I wonder how many people will throw out there Christmas trees Monday morning. All this work, all this preparation, all this waiting and he is finally arriving! The Light of the World is bursting onto the scene once again and too many of us are unwilling to savor the time with the baby.

The Luke text this week is well known to many of us because of a boy who couldn't give up his blanket. Linus in A Charlie Brown Christmas recites those verses standing in a single shaft of bright light shining down on him standing on the stage. After being treated poorly, after trying to please everyone and create the perfect Christmas program, Linus steps forward into the midst of chaos and stops it all to remind Charlie of the true meaning of Christmas.

We have waited and watched. We have savored the anticipation. Now, let's go visit that baby and savor this moment as well. The first day of 12 is this Sunday. May we remember to stop in the midst of the chaos and sing with the great company of heavenly host, "Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” 

I loved being pregnant. I have two children and simply loved the experience of being pregnant with them. It was anything but easy, though. Childbirth was everything you have heard it can be, but it is was easy for me compared to the pregnancies. There was gestational diabetes and low amniotic fluid. There were high-risk pregnancy doctors and work transitions. It was anything but easy and still I loved it. I think it stems from my love of traveling. I am one of those people who truly does think that "getting there is half the fun." The journey through those nine months (really eight because they were both early!) was an incredible one filled with amazing sights and stops along the way. Did I say that it was anything but easy, though?

This journey of Advent is so fast. In four quick weeks, we go on this trip of being reminded of how hopeless we are because of our sin, being presented with the gift of good news that hope is on his way by a man who looks and acts like no one else,  being invited to stop and breathe for a minute in the midst of what may be the busiest time of our year, and finally being given the opportunity to witness Mary as she is presented with this impossible situation. We better hold on. We don't want to miss a minute of this trip.

The gospel lesson this week is that one from Luke 1 that most of us know very well. We've been waiting for it. Angels and virgins and songs of commitment and joy. What an impossible situation, though. A young girl, unmarried, but legally bound to a man, is told by an angel that she will give birth to "the son of God." And, the angel has the audacity to call this finding favor with God! I think I would have laughed out loud had something like that happened to me. It is an impossible situation.

And, of course, God knows that is what we humans will think. The angel is ready to answer the question before it is ever asked. "I know, Mary, sounds crazy, but listen to this . . ." With the news of Elizabeth being six months pregnant, the angel is able to proclaim "For nothing will be impossible for God."

For me, having children has increased my spiritual connection to God. Okay, let's be honest, I have my moments, but for the most part it truly has. It has done this for two reasons. One is that I love my children more than I ever knew was possible and two is that I could not have survived the difficult pregnancies or parenthood without a God who loves me and cares for me and shows me how to love and care for my kids. I am reminded daily that "nothing is impossible for God."

So, whether we focus on 2 Samuel and David's gift of rest and promise from God after a very difficult time, on the Romans passage where the writer reminds us to praise God for giving us very good news or Mary's encounter with the angel and response in song found in Luke, this final stop during this journey through Advent takes an impossible situation and brings home to us that nothing is impossible for God. 

We have to remember this and celebrate it because though it is ultimately an amazing experience, it is anything but easy. And even though we may feel like laughing when we hear it, "we have found favor with God." The impossible situation of God becoming human is about to become a reality! Praise be to God!

Advent seems to go by so quickly compared to other seasons of the Church - like Lent, for example. Four short weeks and then we are into Christmas. Not much time to get ready for the most important birth in history!

In the first week of Advent, the lectionary texts reminded us that we are sinful people and that we really need a Savior to come. In the second week of Advent, we were provided the hope we need as John shouted out to us that that Savior is on his way - without him there is no hope, with him there is no need for hopelessness. Now, we continue our journey along the Advent Road and arrive at what seems like a traffic jam. It isn't one of those traffic jams that makes you want to lose your temper, though. It is more like the rare moments when you are rushing from one place to the next and suddenly have to stop. Beyond all your own control, you get to take a few deep breaths and trust that pausing for a bit will be okay.

330 by Melissa Bridgman

There is no hope because of sin. But wait, Hope is on his way. Now, sit with that message for a while. Savor it. Decorate the tree, put up the lights, take time to write special notes in those Christmas cards. Time is passing by too quickly and we are called to stop, to pause, to breathe in the reality that the Savior is coming. Soon enough labor will begin and everything will speed up again. For now, may we rest in the knowledge that "the Lord has sent good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners" (Isaiah). Let us pause with John to revel in the fact that "he came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him" (John). Let us sing with Mary (Luke) and the Psalmist. Let us sing praises always and pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians).

Savor this week. May our congregations be led to savor it too. Too often we want to skip to the birth, but the anticipation of this great event is too wonderful to miss by running too quickly through Advent.

"Breath of Heaven," help us to pause long enough to breathe You in as deeply as possible.

321 by Melissa Bridgman

Happy New Year! I never get tired of doing that with congregations. Most folks give me strange looks and think that I've lost my mind. But, for Christians, this Sunday marks the beginning of a new year on the liturgical calendar. After being reminded that Christ is King and reigns eternal, we begin the process of waiting all over again - waiting, watching, longing, hoping - for Christ to come.

I've often thought how wonderful it would be to skip all these days leading up to the big feasts of Christmas and Easter. On this Sunday, we are reminded of a quaking earth and darkness and sin. Man, it would be much more fun to just skip right over to that precious baby being born. So, why do we have to remind our congregations every year? Why do we have to go through this over and over and over again? I know of a woman who likes to say, "I know the end of the story already! Why do we have to do this?"

We Americans don't do well with delayed gratification. In fact, we have built a culture upon finding ways to have instant gratification - fast food, high speed internet access, on-demand movies - so waiting for something that we know will be wonderful is really, really hard for us. Why wait? Why repeat this process each and every year?

It isn't some deep theological reason. It is simply that we need to remember. We need to be reminded because we tend to get caught up in our lives and we forget. Oh, we say we remember. We say that we understand the implications of the coming of the Savior, but we really just gloss over it and carry on with our lives just like usual. So, once a year, every year, we come to a brand new year in the Church and on that first day of the new year, we hear scriptures that remind us that we are sinful, that the world can be very dark, and that we need to get ready. We are reminded of these things so that we reconnect with the fact that WE REALLY NEED A SAVIOR and face the promise that A SAVIOR IS ON HIS WAY. Not just a baby Jesus born in a stable all those years ago, but the King of Kings coming to save us when he returns. A Savior that we wait for, anxious and ready, a Savior who bursts onto the scene again and again.

We may know the end of the story already, but it isn't enough to know it. We need to live it out, to experience this anticipation, this longing, this hope, so that our waiting is active and our longing is shared. Our kids understand this, though they may be waiting for new Lego's or baby dolls or electronics. May we expectantly wait for the coming of the Messiah as if we don't know the end of the story, as if we are counting the hours until Christmas morning where we will find Him waiting for us beside the tree. May we understand the need to go through this cycle every year so that our faith remains fresh, active, and real. Happy New Year, y'all! Jesus is on his way.

So, what is the deal with all these sheep? We approach the end of another year on the Christian calendar this week. As such, we celebrate the Reign of Christ or Christ, the King Sunday. If you check out the podcast, you will hear Andy mention that one of the reasons we recognize the Reign of Christ is as a reminder of who we are and to whom we belong. He doesn't say it quite that way, but he is used to me putting words into his mouth! He reminded me that it is of the utmost importance that we remember our allegiance is to Jesus, the Christ, first and foremost, above all others including our own nations.

You can find other blogs that will explain exactly why all these sheep references are included in the Christ, the King texts. I'll admit that I'm not a big fan of thinking of myself as a sheep nor am I able to truly comprehend what a good shepherd does with a herd; however, I do see the importance of remembering who I am in the big picture and thinking of myself as a sheep following Jesus isn't so terrible afterall.

There is one word that I have been struggling with all day today and that is CONTROL. I too often think I have it when I really do not and I more than likely will desire to obtain it if someone else nearby has it in their possession. In another life, I was called "stage manager." Now, I'm just a control-freak! So, you can see why this simile of the sheep can be bothersome for me. I'm sure it is just from where I sit right now, but I'm wondering if these texts aren't a reminder to us that we are not King. 

Now, before some of you get too upset, I'm not one of those people who is going to encourage you to beat up your congregations in order to help them see the errors of their ways and come to their senses and avoid the eternal flames. There is something to be said for humility, though.

In the Matthew text, the "good guys" had not recognized the Christ either. It wasn't that they had seen things differently. It was that they had done things differently. Not out of knowing who they were serving, not out of seeking the reward of eternal life, not out of a desire to benefit in any way - these folks had fed the hungry and clothed the naked, visited those in prison and given water to the thirsty. I think that exhibits an abundance of humility and a willingness to lack control. Christ is our King and he reigns eternal. May we seek to share that good news this week.

This Week's Artwork:

(in order of appearance)

This Week's Lectionary Texts

Judges 4:1-7 or Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18

Psalm 123 or Psalm 90:1-8, 12

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Matthew 25:14-30

This Week's Reflection

"What's the meaning of life?," she asked me, as we sat eating our lunch. "That is what I struggle with. I know that God exists. I know that God loves me, but what is the purpose of all the [bad stuff] in the world?" She went on to talk about the contradictions in life that she experiences, contradictions between the all-loving and wonderful God and this God who allows good people to suffer again and again and again. She mentioned the contradictions of the same that are found in the Holy Scriptures. And, I immediately thought of the lectionary texts for this week.

Judges 4 in which the writer says, "So the LORD sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan." The Psalmist who cries out, "Our soul has had more than its fill of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud." and "For we are consumed by your anger; by your wrath we are overwhelmed." I thought about the prophet in Zephaniah 1 writing, "That day will be a day of wrath, a day of distress and anguish, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness." I thought of these verses listed along side 1 Thessalonians, "For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," and Matthew 25 ending the parable with "As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

I thought about these verses and the ways in which we humans are so incredibly uncomfortable with contradiction. I should clarify because I imagine this is not necessarily common to all humans, but common to we westerners. Eastern religions seem perfectly comfortable with the fact that contradiction exists in this world. My friend mentioned above and myself, though, not so much.

I've written in this blog about the Matthew text once before. This parable was not the parable from the lectionary that week, but I used it to make a point. The point was about how we should ask ourselves what it would mean for us if it is not a parable about preparing ourselves for eternity, but instead a parable about the ways in which those in power abuse the powerless. I owe this thinking to Dr. Aliou Niang, former professor at Memphis Theological Seminary and current professor at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. I'll recap.

Starting in verse 24, the slave says to the lord, "Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours." This occurs in the gospel just before the bit about judgement and how those being judged will be told, "for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink." You know the rest . . . Keep that in your mind.

Presumably, if we are to read this parable the way that the Harper Collins Study Bible would have us read it, we are to believe that the master in the parable is God, well, Jesus. We are those given the talents (that is money to keep) and some of us do well with those talents and others do nothing with them. Those of us that do nothing will be thrown into the outer darkness. The folks who created the lectionary must have interpreted this text in this way when we compare it with the Hebrew passages and Epistle they chose to accompany it. The theme seems to be about being prepared because we do not know the hour or the day.  And, if we are not ready, we will find ourselves gettin' a hurtin'.

Dr. Niang's interpretation, from the viewpoint of a man raised in an African nation, was that we have attributed words to Jesus that are actually the words of the master within the story that Jesus is telling. In a time when those with power and money used that to take advantage of those without (oh, isn't it wonderful that times have changed?) Jesus is telling a story about a man with little power standing up to the powerful and being willing to risk his life to do it. Did you keep in mind the whole "I was hungry and you gave me food" thing? Looking at the context of the parable supports these ideas. Are we truly supposed to believe that Jesus would tell us a story that has "the God character" referred to as "a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow"? Even the harshness found in the Hebrew texts for this week do not include an image of God as a thief! It is as if Jesus says, "Listen, the way of the world is harsh and ugly and you should stand up to it. It will be hard, but it will be right."

It feels contradictory in a world that promises us new, easy, and feel-good. And, I'm not real keen on the image of God "selling Israelites into the hands of a king." Be ready. I get that. But, am I really supposed to stand up and preach to the congregation that if they are not ready, then they are going to burn for it? I know many preachers will preach that very thing. And, for many reasons, I'm just not willing to do it. I'd rather sit with the contradictions a while. I'd rather remind folks that we can't possibly understand it all. I like Dr. Niang's interpretation of the Matthew text. In fact, I find it to be much more powerful than "Be good. Do good. And, then you'll have good." But, I don't know that it covers the whole truth either. I'm not willing to simply ignore Zephaniah's warnings. Nor am I willing ignore Paul's reminder that God does not destine us for wrath.

We can attempt to simplify the works of God all we want. And, God's works and ways and Word will continue to baffle us - if we have our eyes open and our listening ears on, that is. What's the meaning of this life? Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that it is an unanswerable question.