Christmas Day

Christmas Day dawns with anticipation.

What waits under the tree?

There will be turkey and ham,

Sweet potatoes, corn on the cob, 

Green beans and steaming rolls,

And desserts galore.

Family and friends gather

To enjoy the food,

And the company.

Amid the festivities

We shall light the Advent wreath.

And the Christ Candle

To commemorate the true meaning of Christmas.

Over two thousand years ago,

God chose to put as much of himself as he could

Into human form.

To experience his creation from within.

To experience all that it means to be human.

To experience death.

Death.

Only that God could not know,

As Christ he could.

He understands the bitter grief

Of separation caused by death.

The Comforter holds our hand

Through life and death

With the knowledge gained by Jesus.

Thank you,

God,

For stooping so low.

Thank you for the promise

That after death

There is so much more.

Photo By Average Jane

The Christmas Lamb

Christmas Eve has arrived
With blustery winds
And cold that bores to the bone.
Not the season of
Our savior's birth
But the time of our celebration.
Shepherds were in the hills
With their flocks;
The night breezes were warm
When Jesus was born.
Spring,

The time for new life.

The time for lambs

To gambol in the grass.

Christ's time of birth,
Christ's time of death.
Better to celebrate with joy
And anticipation

In winter's chill,
Than obscure the Easter message.
Shepherds.
Flocks.
Lambs.
The Lamb of God is come.

Photo by nz willowherb

The Word at Advent

"In the beginning was the Word,

And the is Word was with God,

And the Word was God."

"And the Word was made flesh

And dwelt among us..."

These quotes from the Gospel of John

Speak the message of Advent.

Christ is God in action,

The instrument of creation,

The instrument of salvation.

God shed his majesty to experience

The world

As one of those made in his image.
As human,
He could experience death.

Resurrected,
He could demonstrate everlasting life.

The Christmas Babe:
Fully God and Fully Human.
He comes with promise of
Life Eternal
Embraced in His Love.

Photo by bahoootah qtr

Gifts of the Magi

"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea

In the days of Herod, the king,

Behold there came wise men from the east..."

The Bible does not count the wise men,

But we do.

Why?

Are we so determine to quantify the world

That we ignore quality?

We look to a person's wealth
To define their standing in the community.
God looks to how a person treats
The least among us.

The wise men brought three gifts:

Gold for virtue and kingship.
Frankincense for prayer and priestship.
Myrrh for suffering and death.

As Christmas comes,

What can we offer God
The author of Creation?
What he most wants:
Love,

Faith,

 Obedience.
My prayer at Advent must be:

Lord, make me a servant in your image,

today, tomorrow and forever.

A Prayer for Advent

Christmas Babe who comes to a manger,

How great is your gift to us:

Everlasting Life.

Glory to you!

Your kingdom endures forever.

Let us seek to become more like you

As we follow your example on Earth

And in Heaven.

As we light the Advent candles

Let us be filled with your Love.

Strengthen our faith

So that we may be an example to others

And lead no one astray.

The world beckons with selfishness and avarice.

Help us respond with compassion and generosity.

Nothing is ours.

All is yours.

A Babe born 
Long ago
And
Far Away

Became a man

Who taught us all
How to live

Forever.

Photo by NASA Goddard Photo and Video

Advent 2010

"And the angel said unto them,

Fear not; for behold,

I bring you good tidings of great joy,

Which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day

In the city of David

A Savior,

Who is Christ the Lord"

Luke's gospel echoes through the ages.

In this season,
Do we hear the physician's words?

I fear not.

Carols fill the halls and malls of commerce

Until we no longer comprehend their meaning.

Today,

I will listen with my heart to Luke,

And know Christ excludes no one from his love

For he came "to all people."
No exclusivity,
No unique faith,
Just the manifestation of God
In a baby. 

Great Joy!

The message of Advent.

Photo by aharden

A Christmas Tree for Advent

A
Star
Glistens
At the top of
A tree trimmed
With objects held dear.
A symbol of life everlasting
Erected in remembrance of God.
Festooned not with glitter and glitz
But with hope and the promise 

Of

Love

Photo by mtungate

Advent from the Gospel of Mark

"And it came to pass, in those days,

That Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee,

And was baptized by John in the Jordan."

Thus Jesus appears for the first time
In the Gospel of Mark,

The earliest gospel,

The gospel others will build upon.

Dark Mark.

There is no babe in swaddling clothes.
There is no child teaching in the temple.

Mark shows us Jesus

At the start of his ministry,

A man grown.

God speaks:

"Thou art my beloved Son,

In whom I am well pleased."

Jesus knew God's love eternally.

How wonderful to have such love
Proclaimed by God.

At Christmas may we all know God's love

And have that love proclaimed
In our souls.

BEFORE THE FACE OF ALL PEOPLE

"Simeon was devout and righteous,

Waiting for the consolation of Israel..."

Christ promised to return,

But do we believe He will?
His followers believed
Christ would return within their lifetimes.
Every generation needs to share that belief.

Are we devout and righteous
As Simeon was?

Do we look forward to the Second Coming
As Simeon looked for the First?
As Christmas approaches let us

Remember the joy of Simeon

As he held the baby Jesus in his hands.

"For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,

Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;

A light for revelation to the Gentiles,

And for glory to your people, Israel."

These are the words of Advent:

Christ comes for all.

Advent For Evangelicals

Christmas approaches
With the burden of tradition.

The city is decorated in holiday glitz.

We search for gifts amid the crowds.
Shouldn't we read the prophet's words?

Shouldn't we search for the Bethlehem babe?

Shouldn't we listen for the angel's message?

"Peace on Earth."

An old tradition calls to us from the past.

We, who abandoned the trappings of the Church,

Are called once more to Advent.

Let us remember
That a child born two thousand years ago

Changed the world.

His message is simple and unadorned.

Love God

And Love your neighbor.
Listen for His words.
"I am come."

Photo by daveiam

Jew, Christian, Muslim

Photo by ~Panache

Three great faiths

All share the God of Abraham.

Two share the blood of Abraham.

All share God's promise to Abraham.

Why do the members of each faith not love

Those of the others?

Some do.

Some understand that they share a common God.

So many do not.

Each wishes to be exclusive.

Each wishes to be the only path

To redemption.

Does God only love us

If born in the proper place

In the proper faith?

Would God so easily condemn his creation?

I think not.

God is love.

Love that wants only what is best for us.

Love that wants us close.

As Augustine said:

"He loves each one of us

As if there was only one of us."

Three faiths.

One God.

One God for all humanity,

Not Just for those of the Three,

Not bound by humanity's limits.
Polytheist.

Monotheist.

Atheist.

All are Hers.

My Grandmother

My grandmother's birthday is today.

She would have been 121.

An Impossibility.

She lived a long, fruitful life,

And died at 86,

She taught me so much

And so little.

She had been on her own at 13.

She saw no reason I could not be, too.

So she kept our home,

Fixed our meals,

But let me choose my path.

God has no grandchildren.

The relationship is born anew

For each person.

Far from faith I walked

Through the halls of knowledge.

My grandmother never called me back.

She, both Presbyterian and Christian Scientist,

Trusted God.

She was dead when I stepped once more

Into a Christian church.

Knowledge of other faiths only guided

My steps back to Christ.

Did she know when I knelt to be ordained a deacon?

I am sure she did.

Summer Prayer

Our Protector, who surrounds us,

Great and holy are you.

May your grace abound.

Let us follow your example

As we live and as we die.

Give us living water

To slack our thirst.

Shield us from the burning sun

As we guide others to the healing shade.

Keep us from seeking treasure in the desert,

But guide our steps into the arbor of your love

Where we are hidden from evil's glare.

Your word can bring the cool of dawn

And once more create an Eden on earth.

God and Oil

Oil boils from the earth into the sea,

Released by the hand of man.

God looks on

But does nothing or so it seems.

God looks on and weeps
For his creation.

So many gifts have been laid

At humankind's feet.

We squander them one by one.

We pollute the land we live on.

We pollute the air we breath.

We pollute the fresh waters.

Now the ocean fills with our mistake.

We cry to God for mercy.

The Almighty reminds us of his promise

Of Infinite Forgiveness.

The Prince of Peace reminds us that

He will be with us always 

Even to the end of the world.

The Comforter reminds us

He came to be with us,

Not to deliver us

From the consequences of our misdeeds.

Salvation there is,

But the scars we cause on others,

On this world,

Are not erased.

Forgive us.

Forgive.

Photo by NASA Goddard Photo and Video
Water is blue, Vegetation red, and Oil silver.

The Universe in Prayer

Creator of the Universe

Who dwells beyond space and time,

We thank you for our small world

And the magnificence of the heavens.

As we regard the universe beyond our Milky Way,

Let us realize your power stretches to infinity,

And that our obedience is echoed on other worlds.

Sustain us as we strive to understand what you spoke into existence.

Forgive us when we believe we are your only creation

As we forgive those who do not believe in you.

Let us see that we cannot be alone in an infinite existence.

Protect us from our own hubris.

Let us understand how infinitesimal we are

And how much we need your protection.

For you are the same to all

Wherever in this universe they dwell.

Always,

Creator, Word and Love.

Not the Missing Day

Jesus is dead.
That is what his disciples believe.
On this day,
The apostles are absent from the gospels
This missing day.
Their world is ashes.
Their grief is immense.
They fear for their lives.
They hide in the upper room.
Only the women dare to go out.
Jerusalem is strangely quiescent.

Pilate places a guard by the tomb.

This day the body lies undisturbed.
Tomorrow the disciples' world will come alive
But not today.
We must remember that missing day
When sorrow fills us,
When we are afraid,
When we hide from the world.
Those that knew our Savior best
Did not escape their human frailty,
Neither can we.
We know that with the morrow
Came relief and jubilation.
We have the risen Christ
Not the missing day.

Photo by hoyasmeg

Good Friday

Why is it called Good Friday?

I have heard many answers.

None satisfy.

The man that so many believe to be God

Died on this Friday

Almost two thousand years ago.

Fully God.

Fully human.

So human that he died quickly

After a beating that

Sent his body into collapse.

We recoil in horror

At his death

And think it took so long.

Six hours.

Most crucified took days to die.

Fully God

Who had never known death.

All his creation past had drunk of that cup,

But he had not.

God died that day.

At least as much of God

As could exist in human form.

Laid in a tomb.

All creation waited.

For?

Photo by Elsie esq.

Three Years

Jerusalem, City of Faiths.

Three great religions

Honor your streets.

After three years of ministry,

Jesus chose to come

To Jerusalem

Where he knew death waited.

Why?

We can only speculate.

To atone?

To experience death?

To fulfill prophecy?

To teach us

What?
We know with certainty
The choice was his.
We know with certainty
He knew what was to come.

When we follow Christ,
We must not turn from
The challenges of life
Nor ignore the death
That always lurks in our future.
His example leads us forward
Through life and beyond.

Photo by Or Hittch

Palm Sunday 2010

Palm Sunday comes in March this year.

The green of new life comes in March.

Just as God came as a new life

To a world in need of love.

In churches children carry palm fronds

In memory of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. 

Palm leaves and cloaks were spread on the ground for him.

Hallelujahs filled the air.

In one week, Christ would 

Be arrested,

Condemned

By both Roman and Pharisee,

Crucified,

His body placed in a tomb,

And

Resurrected.

Did he know what was to come?

I think he did.

And still he came to Jerusalem.

Prayer for Trust

Creator who is the feminine and the masculine,

We know you encompass all.

Your victory comes on the wings of angels

And in the hands of humanity

In the choice to obey you.

Give us nourishment for our bodies

And love for our souls.

Forgive us when we do not trust you

As we forgive those who betray our trust in them.

Do not take your presence from us.

Let us always know the Comforter is near.

Keep us safe from the darkness in our souls,

From unbelief and pride.

Time and space are one to you.

You are beginning and end

Outside of Time.

Photo by Delphine
Original by Kitina Celt

Winter Prayer

The Light that shines on our souls,

Holy are the words of your identity.

Let darkness be banished.

Let your radiance fill us

As it does the halls of eternity.

Warm us with the fresh bread of life.

Push away the icy drifts of sin

As we clear the cold of hatred

From our hearts.

Keep us off the frozen lake of greed

Lest we skate onto the thin ice of indulgence

And fall into the everlasting cold.

Wrap us in your love

To protect us from the blizzard of

Selfishness and uncaring.

For you are the sun of eternity.

Photo by ell brown

Warm My Soul

Winter's cold embraces us.

I long for summer's warmth.

Snow buries our capitol.

The halls of power echo with silence.

My heart is chilled by discord.

I long for us to be indivisible.
I will turn my face toward you, Lord,
And feel your warmth in my soul.
I pray that others may know your tenderness,
Your lovingkindness.
When the north wind howls,
The words of the psalmist come to me:
"He spreads the snow like wool
and scatters the frost like ashes.
He hurls down his hail like pebbles,
Who can withstand his icy blast?
He sends his word and melts them;
He stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow."
Let your Word reach our souls
And melt our frozen hearts

So that we be one nation

No matter what we name you.

.

Photo by Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com 

Yesterday's Prayer

Tomorrow comes too soon.

Hope leaves with the deeds

Of fellow Christians.

Believe as they do

Or be lost.

Excluded from fellowship

Where do you turn?

To you, Lord,

To you I turn.

Your words come to me.

Believe in me

And follow my commands:

Love God.

Love your neighbor as yourself.

So simple,

Yet so difficult.

How do I love those that hurt me?

Those that would rather see me dead

Than help me.

Pray for them I must.

Pray for the best for them.

Pray for them for my sake

As well as theirs.

Once I was so secure

In health, wealth and hope.

Now, all is ashes.

Once I knew you were there.

Now, I know you

Still wrap me in your love

But feel nothing.

Once I worked to start

A grace church,

A church that embraces thousands.

Now grace is wounded

By a few.

Help me to make the correct choice, Lord.

Do I step away from pain?

Do I step away from this church?

Will I walk a new path?

Will I find grace in another church?

I need you guidance, God.

Lead me back to yesterday's love.

Photo by mindfulness

Prayer for Haiti

God, I know that you are everywhere

And I worship you.

Yet my heart cries out

Because of the suffering of

The people of Haiti.

Why, Lord?

I do not hear your answer.

I turn to the Bible.

Jesus says death does not come from sin

When buildings fall and kill.

But Jesus does not tell us why
Buildings fall.

Do you refuse to answer, God?

Is your answer the one you gave to Job

When you showed your majesty and power?

Is the answer beyond our comprehension?

Some say

If we are to have free will

This universe must be as it is

With suffering and death.

I do not know.

Lord, give me understanding.

Wrap your love around the suffering

In Haiti.

Ease their pain and

Give them solace.

Let them know you are there.

That is your promise:

"I am with you always."

The Comforter walks among

The ruins in Haiti

Just as the Spirit stood by
Christ on the Cross.

Let all of Haiti

Know the Counselor

As he holds each person close,

Dead to us or alive to us

But all alive to God.

Photo by United Nations Development Programme

Prayer for Understanding

Our Comforter who walks with us,

Thank you for your presence.

Let the love of God spread

Everywhere on this terrestrial ball
Just as love binds Creator and Word
To pervade heaven.

Give us knowledge and hope

To carry us through each day.

Forgive our frailties

And let us understand the frailties of others

So that we may forgive.

Let us understand why

We encounter trials that tear our souls

So that we may surmount them.

Protect us from ourselves.

For you are love incarnate

And the underpinning of existence.

Photo by linh.ngan

The Sisters

Mary sat at Christ's feet

To learn from the Master

Just as the apostles did.

Martha, her sister, chose to serve,

To fulfill the obligation of hospitality.

She sought Mary's help

By appealing to Jesus

To banish Mary to the kitchen.

Jesus rebuke is clear:

Mary's choice to seek knowledge

Is blessed.

Too many churches only speak of Martha,

Consigning women to lesser roles.

Mary sat with the apostles.

Mary learned with the apostles.

Jesus wanted her there

To understand and then to teach.
Time to heed Jesus

In all denominations.
"Mary has chosen that good part,

Which shall not be taken away from her."
Women deserve to stand with men

In the service of the Lord.

 Photo by aflcio2008

Alone in a New Decade

A new year has come
And a new decade.
I am alone.
I fight depression.
My mind knows that
The Comforter is with me.
My heart wishes that
I could feel God's presence.
My soul cries out in despair.
We know that even
Mother Teresa
Missed God.
Why do those that believe
Lose the sense of that
All encompassing love?
Perhaps because we are human,
Perhaps we cannot hold that love too long.
What is the answer?
Jesus, too, lost that sense of love
On the cross.
"My God, my God,
Why hast thou forsaken me?"
He cried.
God's answer was the Resurrection.
Let me remember this life
Is not the end.

Photo by jamsjoys

God Defines Himself

Does God define himself?
Yes.
"What is your name?"
Moses asks God.
"And God said unto Moses,
"I AM THAT I AM."

"In the beginning was the Word,

And the Word was with God,

And the Word was God."

"And the Word was made flesh,

And dwelt among us..."

So John defines Jesus
As the Word.
God, the great "I AM,"

Speaks creation into existence.
"And God said, Let there be light:
And there was light."
Through speech God acts.

God in action is the Word.

Christ is God in action.

Between "I AM" and the Word

Is Love,
The Holy Spirit,
Uniting Divinity in One.

God is Three in One.
God defines himself:

I AM Love in Action.

Photo by lepiaf.geo