arrival
Christmas - ‘tis the season - festivities - celebration - the birth of Jesus. When my children were smaller, I would invite the neighborhood children for a birthday party for Jesus every year in December. The gathering, the joy, the party, the cake, the Christmas story, church pageant and songs of joy, love, peace and hope. Where has the wonder gone?
And so, this season - this blog - is my Christmas card for the month of December as we abide in Him. (based on Honest Advent - Scott Erickson)
May you rekindle the light - that “shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” (John 1:5) May you praise the King of Kings because you are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalm 139: 14) May the truth of the gospel and grace from above be realities that we share with others. May your life be meaningful, serving the Lord as you grow in faith even when you aren’t clear what the outcome will be. You are loved by the Creator who is …”the Alpha and the Omega.. who is, and who was, and who is to come.” (Revelation 1:8)
May you awake your soul to the inseparable love of God by the breath only He can give. May you grow in relationship with Him with the gift of your life and eventually your death, and all your impossibles be the starting point of ever divine possibility. May you drink from the wellspring to never thirst again. Jesus became human “taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness… he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death - even death on a cross” (Philippians 2: 6-8) to live in a complicated world, die and raised from the dead to return. God is with us.
May the stage of life you are in now, be mighty, holy ground for divinity as you live as an heir - a beloved offspring - of the Creator of all. May you know that you never have to “do life” alone. May your incarnation provide room as the heavenly hosts watch from above. May this Advent wonder be seen that it’s a story about a God who brings salvation with messy details into a world that so desperately needs a Savior. May you be given eyes to see messages of divine love today, paying attention to what this season illuminates to receive HIs gift of love to share with others.
“That’s the invitation in our lives today: to witness that same arrival of God-With-Us in all the unexpected and expected realities of our human lives. An honest Advent that leads to an honest hope.”