soundtrack

With Christmas just literally days away, the music in the air, on the airwaves, in the stores has been with us for weeks now. The choirs are getting ready to sing the Christmas carols and we may be even playing our Spotify Christmas favorites. Naturally, there are new songs to hear, but some of us can sing “Away in a Manger” and “Joy to the World” without any prompts! Even the angels were singing the night that Jesus was born.

This season, I pray that my worship of the newborn King becomes the soundtrack of my heart. Let it resound louder than the negative voices in my head, the sound of dissention in our world today and any competing sounds that distract me from the beautiful melody that resonnates in my soul.

As I listen to the roar of the wind yet again here in Southern Alberta, I am reminded of the freight train force that recently devastated a number of communities in the States with tornadoes. The constant hum of today’s force with frequent gusts, fills my ears and I smile as my windchimes tinkle and sway dancing to the wind’s call. Such a contrast - the roaring wind and the stillness of my soul.

Battles rage. Let us praise His name. The storm presses in. Let us hear the angels sing. Hatred. Love. Cry. Sing. Violence. Peace.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” Luke 2:13-15

babe

Recently, a new graphic novel came out by Charlie Mackesy entitled, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse which is the story of living courageously with kindness and following your dreams. After quickly reading and reflecting on his work, I came up with my own story based on his characters and the familiar Christmas story, but mine is entitled, The Baby, the Lamb, the Lion and the Eagle. Perhaps I will publish it if I can find a suitable artist.

Then there is the classic poem, “Twas the NIght Before Christmas”. There are many renditions and parodies that one can read and chuckle. Again, I always like to play around with words and come up with something a little different and so here goes:

Twas a few weeks before Christmas and all through the streets People were still frightful and didn’t really want to meet. The shopping was done all on-line with such care In hopes that Amazon delivered out there. The children were texting all ready for movies they’d seen While visions of the messages danced on their screens. And mom in her PJ’s and I in my sweats Had prepared our brains - another lock-down - you bet! When out on the deck there arose such a noise. I jumped from the couch and yelled at the boys Away to the window I let out a cry Pulled at the curtains and gasped, “oh my!” The light on the sidewalk of freshly shoveled snow Gave a luster of Christmas lights to objects below. When what to my blurry eyes did I see But a chorus of angels singing with glee With wings of celestials so eager to fly I knew in a moment they would drift to the sky More rapid than transit the angels did appear You thought I’d mention Santa and his tiny reindeer. Didn’t you?

Christmas is more than the big red guy, Christmas lights picked up, strung up and lit up and enough food on the table to feed a small army. It’s really about the greatest gift of all, a newborn baby called Immanuel - God with us. And so as we celebrate, hibernate, congregate this Christmas season, let us remind ourselves that this little baby grew up, became a man and saved us from eternal punishment. If we only admit our sin, believe God sent Jesus to fix our sin and if we confess him as Lord of every part of our life, we can be saved. Feliz Navidad!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.(ESB) John 3:16

said

He said. She said. What if I said that I love walking barefoot on the sand by the ocean? What if you said you love to stand in the rain and catch the drops on your tongue? What did our mother mean when the last line she said in her letter to dad was, “I have a surprise for you…” We will never know what was said because they are both gone and there is only the letter. I remember what was said at the funerals as we stood shoulder to shoulder with tears of loss trickling down our cheeks. What will be said of us when we are gone?

The Indigenous, the tribes of Israel and the storytellers said it in words danced around the fire long ago in tales told of stories from the past. In history, the hurtful also pelted words of hate at those who were different; yet there were the compassionate who said very softly in a child’s ear, “I love you.” I have not forgotten words that hurt but have said that I was sorry too. I saw her on the stage as she spoke her words of truth with music resounding in the background, sat in the audience of the theatre or walked through a gallery as we said to one another, “isn’t that beautiful?”

All the words said over dinner or conference tables or said in the dark recesses of the night. What if I said it matters? I have also heard the lies dripping with deceit when some said, “it won’t matter” when it did. They said that they cared, but did they really?

And now here we are with all that’s said and done. The prophets from thousands of years ago said there would be a Savior born. They said he would rescue his people; this king in swaddling clothes. He said he would die, but be raised to life and that he is with his Father but will return. Some said that’s not true. We said, “we believe you.” And so as we prepare our hearts for this season, we remember what was said over 600 years ago to Mary by the angel Gabriel:

“You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call Him Jesus - Immanuel. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of his father David, and He will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; His kingdom will never end” Luke 1:31-33

advent

Many people expect that “push the button instant pop” experience in our culture today. We get frantic when things don’t tick the way we tock. There’s panic if the internet goes down, our phones need charging and we can’t find the cord kind of panic. We want the “drive thru menu” without waiting patiently for the roast to finish cooking in the oven. Instant Gratification. When we go on a diet, we want the pounds to drop immediately. We’re at the stop light and it takes forever for the green to show so we can speed along. We tap our feet in line ups, drum our fingers on tabletops when we get impatient. We’re late! Get moving. Now!

Some may notice that for thousands of years Mother Earth lies in silence never worrying about her pace. Oh, yes, she occasionally shows her displeasure with a wild storm, flashes of lightning, an earthquake or spewing lava, but she graciously beckons each season and patiently watches as either buds and blossoms show their array of colors or sits mezmoraized by the white snowflakes dancing across the prairie grasses. She is in no hurry. We on the other hand, are anxiously defined by time as we wait for spring to arrive or welcome snow for Christmas Day.

And yet, the first 5 books of the bible (Pentateuch) reveal much about patience and waiting for Jesus, the coming Messiah who came to destroy Satan and deliver salvation to mankind. The Israelites had to wait thousands of years. God’s plan of redemption seemed to occur in small steps spread out over long lengths of time, but God is not restricted by time and Paul writes that Jesus came “at the appointed time” (Galatians 4:4). And so, as we begin the “countdown” to Christmas, light the first Advent candle, expectanty waiting and preparing for the celebration of the Nativity of Christ, let us also be patient as we wait for his return.

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. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

Isaiah 9:6-7

absurd

No one would have believed the world shutting down when it did. I can hardly believe that I am sitting in my sunny backyard with my barefeet on the somewhat green grass and leaves on a November day in Alberta. Some might believe that a man could eat an airplane piece by piece when they read Ripley’s Believe it or Not April 2, 2019 article. Even the disciples didn’t believe Jesus would leave them so soon and others from Jesus’ day thought their miracles were absurd.

At the Songshan Airport in Taipei, 60 passengers checked in to the airport, handed the attendant their boarding passes, cleared security, got through the boarding gate and climbed aboard China Airlines Airbus. Their destination was Nowhere! Apparently, the contest was to role play a day at the airport to satisfy their nostalgia of not being able to fly during the pandemic. So the passengers buckled up, were greeted by the flight attendants, sat on the tarmack and when the seatbelt sign went off, deplaned and went home.

Another absurd idea is to take a hotel room in Fukuoka, Japan for $1.20 CAD per night. There is a catch though. You must be wiling to be live streamed on YouTube with half a million viewers. Luckily the bathroom is private!

The catch - one has to be willing to share one’s privacy; or win the contest; or only eat two pounds of steel each day to finish off the airplane meal. The amazing aspect of being a Christ follower is that there is no “catch.” One must simply give one’s life to Jesus and ask Him to do the impossible by forgiving our sins, giving us grace and loving us despite anything from our past. We don’t need to imagine what it would be like to know the God of the Universe. We can experience it each moment. He wants a personal relationship with us. We can share God’s love, we have won God’s heart and He sustains and keeps us with living water. He sees everything and nothing can separate us from his love. That’s amazing; not absurd!

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ... No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow — not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below — indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35, 37-39)

patterns

Have you ever noticed patterns? They might be those personal morning habits of stretching, arms held high before we crawl out of bed, grabbing the toothbrush to scrub fresh breath in our mouths or putting on the kettle for that morning cup of caffeine. Maybe it’s not just the routine of our day, but something noticeable in nature such as the symmetry of a mountain range, the ripples on the water or trees planted in a row along the lane. God created patterns on the feathers of the sparrow, the wings of a butterfly and the cinnamon stripes on a soft kitten.

There are also negative patterns in our world. The incessant need to check our text messages, to grab a pill when there’s a pain or snapping back in anger when we see injustices. The Ojibway have a beautiful way of weaving a pattern of positive values into the hair of a braid.

Each strand represents a human quality to be carried through the day and into a person’s life. As each stand is woven, the person weaving meditates that quality as the process of a single braid is achieved. One braid might be love, honesty and faith. Another might be spirit, body and mind as one. The person weaving asks the Creator for guidance and uses the strand as a daily prayer. This visible reminder represents those positive human qualities and one should daily seek those values. Jesus often slipped away to pray. (Luke 5:16)

We can pick what we ponder and pray about. We can establish positive habits. We can choose not to conform to the patterns of this world. (Romans 12:2) Moses brought the 10 commandments down from the mountain to establish a pattern of living for the Israelites. The early church established a pattern as well by

Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:25

And so, as we move through our days, continue some of our quirky habits, let us encourage each other, meet, laugh and talk together and develop positive patterns in our daily lives. Are you ready to add a beautiful habit in the pattern of your life’s tapestry?