I saw a movie once where there was a man being pulled in 2
different directions. One arm being pulled by an angel in a white outfit
with wings. The other arm pulled by a devil all equipped with a red
outfit and horns. “Do this,” one would say. “No do not, do that,” the
other would shout. The guys head was spinning and spinning.
I feel like this guy when I start thinking about Advent and
Christmas. Bring up 3 people to help demonstrate being pulled apart.
A. On one side the Church is pulling, reminding me it is Advent
again. Blue vestments, Advent wreaths, four candles, and special
environment. A time of patient waiting. Special preparations for the Re-
birth of Jesus in our life. All good stuff.
B. On the other side, Christmas carols 2 days after Thanksgiving,
advertisements everywhere, “buy this, buy now, pay later”, Christmas
decorations and parties and Santa Clauses everywhere. It is like we
skipped from Thanksgiving to Christmas in one day. Being pulled apart. I know for me I want to use the next 3 or 4 weeks, we call Advent,
to deepen my relationship with Jesus Christ. I want to be more aware of
where Christ is present in my everyday life.
I also know I will get caught up in the Christmas frenzy. That will
be ok and a lot of fun. With that being said, I want Christmas to be
different this year.
I remember one Christmas a few years back that was very different
for me. My perspective was changed by an automobile accident. 5
innocent and unsuspecting people were killed in a head-on collision.
(Snap fingers) It shook me and many others. I thought to myself, “that
could have been me”. “That is the same road I travel to go see my mom.”
It could have been me. This experience caused me to ask myself some
significant questions. Maybe I need to ask them again during Advent
2021? Perhaps you could ask them to yourself?
1. Has my life on the earth made a difference for the better?
2. Am I doing the best I can to develop and share the gifts and talents God has given me? 3. What are my priorities? Are God and my family in the top 3?
4. Are there relationships or some area of my life that needs
healing? Needs to change for the better?
5. The final question. Do I need to forgive someone? Do I need to
forgive myself? Do I believe God could never forgive me?
Pick one or two of these questions and spend a few minutes
thinking about your answers. Be honest. Ask God to help you make the
changes you need to make now! Those few minutes might be the best
way to make Christmas different this year. Pray for me as I try to do this
and I will pray for you.
Archive for the ‘Advent’ Category
The Best I Could With What I Have 11-28-2031
Sunday, November 28th, 2021The Gift of “Long Walk” 12-20-2020
Sunday, December 20th, 2020One Christmas, a boy in an African village gave his teacher an
exquisite seashell as a gift. He had walked many miles to find it, to a
special bay, the only place such shells could be found. The teacher was
quite moved by the boy’s gift: “What a beautiful shell. You must have
walked many miles for it. I am deeply grateful for your gift”, the teacher
said.
“Teacher”, the boy said, “long walk part of gift”
Often the most beautiful gifts we give are not the seashells, but the
“long walk” of forgiveness, empathy, love, and understanding.
Especially at this busy time of the year, we can be overcome with the
shopping, the mailing, the addressing, and the decorating. Remember
that “long walk” is as much a part of the love we give and receive as the
destination, that the best Christmas presents are those of the heart and
spirit.
Remember You Always Walk With God 12-13-2020
Sunday, December 13th, 2020A few weeks before Christmas, a woman who lived in a New York
apartment building found a greeting card taped to her door. “Merry
Christmas from the custodial staff”, it said.
“How nice”, she said to herself and promptly forgot about it. A
week later she came home to find another card taped to her door. It was
the same message, “Merry Christmas from the custodial staff”. But this
time stamped right in the middle in big red letters, were the words,
“Second Notice”!
Many of us are terribly forgetful. We immerse ourselves in our
daily tasks of life as we must-we can forget almost anything: birthdays,
anniversaries, appointments, our bank balance, our glasses. You name
it, we forget it. We make lists so we won’t forget and then we forget the
list.
But our forgetfulness isn’t limited just to the little things. We
forget the big things as well; who our real friends are, what really
matters in life, who loves us, who needs us, what we were made for. We just forget.
I believe that is why we need to gather here – week after week; to
help each other remember who we are, remember what really matters,
and remember that we aren’t walking this long road alone. We’re
walking it with the Lord who is right at our side.
And what is this Lord like who walks at our side? Does God walk
with us as a critic? A police officer? A judge? Or maybe just an
impartial observer? In fact the Lord is none of the above.
The Lord walks with us as a partner and mentor who wants to see
us succeed and who understands that it’s going to take us a while. Now
what more could we ask? How can we not celebrate and rejoice as
today’s liturgy urges us. How can we not be confident and hopeful and
put all fears behind us. After all, God is with us and for us!
And there’s still more. Having God walking with us as partner and
mentor gives us the opportunity to be in close conversation hourly. With
simple words like, “Well, Lord, what do you think about this?” Or, “Lord can you help me see this clearly?” Or simply, “Help, Lord, I can’t
do this one alone.” Those are the kinds of words that partners and friends speak very often.
All of that is what we have to come together here to remember.
First, remember to rejoice and forget all your fears because God is with
us. And second, remember to listen to and talk to God about the real
stuff of our lives because God cares more than anyone else…and God
knows the way home.
I would like to close by sharing with you my idea of what God’s
special Christmas card would say to each one of us;
“Remember what you’ve seen me do”, says Jesus. “…the blind
see, cripples walk, lepers are cured, the deaf hear, and dead men raised
to life”. If you’ll let me, I’ll do the same for you”, he says. “I’ll heal
what is sick in your spirit, if you’ll let me”.
“I’ll open your eyes and your ears so that you’ll know what really
matters so you’ll know that happiness and peace are available to you
everyday, even on the worst days. I’ll show you that and let you
experience that, if you’ll let me.
“I will not insulate you from adversity, challenge, or pain. But I will always see you through them, and never let you come to ultimateharm. I’ll take you by the hand, and raise you up; I’ll help you to walk
and I’ll walk with you until your journey is complete, if you’ll let me.
“All that is my promise to you, my solemn pledge. And I will not
take it back”, says the Lord. We have a lot to rejoice about today!
Don’t we!!
