap, I feel vulnerable if I only locate one role. I prefer to have two or three on hand. Scotch Tape holds things together.

Well, so does Jesus.

It's far from all He does for us, and all He does for us is not the sum total, by any stretch, of Who He is to be to us or for us. He does, however, hold us together. He holds me together anyway. It's a simple thing to be grateful for.

PRAYER: Lord, I'm held together by Your real presence and reliable promises. Exhaustion competes with my awareness of Your grace. I can be tempted to resent Christmas. I can be spiritually ridiculous when I'm exposed by my weariness. Restore warmth and light to my mind and life. Restore me. You're the only one who can. Let me rest in You today. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Diets


  

Advent and Tube Socks

Tube socks were cool in the years I was growing up. They'd be white accept for three stripes on top. These could be three different colors or three of the same color. One wore them fully pulled up; no bagging them down by the ankles. Combined with a pair of cut-offs, fully deployed tube socks played a dominant role in a typical 70's summer wardrobe. In other seasons they were good for standard, daily wear and, of course, gym. Every Christmas I got a set of six tube socks. New tube socks always complimented whatever other gifts I would get. The stripes would be colors and combinations different from any I already had. Credit was never given to Santa for tube socks. They would always be "from Mom." I assumed no tube socks departments existed at the North Pole. They are too practical. If they did not come wrapped and accompanied by better presents that were also wrapped, they might not qualify as a gift. They are like the batteries some people wrap for their kids when they give them with a real gift or toy that requires them: not a gift really.

The parts of Advent and Christmas that really matter are received in the same way by some. The beauty and imaginative parts are great; the technical parts concerning covenants and redemption are the tube socks. "Sure, I could use them, but I'm looking for something more. If this is all there is, then I might lose interest." Sadly, some have lost interest in the gospel, accepting in exchange a hybrid of tradition and cheer. Worse yet, some hear a message of self-improvement coming from the angels. Let's all be nicer and kinder. If it were not impossible, it would be fine. The point of Advent is that we are in dire need of saving. Our attempts to save ourselves resemble the arm motions of a drowning person.

We've killed ourselves with sin. Someone able needs to come down and take our place in the coffin. We have no other hope.

In parts of the world where people know their extreme need, tube socks are a glorious gift.

PRAYER: Lord, help me know my need for You. I don't need the things I think I need. I need You. Advent is the story of how You met my need. It is the best story of my life, and it happened before I was born. Give me awareness, gratitude, and humility. Father, give me Jesus for Christmas this year. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Scotch Tape

Advent and Children

It snowed this morning. My 4-year-old daughter met a classmate on the way into preschool this morning. She stopped her and said, "It snowed! Isn't it exciting? And Christmas is almost here!" This is an exact quote. Before having children I assumed that their excitement about Christmas was caused mostly by the gifts under the tree. This was a cynical and inaccurate view. These children are in a Christian preschool and being raised (imperfectly, of course) by Christian parents. These 4-year-olds don't have any conditions on their excitement. The gifts, candy, songs, lights, trees, and the birth of Jesus Christ all merge into one delicious helping of anticipation. They sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus. Naturally there would be cake and a party. It makes perfect sense to them. Angels and children get it.

Not me sometimes. I've got a list of things I have to get done for and before Christmas. The pressure's on. The clock is ticking. More money is spent than I planned. Family plans are subject to change. Who will be where when? How will we get it all done? In the back of my mind is the relieving thought that this will all soon be over. The craziness of Christmas will subside. Christian preschoolers, however, know a better way.

PRAYER: OK Lord, I need to learn from my preschooler here. Her excitement is what you're looking for from me. Help me enjoy this. Help me drop the unnecessary burdens I assume around Advent and Christmas. Help me relax and sing. Your birth is as big as deal as she thinks it is. Help me with my thinking and thank you for being born a baby (who became a preschooler) Yourself. It is more than exciting. It changes everything. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Tube Socks  

Advent and Planning

About this time every year I start to think about the next year. One of the first things I usually plan is what my 2011 devotions will consist of. What English version of the Bible will I read through this year? Is there another devotional I will read through like "My Utmost for His Highest" or "Morning and Evening?" Some years I repeat what I did in the previous year. I think I'll do that this coming year. I like what I'm doing now and don't feel called to something new for 2011. (See attached picture and quote for a pithy commentary on "planlessness.")

I also use the change of year like so many other people do. They're not resolutions, but goals. My first goals usually center around what I'm after with God. 2011 feels to me to be the year of maturity, specifically emotional maturity. This will apply to my sermons as well as to my personal life. A summer series on emotions and maturity is in the works as a break from all the time we'll be spending in the gospels through and after Easter.

I have personal goals in mind too. Life goals need constant review. Advent teaches this. The Advent of Christ forced every person involved to make plans, new plans. Mary, Joseph, Zechariah, Elizabeth, the Magi, Herod, shepherds, and even angels all made new plans around Jesus. Jesus changes plans as much as He changes people. Plans or people that ignore Him are unwise. Plans that acknowledge Him are sometimes risky as well.

Our plans reveal what we believe and what we value. Two things we could all do more of: 1) pray and 2) plan. If we have no plan for God or to do things for God, we have little chance of loving or serving Him the way we'd like.

PRAYER: Lord, You have a plan for my life. I want to make plans with Your plans in mind. Help me be wise about how I view time and the future. Help me understand what I need to understand in order to head into the new year with focus and intelligence. What do You want out of my life? What do You want to change in and through me?

TOMORROW: Advent and Children


 

Advent and Worship

This entry is late. I don't offer an excuse, but... preparing for a day spent in public worship takes time and the day itself takes time. Actually, time is what I wanted to talk about. Advent and worship both have to do with time. I started this year's Advent blogs talking about it.

I've heard more than my share of comments about worship being something anyone can do anywhere. "I don't need to go to a building." I have a new argument to offer people who say this to me. Here's how the conversation might go:

"No, you don't need a building, but you do need to take the time."

"Well, I worship God in the car or when I'm showering or when I'm .... (fill in the blank with any form of 'doing something else')"

"I disagree. That's not worship."

"How dare you!"

"Well. it isn't. Worship takes time. You complain that I say it needs a special place or special people (like me as a pastor), but I'm going to argue now that another thing worship needs to be worship is time. You skip church services because you don't want to give up the time. I suggest that this means you are not giving God the time needed to worship Him in a way that He would recognize as worship."

"Time?"

"Yes, time. When we gather together in a building we give each other the gift of time set apart, or, if you will, made holy. I'm sure your times with God in the car or the bathroom are a blessing to you, but how can they be a blessing to God? Putting Him second by doing something else while engaging Him prevents your time with Him from being worship. No other person in your life would feel valued if, while you talked to him or her, you found other ways to be productive. Why would God?"

I'm not sure where or how the conversation would go from here, but I do know that Advent fits in this same category. These days before Christmas are not for shopping, they're for worship. Before we give gifts to others or ourselves, there's one gift that's the most important to give: our time to God. If you're in church services with the rest us next weekend and during the week of Christmas, you are putting God first, not second. You don't have to defend it as worship. It simply is. You took the time. You gave back the irreplaceable gift of time God gave you. You gave it to God and others seeking to worship Him too, instead of keeping it for yourself. You affirmed that worship for you is about sacrifice, not convenience. You don't call something worship because it honors your busy schedule. You call it worship because it honors God.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for the ability to bless You. It is hard to imagine. Help us to resist our culture and our flesh. Help us to order our lives around You. Help us to help each other worship You. This Advent and Christmas, help us not waste our time by not having time for You. You matter more than anything else we want out of life because life is only a gift from You. It is about You, not us. Help us to give more to You and less to ourselves. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Planning

Advent and Fear

There are many different directions I could go with this topic. "Fear is the mind killer," said the weird character from the old science fiction movie, Dune. (They were all weird characters in that movie.) For much of my Christian walk I have considered myself above the worst influences of fear. God didn't give me a spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7), so, with His help, I killed it instead of letting it kill me. Well, not so fast. Lately, I've learned that fear is one of my biggest problems. This has been an embarrassing and difficult thing to learn. One thing any of us can do when we discover a glaring character flaw is become a student of it. In my unpleasant study of fear and its impact on faith I've noticed the following...

1) Fear is unprincipled. Advent celebrates a faith that is built on eternal principles. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Faith in Him is too. Fear, on the other hand, is a shape shifter. I was once afraid of insignificance and failure. Then I became afraid of success. Then I became afraid of loss. The list could continue. We all have a list of fears. Some fears remain on the list; some fears don't. New fears show up whenever we give them a chance. And foolish sayings like "No Fear" actually pump life into our fears.

2) Fear is relentless. Fear, like many things, does not respond to neglect. To grow fear, ignore it. Fear must be faced daily. If not, we slowly become our own brand of coward, sometimes expressing false fearlessness with pomp and bluster. Only those who acknowledge that their fears want to run their lives are able, with God's help, to contend with them.

3) Fear appears friendly. Fear acts like it has our best interests in mind. I've heard some discuss that fear is a distortion of a God-given sense of self-protection that has a legitimate basis. Fear never lets us forget this ancestry, even though it hurts us rather than helps us. It always seems to argue intelligently for us to withdraw, hide, doubt, or quit. When fear gets its way, we lose ours.

4) Fear fosters unhealthy relationships. Fearful people naturally attract and offer counterfeit support to one another. Nothing builds a toxic community like cowardice. People once relied on and admired serve their fears and run headlong into disgrace and bitterness. I've felt it in the workplace, in the military, and especially in families. This anti-community fear creates is a cancerous one. It destroys itself.

Advent is the beginning of the story of how God conquers fear, not just in world history, but in the personal history of every believer.

PRAYER: Lord, take me into my fears. I want to shut the door on the dark room they live in, but You lead me to bust down the door, turn on all the lights, and place them under arrest. Help me realize how afraid of my fears I really am and how free You really want me to be from them. Advent shouts courage into my spirit. If You did all this, what do I have to fear? If you didn't give me this spirit of fear, why am I so deferential to it? Ruin this dirty, cooperative relationship I have with my fears; replace it with a vibrant, authentic relationship with You, Lord Jesus. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Worship      

Advent and Forgiveness

I've quoted it often enough. I'm not sure of the source. "Unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person (or your enemy) to die." Advent, then, offers something else to drink. Instead of living in the wrong of what someone else has done or said, it is living in the undeserved right of what God has done and said. To indulge in unforgiveness is to beg to be bound to a curse. It is to plead with evil, "come into my heart." Putting aside the accuracy of the information we use to resent and blame another, the accommodation it requires of our souls is extensive and costly. It shows how incapable we as humans are in life of actually helping ourselves. There is no logic to unforgiveness. It feels right, but it is idiotic. "I win," we gasp as we crumble to the ground with the poison on our breath.

Jesus Himself in Scripture removes any possibility of assurance of salvation for those committed to resentment. As a pastor counseling others, I often feel the harshness of Christ's words following the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6. God Himself resents the resentful. Those who live to blame will shoulder the blame. When it comes to forgiveness, Christ seems to say, we only get what we give. Forgiveness is not a condition for salvation; it is salvation. If you receive Christ as Savior, you receive and give forgiveness. No separation is possible. To say the name of Jesus Christ is to say the name of forgiveness. They are both sides of the same coin.

The birth of Christ and all that flows from it is this coin. He is the sole means available on earth and in life for becoming a completely forgiving forgiven person. No one can attain spiritual perfection in this life, but all of us can eventually attain forgiveness. No matter how quickly the bile rises within us at the thought of unimaginable injustice, the touch of Christ can transform us. It is not magic; it is Advent. And it may take time. It may be "slow." Just like with Advent, waiting is sometimes involved. Again, Christ is forgiveness. We can't have one without the other. We can be eternally grateful that God who requires forgiveness in and from us also produces forgiveness in and for us. Christ, again, is how he does this. Resentment is the mountain that a little bit of faith can move. For some, it's a far more difficult task than to move a physical mountain. Christ has come, however, not only to help us with the very difficult but to carry us through the otherwise impossible.

PRAYER: Lord, many are bound by unforgiveness like prisoners in an invisible prison. Release them. Spirit, speak to me about my own heart. Survey my spirit. Take away all blame, the blame I deserve and the blame I believe others deserve. You were born to become all this blame for us on the cross. You were born so we could live in freedom instead of die in bondage. We have and need no strength or ability of our own. Forgiveness, as salvation, is Your accomplishment and Your gift to us. We receive this, some through tears and pain. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Fear

Advent and Toys

Many kids think that Christmas morning is the best morning of the year. I was one. I know. It is the morning they get the toys they have been longing for. I find, however, that the longing built into Christmas is part of what's good about it. Advent is about longing too. I've noticed something about both longing and toys. They both fan imagination into flame. They both require vision. One year, as a kid, I received a model train set (Marklin HO) for Christmas. My sister received some dolls she wanted. These were not real trains or real people. They were instruments for imagination. Whether we could identify the desire or not, my sister and I wanted to be able to expand our imaginations via these special toys.

The Advent of Christ is meant to do the same for us spiritually. There may be no toys in faith, but there is the seeing what can't be seen. Imagination is a raw ingredient for vision and a rehearsal for faith. Scripture demands imagination. Pretending turns to contending when the unseen is mixed with the certain hope of God's Word to generate faith. The Magi demonstrate this. They had all kinds of information, true and false. The Holy Spirit - and it had to be Him - used this mixture, combined with imagination and determination, to lead this group of gentile astronomers to meet and subsequently worship the newborn incarnation of the King of the Universe.

All great things begin with great vision. This is how God runs Creation. Idolatry cancels imagination. When we worship something we can control, we replace imagination with delusion and domination. Anything we worship or live for that is less than God is something that allows us to play the role of god ourselves. Sin blinds imagination with this desire for control. The little kid sitting with his new train set on Christmas Day is reaching out with his mind. I wonder sometimes if I can remember what this was like. Can I remember what it was like to ask, "what if?" The world, via our culture, sometimes hijacks imagination itself. Music, film, and video games look like they inspire imagination, but, by design, they often squelch it. As with so many other things, Advent and Christ stand as the antidote to what happens to us in this life and in this world. Come Lord Jesus and let my imagination worship You.

PRAYER: Lord, give me eyes to see and ears to hear what eyes and ears alone can't see or hear. Give me faith in You. Remove the fear the world attached to my imagination and replace it with Your love. Help me rely on You and Your Word more. Thank You, Jesus, for being more fascinating and satisfying than anything else in all Your Creation.

TOMORROW: Advent and Forgiveness

Advent and Music

Advent and Christmas are hard to imagine without music. As a classical music fan, the holiday provides me substantial moral support. The best pop, club, hip-hop, country, or rock holiday tunes fail to rise to the level or category of even the simplest, standard orchestral arrangement of a Christmas hymn or carol. "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" vies for tolerability while "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing" roots itself in the brain stems of hundreds of millions of people from childhood.

Music is not incidental to Advent, nor to Christian life. Psalms are songs. The angels "said" things in Luke 2 about Jesus that many of us picture them singing. Revelation features songs. Raising our voices in song is a permanent part of expressing our faith.

The first verse I remember remembering is Psalm 118:14. "The Lord is my strength and my song, he has become my salvation." There are implications here. We all have a song. It is the musical signature of our deepest faith, gratitude and affection. To say that the Lord is my song is to say that the Lord has taken up all the room in my thoughts. He occupies my emotional attention. He distracts me from everything else. My day-by-day walking experience of Him is so full and rich that it overflows into my need to sort out and let out my feelings for Him in song. We sing in church and on Christmas Eve because singing is the best way to give the most of ourselves in the moment. To prayerfully sing Scripture verses back to God is a distinct honor. What else heals and nourishes us more? What else is more satisfying for our souls? Feeling so limited before God sometimes, we sing to worship Him regardless. Many of us will testify, very subjectively, that it feels like God likes it when we sing to Him. Amen.

PRAYER: Lord, our lives are songs to You, songs about You, and songs for You. We are bound by so many things until You release this unbound, musical glory in our hearts. Thank You for being such a welcoming and joyful audience of our imperfect praises. Thank You for giving us Your attention and blessing. Thank You for Jesus and the invitation to join the angels in His exaltation. Let Advent this year compose a new song out of our lives, lifted by and to You, Lord. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Toys  

  

Advent and Money

My wife is a selective Oprah watcher. It depends on who's on and if the topic is edifying for her. This is Oprah's last year. Like Larry King, she is moving on from her daily TV show. She does a show every year around Christmas titled her "favorite things" show, in which she highlights new products she likes and then, in a stunning act of generosity, gives each audience member everything she's featured on her show. This was the last year for this show and she went out with a bang. Audience members got cars and vacation packages this year. The audience, by the way, never knows if it is the "favorite things" audience. They are told a different show theme and surprised. This year, when Oprah surprised the audience by letting them know they were the ones, they broke out in ecstatic joy. I've never seen anything like it. I was in another room. Shannon was cycling through recorded Oprahs to erase or watch and let the beginning of this one play. I had to see what this sound was. People were screaming through tearful smiles, jumping up and down, and rolling on the ground. Some had their hands thrust straight up in the air, obviously praising God. Others were hugging, laughing, holding their heads in their hands, or applauding wildly.

I was taken aback. I immediately realized that I had never seen this kind of wild joy in any church. I do not object to the TV show, the generous and powerfully famous host, the excellent products, or even the happiness people felt. It was the comparison that got me. Jesus never once, as far as we know, saw people respond to him this completely. The crowds and their reactions were always mixed. Only some were joyful. It's the same today. Oprah was giving wonderful material things and had no detractors. Jesus was giving abundant, eternal life through Himself and had countless detractors.

There is nothing wrong with material things or money. There is something wrong with us. We don't get it. We joyfully settle for less. Christ offers us Heaven and we tend to suppress a yawn while nodding our heads. What we really want is a new purse. Give us this and we will dance. Advent interrupts this DNA embedded tendency we all have. The arrival of Christ calls us to wake up from our spiritual slumber. It gives us new reasons for eternal joy. Isn't that how the song goes? Joy to the world...

PRAYER: Lord, renew our values and perspective by way of Your Advent. Material blessings, including the blessing of health, are wonderful and temporary. You offer far more. Give us the faith and heart to receive You. Teach us to rejoice in the higher gifts that come from Your hand as well as to enjoy the tangible provision of the day. You are the ultimate gift. You are our "favorite thing." We want to praise You; help us with our lack of praise this Advent. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Music

Advent and Politics

I mentioned Herod in a previous posting. His story and how he responded to the birth of Christ shows how big a topic this posting points to. Jesus' entire life on earth was filled with politics. Political interest and intrigue accompanied His birth, His life, and certainly His death. All kinds of people struggled in all kinds of ways to keep or get political power. Wherever He was and whatever He was doing, He was in the middle of this struggle. In one way of looking at things you could say that He paid with His life for His failure to play the political game.

It could just be me, but lately I've felt a little used by people who position themselves to represent my interests as a Christian in the political arena. It feels like the issues that matter to me are being used to force my hand as a voter. Like many believers, I have a few issues which will sway my vote every time. If no other candidate defends them, then whatever candidate does, I tend to vote for him or her. You can critique my approach. I'm not interested in defending or recommending it; I'm admitting it to back up an observation. It doesn't matter what we say or think, politics is an incredibly powerful force. We are all puppets to it, especially if we think we're not. We find ourselves in reaction and taking sides instantly. It colors the way we see our world. If I am passionately committed to being on one side of an issue and I meet someone new, the minute I find out that he or she is from the other side of my issue, a future friendship seems unlikely. To read about Herod in Matthew 2 is not to read about a one time terrible incident of genocide, but to read about a trend and desire in us all. Politics is about power and power is, as the cliche insists, a corrupting influence. The more power we think we have, the less likely it is we will make righteous decisions concerning it. Many resist the lordship of Christ since they have no other areas over which they perceive power. If God's in control then where does that leave me?

Exactly.

The great challenge of Advent is that God is announcing His plan to take something away from us who seek Him. Herod knew this. Advent represents a cosmic loss of control for believers. "You're out," Heaven says. It promises us no throne, no power, no entitlements, and no rights. Yes, in some ways Christian faith strips you of your rights. God holds them in trust. Now they're God's rights because now you're God's child. Of course they are greater than any human rights you might claim for yourself. The point is that you've given even the power to claim a right over to God in Christ. Faith is about trusting Him this much. This is Advent. O come all ye faithful and give up everything. What a far cry from the song of politics.

This is not to judge politics or cast it, as a vocation, in a negative light. This is to show how Advent judges us. We don't have political problems. We have spiritual problems. Politics, like money, simply reveals this.

PRAYER: Lord, all power is Yours. We come before You trembling and asking for Your help in tamping down all within us that is resisting Your Kingdom. We confess our sick desire to be King or Queen ourselves. Left to our own inclinations, we would have You put us on the throne. We acknowledge that John the Baptist's call to repent proclaimed the truth: the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Give us Your Spirit that we may reside willingly and joyfully as grateful citizens of Your Kingdom. Amen.


TOMORROW: Advent and Money

Advent and Packaging

Shannon bought me a small thing of cologne for our anniversary. (It was 22 years a few days ago.) It came in a box, wrapped and then encased in the "armor" of one of those sealed plastic containers, the kind you know were inspired by shoplifters. The "armor" was that thick, soft plastic that you can't pull apart with your hands or tear with your teeth. You need a knife or scissors, and even then it's a big struggle. Many things come packaged this way. Whatever it is you've bought or been given, you have to fight to free it from the packaging. It's the same with the gospel sometimes. We're the ones that put the packaging on it to protect it, and in doing so we make it difficult for many to break in. Here are some of the ways we do this as Christians:

1) We downplay sin. We think that sin won't sell and so we minimize it. We're embarrassed by it. Don't bring it up. The problem here is that the entire life, death, and ministry of Jesus Christ becomes pointless. No sin, no reason for a savior.

2) We overemphasize human spirituality. We think that if we merely tap into people's spiritual feelings, we will be helping them and making headway for the gospel. We forget that all of life is spiritual. The gospel promotes a sharpened, limited spirituality only, not any spirituality. It's Christ or nothing. From the world's perspective, this gospel is unspiritual. Remember, the Romans thought that Christians were atheists because they didn't believe in all their gods.

3) We sell success. Especially in the western world, we in the church love to wear success on our face. We want the world to see winners. Then they'll want to join us. It doesn't work. In many ways, Christians are losers in this world. We lose out on the world to gain Christ. Success creates a narrative that displays human strength and character. This blinds and deafens people to Christ. If we're the heroes, who is Jesus? Why do we need Him?

These are just some thoughts on packaging. If you are struggling with it yourself, break out your biggest pair of scissors and take no prisoners. You'll get what you're after, if you don't quit. :)

PRAYER: Lord, we thank You that You put no obstacles between us and Yourself. In fact, Christmas and Easter both prove that You have done everything to remove the packaging, the obstacles. This shows us Your love for us in a way that humbles us greatly. We love you because You first loved us.

TOMORROW: Advent and Politics    

Advent and Resentment

Resentment is defined in the dictionary as "bitter indignation at having been treated unfairly." Advent and Christmas spotlight resentment in some people's lives. The material aspects of the season tempt them to seethe. This has always been a part of the story of Advent. Herod resented the prophetic buzz that surrounded the birth of Christ. It threatened to invalidate his own glorious reign as king. Matthew 2 records his feelings and actions. He "was disturbed." He "gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under..."

Resentment kills.

The key to resentment is our interpretation of fair treatment. If we believe that we are not getting something we should get or are getting something we should not get, then we have a choice. It's a choice between acceptance or resentment. If we accept a situation for what it is, we often are able to change it for the better. In fact, no change happens until facts are accepted. If we resent a situation, we are powerless to deal with it except by destruction.

I find that resentment can be controlled with God's help. His birth, death, and resurrection work together to transform our idea of what is fair. His Spirit shows us that resentment requires lies. We have to invest ourselves in lies to reap the harvest of resentment. It doesn't happen overnight. It follows a long series of decisions we make about how we feel we're being treated. Resentment takes work. If we have it, it's because we earned it. The author John Bevere writes about resentment's mother: offense. He calls being offended "taking Satan's bait." It's always a choice we make. Just like no one can make us angry, so no one can offend us. We take offense. Christ gives us the ability to reject it and take only what He offers us instead. This is our daily experience of His advent; this is our daily bread.

PRAYER: Lord, I am humbled by all the offense You bore during Your life on earth. From conception, You were not treated fairly, yet resentment never had its way with or in You. You mastered it in Yourself. With this same power, You can master it in us. We invite You in for just this holy purpose. Cut the chains. Stop any behaviors we indulge in due to resentment. Replace it with overwhelming gratitude, a gratitude that extends to even the harshest trials of this life, knowing that You are with us.

TOMORROW: Advent and Packaging

Advent and Sex

Sex is a powerful force in this world. A song, now ten years old, by a band named Creed, has this lyric: "We all know sex sells, and the whole world is buying." Christmas features the virgin birth of Christ. His conception was immaculate. It was clean. The first thought that many have of this is that sex is to be seen as dirty. Holiness and sexuality don't get to be in the same room. Look at it again. There's a more redemptive principle at work that may, these days, help many people. The conception of Christ is shielded from sexuality not because sex is dirty or wrong. God created sex to be a beautiful expression of marital love. The boundary is put in place because sex is so powerful. It is a master to so many. It occupies so much space in so many people's lives. So many I know are trapped by their sexuality in one way or another. The Advent of Christ stands apart. It is always different. The cure is not like the disease. No matter how distorted or discouraging the sexual side of life may be, Christ calls us to Himself along other lines. He remains above all those influences. No past can deny those who seek Him a future. No gift can remain a curse, if the gift of faith in Him is received.

PRAYER: Lord, I am relieved and encouraged by Your presence in my life. This world turns treasure into trash, but You came to reverse this. I confess my sin and my sins to You. I also confess my fears and my sense of being bound to my failures. Show me Your power that exceeds my weakness. Show me Your joy that replaces my despair. In Your Name I rejoice and pray. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Resentment

Advent and Unemployment

There's a verse that I drive people crazy with. I quote it too much. "He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who cases fantasies lacks judgment." (Proverbs 12:11) It has always served as a corrective for me. I am prone to chase fantasies and ignore the ground in front of me. This was especially true of me as a younger man.

One of the hardest things about losing a job is the sense that there is no ground left to work. I remember the times I've been laid off. Many of us underestimate how severe a blow it can be. It can knock the wind out of your spirit, even if you didn't like your job. It can set strong emotions on fire. When you lose a job, it almost always feels like you've lost much more. Rejection and despair come right to your door.

What do I do now?

The funny thing about Advent is that this is the question it starts with. It was Mary's question. It was Joseph's question. Both were set up by Mary being pregnant with Jesus to be rejected by their families and society. To be forsaken was their guaranteed lot. Unemployment gives us a taste of this.

What do I do now?

There is joy for angels and shepherds. Mary treasured and pondered their joy, but it does not say (in Luke 2) that she had any of her own. Days after Jesus' birth she was told that a sword would pierce her soul.

What do I do now?

This is the question that an earthly trial like unemployment can inspire. It is the question of Advent, a question answered only by Christ. If you have lost your job or are having trouble getting one, let the promise of Christ help you keep things in perspective. If you have a job, good for you. Don't base your sense of security on it. More importantly, don't set it up as a benchmark of God's love for you. If you do, you might feel like you are losing your faith as well as your income when you get laid off.

PRAYER: Lord, I pray for all who seek employment. I pray that those who don't have it receive peace and guidance from you today. This season can make the unemployed person feel particularly forsaken. Reverse this, Lord. Give the job to each as You will and as he or she needs. Supply and provide. Comfort and direct. Remove obstacles, including the largest ones fashioned from pain and pride. Answer us with Yourself when we ask You, "What do I do now?"

TOMORROW: Advent and Sex    

Advent and Suicide

I wouldn't have seen it if I had posted today's entry on time. The Chief of Chaplains for the Air Force sent this letter to every chaplain:

I hope that this is readable. The key line is: "As we approach the holiday season, stress, hopelessness and other forms of emotional, spiritual, social, and physical distress can become especially intense." Isn't it strange that the season that marks the birth of hope can represent a dearth of hope for so many? Let's follow the chaplain's advise and pray.

FYI - For those overwhelmed by thoughts of suicide it is important to call 911 immediately or (in Orange County in New York) Mobil Mental Health at 1-888-750-2266.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, help us all in our helplessness. Restore hope to all who have lost it. Strengthen hope in our own hearts that we may pass it on to all around us. The star that shone to mark Your birth shines today. Give us and all we pray for eyes to see and hearts to trust and believe. Lord, most especially, would you ease the pain in our lives and in our world. Help us to be a part of how you do this. In Your Name we pray and live. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Unemployment

Advent and Divorce

I'm a child of divorce. I'm also a pastor who regularly sees it and its impact on people. I've noticed a few things about divorce at Christmas and have been told a few others. Here's an incomplete list of observations:

1) Divorce is a powerful invalidator. "You failed at the most important relationship you had on earth." I've spoken with several divorced people about their struggle to not feel accused like this by the rest of us in churches. At Christmas, some say, it's worse. Depending on how fresh the wounds of divorce are, non-divorced people would do well to remember that any line they draw between themselves and the divorced is felt much more heavily by the divorced person. One person told me that church is like a monumental reminder "that I don't belong anymore." People of Christ's gospel have no business communicating the same thing Satan does to people. He is the accuser. We don't need to do his job for him. Actually, we need to stop him from doing his job so well in our midst. When we say or hear, "God hates divorce," let's make sure we're not saying or hearing, "God hates you."

2) Divorce is a reminder of reality. We're all broken. Christ was born into a fallen world. He came to heal the sick. Advent isn't a sign that things have gone well on planet Earth. It's a sign that, without God's help in the form of His Son as our Savior, we're really sunk. Faith in Christ doesn't erase our brokenness, it redeems us in spite of it. The Father didn't send Him to show us how to fix ourselves; He sent Him to become broken for us. Unless we are honest and aware of how broken we are, we are blind and deaf to the grace of God in the gospel of Christ.

3) "Divorced" as an identity fades in the light of Christ's Advent. No one wants a permanent label based on his or her struggles or failures in life, unless he or she overcame them. And even then, it's not for everyone. Christ is all about overcoming. Whatever happened to us in life is overshadowed by what happened that first Christmas and first Easter. Whoever we're trying to be mature enough not to blame for all our problems and pain is upstaged by the King of Kings. However we ended up in whatever mess we find ourselves in is only a distraction compared to the eternal plan of God for our salvation in Christ. "Christian" is your identity now. Don't forget it. Don't let others forget it.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for being with me in life. I pray for all my broken relationships and I pray for those who are struggling with theirs. I know that it's not enough to say that You have a plan for my life. You ARE the plan for my life. As the song says, "God bless the broken road that led me to You." Whoever else is in my life, You ARE my life. Whoever else I love, I love You, Jesus.

TOMORROW: Advent and Suicide

Advent and Cancer

One struggle that many people share is cancer. The "c" word, some call it. All tell me they can remember the first time they heard it from a doctor's lips. To hear "you have cancer" really means "cancer has you," unless you determine in the depth of your being that it will be otherwise. Beating cancer is an inspiring thing to see. Even some who have died from it, as I watched them live despite it, fall into the category of cancer survivor in my eyes. Cancer came to rob them and left empty handed. The ones I know who beat cancer did it via their faith. The message of the angels is one they took to heart. In Luke 1 and 2 you can read the message of the angels to both Mary and the shepherds. "Fear not," they said. That's the key. Fear is the real cancer.

Advent is a fear killer. Advent means arrival. We are not merely to celebrate the arrival of Christ in history, but the arrival of Christ in our own stories. Advent is meaningless unless we each experience our own personal advent, ending with new birth. The Advent of Christ is a relentlessly life-giving event. It surges with hope and blinds the darkness of despair with light.

PRAYER: Father, I place gently before You every person I know and every person reading this who is fighting cancer. Heal them today and restore fullness of life to them in every way, in Jesus' Name I pray. Especially obliterate fear and any hold it has on them or their loved ones. In each case, let Advent become a game-changer, a transforming blessing, a new reality, and a direct experience of Your power. Thank You for Your compassion and strength. Amen.

TOMORROW: Advent and Divorce

Time and time again

Here we are again. It's another Advent. We could say this same thing about any repeated passing of time. It's another month, another week, another day. All these observations are true. There are 168 hours in a week. It's time. It's the one thing we're always losing track of. It's the one thing we're always losing. It's flying by. Advent reminds us that we are to adjust our perspective about the passing of time. Instead of seeing it as just passing by (or racing by), we are to see it as heading toward something. Every movie and book has an ending. So does time itself. Picture it. Every plane in the sky; every car on every road; every train, boat, or rocket - all are heading to the final end: Jesus Christ. He's the point of all time. There are 771 references to time that I could find in the NIV version of the Holy Bible. The first, interestingly, occurs after the fall and features a person in Scripture who represents the worst of every one of us: Cain. (Genesis 4:3 - In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD.) The last occurs near the very end of the Bible and reminds us of what we shouldn't need reminding of: we're running out of time. (Revelation 22:10 - Then he told me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near.)

The feeling of time draining away from us is offset dramatically by the Advent of Jesus Christ. Suddenly He comes, and with His gospel He changes the nature of even death itself. He makes it a doorway to eternal life. The fear and rejection that death assumes vanishes for every person who really understands those Christmas carols and those verses from Luke 2 that are read at every year's end.

PRAYER: Jesus, you are my comfort, my inspiration, the thing I'm most interested in today. The sun and wind remind me of You. Eyes looking back at me in the mirror have a familiar look of eyes searching always for You in every person, situation, and moment. Your Advent moves me to tears and reminds me that I am alive again in You and alive forever in You. I don't deserve it. I never have. Thank You, King Jesus. This time, this Advent, make the time You give me count for You more than ever.

TOMORROW: Advent and Cancer

The Advent of Advent 2010

Our celebration of the arrival of Christ is arriving soon! This is our new devotional blog for this year's Advent at Goodwill Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Montgomery, NY. Daily entries will begin on Sunday, November 28, 2010, the first day of Advent and will continue through Christmas Eve Day.