Christmas Eve {End of Advent}

Did you know without even realizing it, you probably reaped the benefits of at least five hinges before you got here this afternoon?

The hinge is an interesting contraption isn't it? Two pieces of metal with the kicker being the pin that can, and does, literally take things in a whole different direction.

Did you know we gather tonight to celebrate the benefit of another hinge? Except it is no ordinary hinge, but a hinge of history. Somewhere in Bethlehem, many, many years ago, a baby's birth changed everything. The long, straight wall of history bent.... History itself hinged and went in an entirely different direction.

And the pin of this hinge of history is a tiny little word...and a preposition at that...the word WITH. We read the words from the first chapter of Matthew, “ All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”- which means “God with us”.

God WITH us. WITH is the pivot point. WITH takes everything in a new direction.

The last candle of Advent represents Jesus – this “God with us”. The central location of the candle among the others reminds us that the “God with us” is the pivotal point. All the other candles hinge on that center one.

Because WITH is a word of hope – Someone now knows our deepest longings and with Him, all things are possible.

WITH is a word of love – because He opens His arms and welcomes us into the family picture

WITH is a word of joy – because we can see we are not alone

WITH is a word of peace – we know we can rest because we are held in Strong Arms.

WITH is a together word. It brings two things together and allows them to go in a whole new direction.

WITH changes everything.

The whole timeline of the planet shifted that night. God came into the world a whole new way, in flesh and blood, and history hinged. It was no longer just God or just us, but God WITH us. That was good news then...and it is good news now. And that, if we let it, can be the hinge that opens our lives in a whole different direction.

Held {Advent 4)

Little ones instinctively know when they are being held, don't they? We can put them on the softest blankets,press a button to create the sound of an artificial heartbeat, even dim the lights and control the temperature. But they will still stretch and fuss, even just a little, as though we've placed them on burlap and there is no position comfortable. There are little whimpers, jerky movements with the hands and feet which startles them all the more and no amount of "shhhhhhh" and patting them on the back seems to bring peace.

However....scoop that same child into your arms and a magic spell is cast over them; eyes close and they fall into the most peaceful slumber imaginable. Their whole body relaxes at the touch of skin; the sound of little breaths become rhythmic and calm. Though they may be bent and folded in funky ways, defying all chiropractic knowledge, they find their perfect "sleep number" on hard working biceps. Amazing!

The 4^th candle of Advent represent peace.

Peace – it is a word we throw around a lot in our world, but it means more than stopping wars or having a little peace and quiet. Peace (the kind God talks about)is a word that literally means wholeness, health, welfare, safety soundness, tranquility, fullness, rest, harmony, the absence of agitation or discord.

See, in some ways, we havea lot to learn from little ones, because they instinctively knowparts of this peace God talks about:

When they are in the arms of a parent or loved one, they know they are in right relationship.They know that in being held, the world is made right. They know,within an embrace, they can rest because there is safety and soundness in those arms.

And once in those arms,they give in to total trust. They don't ask where they are being taken nor worry about what is going on around them. They are not thinking about their surroundings nor are they trying to create peaceful feelings. It is not even really about them...it is about the arms that hold them. They trust the arms are strong enough to hold them and won't drop them Babies simply knows they are in arms who will take care of them..and can rest peacefully in that.

Before they even totally understand who we are, they identify totally with the arms that hold them. They know that alone they are only a fraction and when lifted into the arms of one bigger than them, they are some how made whole. They do not have to worry there...they do not need to be fearful.

See, this is a picture of Shalom - Peace. I think God longs to scoop us up and hold us in His strong arms and all the things we see in babies are true for us in God's embrace. We knew it instinctively once as a baby and somewhere, to our detriment, we outgrew it. To learn to rest and trust in the embrace of God may be the toughest "developmental milestone" we adults need to move towards....but it is what we are made for. Babies know it, we need to learn it.

Perhaps we would do well to remember this picture this week and let's all practice giving in to the embrace of God. In our agitation and fear, it is my hope we'll remember this picture, and know we are scooped up and held securely. And as He picks us up in our frenzy, may we feel our bodies relax and go limp with complete trust. And may we, this last week of Advent, experience this Shalom-peace of God.

What Do You See? {Advent 3}

When you look at a glass half filled with water, what do you see? Do you see the glass half-empty or the glass half-full? You don't have to answer out loud, but what is your normal inclination? We all have one, right?...not just to this, but to most things. Our normal answer to things – the way we see.

But maybe there is another way to look at it all together....

This is what happens when we leave our normal and change the way we “see”. Changing our perspective changes everything, doesn't it?

The third candle of Advent represents JOY! Our world is not really full of this quality...watch the news, see the struggles, and hear the conversations. I think we lack so much joy in our world because we live in the closed in world of “normal” answers instead of opening our eyes to see a new perspective. Jesus tells us...

Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have.  (Matthew 6:22-23)

I think Jesus knew that Joy is always a function of amazement, and amazement is always a function of perspective. If we are going to live in joy we are going to have to change the way we SEE!!

But isn't that the Christmas story?

Zacharias – is amazed at the message of a baby going to be born to him and Elizabeth in their old age.  In fact, the angel tell him, regarding his son, “you will have joy and gladness and many will rejoice at his birth”

Elizabeth – is amazed to see Mary coming to visit her, so much so that she tells us "the baby leaped in my womb for Joy"

Mary – is amazed to see what God is doing around her and in her and she gives us that joyful monologue, the Magnificat

Shepherds – are so amazed at the pronouncement of the good news of a great joy which was for all people that they left everything and ran to see if it was true

Wise Men – rejoiced exceedingly with great joy when they saw His star

Simeon and Anna – are filled with amazement and great joy that they were allowed to see this Child

And the common thread among all these? Each person chose to see differently...their perspective was changed. They left their “normal” answers behind to really see what God was doing. Their perspective changed, and they entered into amazement, and amazement grew into JOY! In fact the only person I can find in the Christmas story who does not respond with Joy is Herod....he maintained his "normal" perspective.

So how do we – like all these – practice Joy this week? Like them, maybe we need to see differently and leave normal behind.  But remember..Joy is always a function of amazement, and amazement is always a function of perspective. If we are going to live in joy we are going to have to change the way we SEE!!.

So let's keep a list this week of all the events, people, things, and situations that amaze us.  They can be really big, or really, really small, but either way, let's open our eyes, let's change our perspective, let's be amazed, and may we watch all this make room for joy to grow.

Awkward Family Pictures - Advent 2

I got my first Christmas card this week...Do you ever notice how the photo Christmas cards we receive always portray everyone color coordinated, smiling, and beautiful? We like to be sure we look cleaned up before we send a picture out for everyone to see, right?  Of course, I understand, we are not super thrilled to send awkward or embarrassing photos of ourselves to our friends and family...

Here are just a few photos you probably won't be receiving this year:

(Taken from www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com)

And then there is this one...

Maybe it doesn't LOOK like an awkward family photo because we often do a good job at “cleaning it up”. But let's think about this...

Mary – a teenage girl who claims she has been talking to angels and is telling everyone she is pregnant because of God.

Joseph – perhaps the most normal of the bunch but claims to have received messages in dreams and continues to hang out with that “crazy” girl, Mary.

Shepherds – who probably look less like what we see here and more like one of the guys off The Deadliest Catch – dirty, smelly, and pretty rough around the edges

Wise Men – who, whether or not they were there on the exact night, are some combination of Eastern religious guys and astrologers (which wasn't really looked favorably upon)

Add the ADD addition to the picture in the form of the angels – who are loud, getting up in everyone's face, singing, emitting intense light, and declaring proclamations at the top of their lungs.

And the crazy thing is that this is the family picture God has chosen...and He doesn't try to clean it up! While we might not want any of these people at our next family reunion, God is not embarrassed by any of them!

The 2^nd candle of Advent represents Love. I think of the verse we all probably know so well:

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

But let's look at that verse in light of our awkward family photo....

“For God so loved Mary and Joseph that He sent His Son, to invite them into the family picture”

 For God so loved those messy, rough shepherds that He sent His Son, to invite them into the family picture

 For God so loved some spazmo angels that He sent His Son, and invited them into the family picture

 For God so loved even those star-reading foreigners that He sent His Son, to invite them into the family picture

And if we listen closely, I think we can hear the Spirit say to us...”For God so loved you that He sent His Son, to invite you into the family picture."

And the great thing is this family picture – God's family picture – is that it is not about the crazy, messy, bewildered, doubting, foreign, broken, spazmo people. It is a picture of His enormous love. And God is not embarrassed! Without any cleaning up, we all get invited into the picture!

If you are up for it, this week we can practice Advent again in one of two ways...

If you have a cell phone, take a not-so-flattering picture of yourself and save it as your wallpaper this week.  Every time you use your phone and see it, let it remind you of God's great love for you no matter what you look like!  

Or...each time you pass a photograph in your home, or receive a photo Christmas card in the mail, let it stop you and may you hear God's invitation to us, “I love you! I am not embarrassed of what you look like...welcome to the family picture!”

Follow the Clue {Advent 1}

As our son was watching the History channel the other day, I heard a story , an ancient myth really,  of a guy who was sentenced to be thrown into an unescapeable labyrinth.   A maze made up of such twists and turns that even the designer had a difficult time finding his way out.  No one had ever come out of the labyrinth. It was an impossible feat.  However, the man who was sent into the labyrinth though was secretly given a gift of a ball of thread in order to find his way out again.  And this ball of string was called a “clue”. He was literally given a clue to find his way out! He was to attach it to the door of the labyrinth after he was closed in, and after all his wandering, he could follow it back to the beginning.

In some ways, Advent is like that for me.  I often find myself stuck in the endless labyrinth of life, the holiday season, busyness, buying, parties, messiness, and just the chaos of everyday.  But Advent, like that ball of twine – like that clue - tugs at me and draws me out.  It leads me back to the beginning of a story I stake my life on.  It is a clue that leads me back to the door of an obscure stable somewhere in Bethlehem where God did impossible things.  It leads me back to the hope that God is still in the business of doing impossible things on this planet!

The first candle of Advent we light is the candle of Hope. We follow the "clue" and we see the hope the Israelites had for a Messiah to come.

Is. 9:1-7

 The people who walk in darkness
Will see a great light;
Those who live in a dark land,
The light will shine on them.

  For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.

Advent...at least this week...is a CLUE for us – to lead us back and to remind us not to lose hope. That God will do what He says He will do. To remind us that God is still in the business of showing up...and we can place our hope in Him.

So...would you practice Advent with me this week?  But you need to find a piece of string, please . Maybe you feel a bit like the guy thrown in the labyrinth.... well, this (the piece of string) is your clue.  Would you tie it to your keychain or a necklace, or the steering wheel of your car or your finger or someplace you will see it often....and when you do see it this week would you let it be the "clue" that leads you?  Would you let it lead you, in that moment, back to hope in God to do the impossible again this week?