Advent 2011

This is the first Sunday of Advent.

Just three days from Thanksgiving,

Just two days from Black Friday.

Photo by Per Ola Wiberg ~ Powi

The day to turn our thoughts from goods to gifts,

Gifts of love not commerce.

Jesus was God's gift to us.

We celebrate with anticipation

The day of his birth.

What will we give this Advent season?

Time to those who are lonely,

Love to our neighbors,

Those that surround us every day.

Acceptance to those who do not share our beliefs.

Polytheist.

Monotheist

Atheist.

To ourselves, The gift of understanding,

Understanding That our relationship with God 

Is all that matters.

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.

How Many Wise Men?

"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 fail to know the quality of our surroundings?

Is a person's worth counted in dollars or

How well they serve others?
We look to a person's wealth
To define their character.
God looks to how a person treats
The least among us.
My prayer at Advent must be

"Lord, make me a servant in your image,

today, tomorrow and forever."

The wise men did bring three gifts:

"Gold, and frankincense,

And myrrh."

As Christmas comes,

Let me offer gifts to God:

Love,

Faith,

And Humility.

Heart Unafraid

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

Christ's words echo through time.
Do we hear them?
We worry more about this world
Instead of God's will.
Our possessions possess us,
So there our hearts lie.
Let us focus on the gifts of the Spirit,
So that our hearts can be free.
Fear fills our world.
There is war, illness, and disaster.
We fear to lose our possessions.
We fear to be thought a failure.
We fear to speak about God
Lest we be thought a fool.
Let us focus on the gifts of the soul
That cannot be lost,
So that we can be the heralds of God's kingdom.
Let us embrace the Comforter
Who always holds us.
Let us set our hearts to do God's will.
Fear not.
God's gift:
Heart unafraid.

Photo by pixie