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For last year’s words belong to
last year’s language
And next year’s words await
another voice.
And to make an end is to make a
beginning.”
T.S. Eliot
(Thanks Laura for this quote)
We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to
put words on them ourselves. The book is called “Opportunity” and its first
chapter is New Year’s Day.
The start of a new year symbolizes new beginnings. Opening
up a new calendar fills me with can-do energy and is like a fresh warm breeze
in my soul.
I cling to God’s promise in Isaiah: Behold I will do a new thing - Isaiah 43:19
Here are some of my random ponderings this week:
·I plan to reread my journal, reflecting on the
past year’s life lessons and praying for guidance where to spend my time and
energy in the coming year.
·I read on many blogs, that others chose one word
or several words as themes. Though
this hasn’t worked as effectively for me in the past I want to try it again. I sense the word: BECOMING and LIVING
GRATEFULLY for 2012’s focus. I am also slowly hearing the word: WAIT. Perhaps because I have a tendency to rush into decisions, God is reminding me to listen first.
·Certain questions arise in my heart: What should I say yes to in 2012 and what
should I say no to? What should I eliminate in order to grow? To become? Are my dreams and plans God-sized? What is holding me back?
·I wonder what my life would look like to LIVE
GRATEFULLY. Read an interesting
study the other day about gratitude journals. All of the participantskept a journal and were asked to write
a sentence a week for ten weeks.The
first group described five things they were grateful for. The secondgroup described five hassles. The
neutral group simply listed five things that had affected them in the past
week. After ten weeks, the gratitude group was 25% happier than the other
participants. In addition, the gratitude group felt better about their lives,were more optimistic about the future
andreported fewer health complaints.
·Love this quote by Michael Mahoney: There
are many things to be grateful "for" but, as I ripen with the seasons
of life, the many reasons blend into a sacred mystery. And, most deeply, I
realize that living gratefully is its own blessing.
·I hunger for some quiet time with the Lord. I
want to snuggle in His lap and listen to His heartbeat. I will give Him all
these rambling thoughts about 2011 and 2012 and know He will “do a new thing” with them. Here I am, Lord. Guide me
How do you approach the opportunity and gift of the new year? What is
God inviting you to do in 2012?
Some of us are already packing away all the holiday
decorations.
Some of us are still on vacation mode not quite ready to go
back to work.
Some of us, pastors, law enforcement, EMT’S, nurses, never
got the day off. (Thank you!)
But we all can look at the calendar and see 2011 quickly
ending and December almost gone.
I have a guest blog over at my friend and fellow Christian blogger, Phather Phil. Please check out his wonderful blog.
Found this great song by Matthew West that seemed very
appropriate for this week of in-betweeness. Here are the lyrics to enjoy while you listen to the videos
"Day After Christmas"
Here comes the letdown Christmas is over
Here comes the meltdown, there goes the cheer
But before we have a breakdown, let us remember
The light of the world is still here
Happy day after Christmas
And merry rest of the year
Even when Christmas is over
The light of the world is still here
The light of the world
Come January I’m ready for summer
The Super Bowl’s over and I’ll settle for spring
Sometimes we all need a change in the weather
But it won’t change the reason we sing
Happy day after Christmas
And merry rest of the year
Even when Christmas is over
The light of the world is still here
The light of the world
The light of the world
The light of the world
So take down the stockings, take back the sweaters
Take down the lights and the star and the tree
But don’t let this world take your joy after Christmas
Take joy to the world and just sing
Happy day after Christmas
And merry rest of the year
Even when Christmas is over
The light of the world is still here
[x2]
The light of the world [x7]
May the true Light of the World brighten your everyday!
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping
watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and
the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news
that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a
Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign
to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
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.”
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was
lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning
what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at
what the shepherds said to them.
But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things
they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. Luke 2:8-20 (NIV)
But Mary treasured up
all these things and pondered them in her heart
Christmas morning -
Amidst all the torn wrapping paper and empty cardboard
boxes,
In between half drunk cups of coffee and cold toast crumbs,
Among the yawns of getting up to early but wasn’t it worth
it smiles
I pause.
Lord thank your for these blessings – all symbols of the
priceless gift of love and family that fills my home today.
Lord, I pause and remember the greatest gift of all – Your
coming to us - to live among us, to be born like us, to experience walking on
earth with us, to die for us.
Like Mary I treasure all these things and tuck them deep
within my heart.
I reflect upon that event so long ago and rejoice that our
Savoir is born.
I know I cannot fully comprehend the extent of Your love You
expressed on the night of Your birth so long ago.
Lord may I have the faith of Mary and a heart to obey You
like she did.
May I never get so rushed or overwhelmed that I don’t pause
to ponder all that You give me.
I hold dearly the Christmas Treasure You sent all of us.
Advent
is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation
for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are
celebrating this special time of year. The last few weeks I have been posting
information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent
Emmanuel
Christmas “should” be a joyous time.
We are supposed to look forward to all the get togethers.
Our expectation is peace on earth and within our hearts.
Then why am I sad? I feel a shroud of melancholy over my
shoulders as Christmas approaches.
This time of year does bring lots of smiles, joys, sharing
and celebrating.
But the holidays also come loaded with negative feelings.
I am missing those no longer with us.
My parents died a number of years ago, but still the child
within me wants to be with them during this season.
Many of you may remember I lost my 991/2-year-old best
friend last May. I pass Esther’s house and think I should stop and go in for a
visit.But she is not there any
more.
Christmas sharpens the loss of them and other friends, gone
but not far from my heart.
I miss the loved
ones no longer with me.
Perhaps that is why the word Emmanuel means so much to me.
The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they
will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us". Matthew
1:23
I love this Bible verse: “God with us.”
Not just in the past.
Not only someplace distant in the future.
But now
God is here. With us. Always.
Sometimes I don’t feel God’s presence yet other times He is
so real I know I could reach out and touch the hem of his clothing. So I cling
to Emmanuel. God is with us.
“O Come, O
Come, Emmanuel" is a favorite hymn to sing during
Advent. Its history originates in the medieval Roman Catholic Church. This
mournful melody was originally a Plainsong or Chant, which is the earliest form
of singing in the church.
It is believed that the traditional music stems from a 15th
Century French processional for Franciscan nuns, but it may also have 8th
Century Gregorian
origins. An unknown author wrote seven antiphons--short lines to be sung before
and after psalms. Those seven antiphons all begin with the "O," and
thus became known as "The O
Antiphons."
Just think: the people of the Dark Ages - few of whom read
or had access to the Bible - this song was an example of the full story of how
the New and Old Testament views of the Messiah came together in the birth and
life of Jesus. And we still sing the words today, connecting us throughout the
centuries to our fellow believers.
My loneliness fades in the warmth of God’s Emmanuel message.
I cling to His promise and chose to focus on Him, the baby who changed
everything.
Thank for coming, Emmanuel.
My prayers are with
all of you this season, especially those of you having a difficult time.
Advent
is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation
for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are
celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I have been posting
information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent and will
finish this series on Thursday.
White
Many churches light an Advert wreath during this time of
expectation before Christmas. In my church we light the next candle during the
children’s sermon, telling the story of each week.
The circle of the wreath reminds us of God Himself, His
eternity and endless mercy, which has no beginning or end. The green of the
wreath speaks of the hope that we have in God, the hope of newness, of renewal,
of eternal life. Candles symbolize the light of God coming into the world
through the birth of His son.
In the center of the wreath shines the white Christ candle.Usually this candle is lit on Christmas
Eve or Christmas Day with all five candles continuing to be lighted in services
through Epiphany (Jan 6). The
central location of the Christ Candle reminds us that the birth of Jesus is the
heart of the season, giving light to the world.
White symbolizes purity, holiness, truth, and virtue, as
well as respect and reverence. White symbolizes the newborn Jesus and represents
His light to shine in our lives.
White is also the color of mourning in China and parts of
Africa. The ancient Greeks wore white to bed to ensure pleasant dreams.
Think about the color white in your life:I wear a white lab coat as a nurse when
I volunteer at the free medical clinic. I watched my daughter walk down the
aisle on her wedding day in her white gown. A white picket fence often
symbolizes a safe and happy home. We dream of a
white Christmas.
"White...is not a mere
absence of colour; it is a shining and affirmative thing, as fierce as red, as
definite as black...God paints in many colours; but He never paints so
gorgeously, I had almost said so gaudily, as when He paints in white." --
G. K. Chesterton
When I began this series (see the last four Tuesday’s posts
of the Colors of Advent) I never imagined how learning more about the colors of
the season would add a new dimension to my Advent journey. The colors seem to
pop out for me more and help me pause and consider the meaning of this season.
It is like the scene in The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy opens the door after the
tornado and the dreary grays burst into colors.
Then I saw this verse from The Message:
“You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the
world…” – Matthew 5:14 (MSG)
God-colors – what a wonderful word. What a gift God gave us
when He swirled His brushes into the rainbow and gave us colors.
In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel
to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man
named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said,
“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of
greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you
have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you
are to call him Jesus. 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.”
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of
the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called
the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her
old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.
For no word from God will ever fail.”
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be
fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. Luke 1:26-38
For no word from God will ever fail.
Lord, the lessons I learn from Your word never ceases to
amaze me.
I have read and reread these verses for many years and
marveled at Mary’s obedience. But never before have I noticed the last sentence
the angel spoke to her.
“For no word from God
will ever fail.”
What an extraordinary promise given to our ordinary lives.
Assured that You will never desert me, let me go from Your
grasp, nor drop me when You carry me through difficulties, I cling to Your
promise.
May I be as quick to obey as Mary, Lord, knowing You never
fail. I pray I never fail You
though I know I will.
Your word, Your Word, is my strength and my deliverer.
You are unfailing.
You are my hope.
You are my savior.
Lord, I praise you and thank you for the priceless gift of
your promise of “For no word from God will ever fail.”
Advent
is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation
for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are
celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I will be posting
information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent.
The word Advent means coming or arrival. This season calls
us to focus on Jesus’ coming as a baby in Bethlehem and His second coming when
He returns.
Our noisy culture that values busyness demands we turn our
attention to the glint and glitter and not the true Light of Advent.
Advent means to be aware.
To pay attention.
To be awaken like the shepherds.
To be alert like the Wise Men.
To anticipate something special that deep down we know will
be a life changing wonder.
The birth of the Messiah, the son of God.
Advent is a season of looking forward, anticipating
something Greater.
I love this
prayer by Henri Nouwen:
Lord Jesus,
Master of both the light and the darkness,
Send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas.
We who have so much to do, seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each
day.
We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among
us.
We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your
kingdom.
We whose hearts are heavy, seek the joy of your presence.
We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking light.
To you we say, Come Lord Jesus....
Amen.
May our Lord help us find the quiet to listen for His voice
during Advent. May we seek His presence and anticipate with joy His soon
arrival.
Come quickly Lord to our hearts and to our world.
What have you noticed
about God’s presence this Advent season?
Advent is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I will be posting information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent.
Newborns bring to mind the color of pink and blue. I would have never thought of these colors for the season of Advent before until I began this blog series.
Last week I featured blue – the color of hope and anticipation.
Today is PINK.
Yes pink. Pink symbolizes joy and happiness. In various churches it is used either for the third or fourth Sunday of Advent, the Sunday of Joy at the impending birth of Jesus.
Yesterday at church we lit the third candle of the Advent wreath and it was pink. The pink candle marks a shift from the more solemn tone of the first two Sundays of Advent that focus on Preparation and Hope, to a more joyous atmosphere of anticipation and expectancy.
The color pink symbolizes childish innocence, or a characters child-like personality, reminding me to approach this blessed time of year with the heart of a child – hopeful, anticipating, and full of belief.
Pink is also considered the color of good health and life - we speak of people being "in the pink" or the "freshness" of a newborn babe.
Pink is a color of surprise for me – I never expected this color to show up during Christmas time. But maybe Pink is very appropriate when you think of how God chose to enter our world – as a baby – a most unexpected, amazing route.
My husband and I are in the pink this year as our arms are full of double blessings – holding our twin grandsons, born last July. They make this season extra meaningful this year to be cuddling a newborn with love swelling in our heart – I imagine we feel much like Mary and Joseph did when they held Jesus.
“The house lights go off and the footlights come on. Even the chattiest stop chattering as they wait in darkness for the curtain to rise.
In the orchestra pit, the violin bows are poised. The conductor has raised his baton. In the silence of a midwinter dusk, there is far off in the deeps of it somewhere a sound so faint that for all you can tell it may be only the sound of the silence itself.
You hold your breath to listen. You walk up the steps to the front door. The empty windows at either side of it tell you nothing, or almost nothing. For a second you catch a whiff of some fragrance that reminds you of a place you’ve never been and a time you have no words for. You are aware of the beating of your heart…
The extraordinary thing that is about to happen is matched only by the extraordinary moment just before it happens. Advent is the name of that moment.”
Advent is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I will be posting information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent.
Prepare
How do you prepare for Christmas?
I make lists – lists of gifts to buy, cards to send, goodies to make to share with neighbors and friends. I double-check the calendar when we will see the kids. With adult children there are multiple schedules to coordinate – not a simple as it once was.
But I stop now and ponder: how do I really prepare myself spiritually for Christmas?
I have an advent devotional that to be honest, lies unopened on my nightstand. We have been traveling so I haven’t attended the Advent services on Wednesday night held at my church. I don’t feel prepared for Advent at all.
Too often we miss Advent's power because these December weeks overflow with secular Christmas parties and preparations for Christmas. The busyness of the season distracts us from having an Advent season that truly prepares us for the celebration of Christmas, with all its meaning.
Webster's Dictionary defines the word advent as "a coming into being."
"A coming into being." I like this definition.
I pause.
I bow.
I come into His being.
I rest next to the manger; thankful Jesus brought His being, His presence into our evil world.
I focus my heart on Him, not my to-do list.
I will make the time to open that devotional and seep myself in His word.
I raise my hands up with joyful anticipation of His presence
May God prepare all of us into His being as we prepare for His arrival as a baby and as our King.
Advent is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I will be posting information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent.
Last Tuesday I shared about the color purple and Advent. But many churches are no longer using purple as much during this season. Even my own church’s vestments are now blue instead of purple.
Purple represents the concept of repentance similar to the Lenten season. Blue symbolizes the expectant nature of the season as in the early blue skies each morning. In the predawn moments while it is still dark, we anticipate the coming King’s arrival.
I have also read the blue signifies the water in first chapter of Genesis - the beginning of a new creation.
As a color blue is symbolic of hope, expectation, and heaven. It is also the color associated with the Virgin Mary in art and iconography.
So I am feeling blue!
Blue inspires us to live our faith in hope and to encourage us to keep a watchful eye for the second coming of Christ. Our dark lives will soon be filled with new Light.
Lord of all Hope, thank you for shining Your light into my dark heart. You, Creator of all, fashions each moment of time and every individual being into a new life.
I like the hopefulness of Advent - the anticipation of light coming into the season of dark.
Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other.
Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven.
The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest.
Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps.
Psalm 85:10-13
Love and faithfulness meet together
Lord I love the idea of love and faithfulness meeting.
Faithfulness coming from the earth, from the heart of Your people.
Leaping upward where we are grasped by Your arms of love.
You look down upon us with fairness and guide us home to You.
You give us all that is good and prepare us as Your harvest.
All these godly virtues – love, faithfulness, righteousness and peace embracing in an intimate kiss – show us that one leads to another and we are to follow.
When I face hate, I am to show love.
When I am filled with doubt, I still reach upward with what little faith I find.
When I see injustice, I fight for the truth.
When I find myself in conflict, I chose peace.
My trembling hand reaches out to You in faith and You calmly lift me up in love.
Your touch, Lord, is powerful. Enough to change the world and the hearts of Your people.
"Advent, like its cousin Lent, is a season for prayer and reformation of our hearts. Since it comes at winter time, fire is a fitting sign to help us celebrate Advent.
If Christ is to come more fully into our lives this Christmas, if God is to become really incarnate for us, then fire will have to be present in our prayer.
Our worship and devotion will have to stoke the kind of fire in our souls that can truly change our hearts. Ours is a great responsibility not to waste this Advent time."
Advent is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are celebrating this special time of year. The next few weeks I will be posting information and reflections about the colors and meaning of Advent.
WAIT
Most of us don’t like to wait. Just lingering around, watching, killing time, not sure of what lies ahead drives us crazy.
I have read thatthe average person will spend 5 years of his or her life waiting in line, 2 years playing telephone tag, and six months sitting at red lights.
We are not patient people. We want it now. We fill the waiting time with twitches, fiddling, and complaining.
But during Advent we do become waiting people. We pause, breath in the blues and purple of the Advent season and savor the stillness of this sacred time.
Waiting isn’t always easy but can be fruitful.
Waiting creates a space to slow down and refocus our hearts on what really matters.
Advent intensifies our patience with waiting – we know what is coming deep in our hearts - the Christ Child.
We slowly unwrap and savor Advent’s gift to us - the feeling of eager expectation of Jesus’ coming again as our King in all of His glory
Steven Covey tells a marvelous story about Chinese bamboo in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families. What a lesson in waiting:
"After the seed for this amazing tree is planted, you see nothing, absolutely nothing, for four years except for a tiny shoot coming out of a bulb. During these four years, all the growth is underground in a massive, fibrous root structure that spreads deep and wide in the earth.
But then in the fifth year the Chinese bamboo tree grows up to eighty feet! Many things in family life are like the Chinese bamboo tree. You work and you invest time and effort, and you do everything you can possible to nurture growth, and sometimes you don't see anything for weeks, months and even years. But if you're patient and keep working and nurturing, that "fifth year" will come, and you will be astonished at the growth and change you see taking place.”
And from John Ortberg:
“Biblically, waiting is not just something we have to do until we get what we want. Waiting is part of the process of becoming what God wants us to be.”
Though not always easy, I am learning the value of waiting seasons in my life.
Wait. Watch. Be still this season of Advent. The Lord is coming. Prepare your heart for His arrival.
Jean Wise is a freelance writer and Christian speaker at retreats, gatherings and seminars. Her book, The Great Communicator, God as a Model Communicator, Reflections for Speakers and Writers, is now available at Amazon and Smashwords. She has published articles in the Lutheran, Christian Communicator, Sacred Journeys,The RevWriter, and public health journals. She has published devotions in multiple books.She also is a reporter at a daily local newspaper writing feature articles.
Jean is an expert in spiritual growth, especially in the area of prayer. She is a spiritual director and facilitates the spiritual formation for others studying to be directors. She has both a bachelors and masters in nursing. Her background in spirituality and health care adds to her love and passion for healthy spirituality.
She lives in Ohio with her husband enjoying their empty nest as their three adult children have flown the coop. Jean loves books so much her hubby thinks she has too many. Jean believes if you cannot be well read, at least be well bought! Bring on more bookshelves!
