Let It Be

Luke 1.28-38

And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

In Christmas is Not Your Birthday, Mike Slaughter writes, "Every miracle of God is conceived in the heart of a believer, grows in conviction and clarity, and then is delivered through a committed action... In other words, you must have a clear picture in your mind of what God wants to accomplish  through you before the miracle can become a physical reality. God plants the seeds of miracles in the hearts of available people who are willing to act on God’s vision."  

As people of faith, we believe God is still active in the world, that God interrupts people’s lives, transforms them, and uses them to bring God’s hope and health to the world.  In the biblical text, Mary's life is transformed from peasant to prophet, from humble youth to the mother of God, from doubt to discipleship. Mary’s story also can move us from who we think we are to what God has called us to be. 

As members of FirstChurch, we’ve recently been challenged to think “Beyond Possible.” Like Mary, we may doubt and question the call.  How can that be, since we are just ordinary people?  But God is asking us to imagine a miracle through us. We are being called to be transformed during this advent season to bring hope and help to others.  We, like Mary, are bearers of God’s love for the world.  Are we willing to respond to that vision?  Are we bold enough, like Mary, to respond: “I am the Lord’s servant.  Let it be with me just as you have said.” (Luke 1:38)

Lord God, open our hearts this Christmas to the miracle you plant in our hearts and minds, and give us the faith to respond.  Amen.

Rev. Linda Roby, Minister of Congregational Care, Local & Global Missions

A Good Life

Matthew 11.25-30

At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

I like that we come off the Thanksgiving season and move directly into Advent. Moving our hearts and minds with a spirit of thanksgiving into anticipation of the coming of Christ just seems right and good. The scripture lesson for today emphasizes that Christ is the way to rest and a good life.

What does it mean to rest and have a good life I wonder?  I am a doer by nature. I like to make things happen, strive to make things better, bring people joy and a feeling of being loved and cared for. That does not translate into taking a nap or lying around "resting". A good life means to have enough to eat, a roof over our head with loved ones near.  The good life takes work, intentional work on my part. And yet as I move through the middle years of my life I realize that there is a balance in striving and letting go. It is in Christ and through resting in Him that I find the good life.  A life of purpose, love, joy and hope. A life focused on Christ is not a life of ease, but it is a life of light. This season of Advent I wish for all of us to renew our relationship with God through Christ with expectation of the joy and light that comes from resting in Christ Jesus.

It is with a Thankful heart that we enter into this great season of anticipation of the Christ child again!

Sherrye Bass, Executive Assistant to Dr. Stoker

Not-so-Perfect

Romans 7. 14-25

For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me.
So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.

One of my family’s most lasting Christmas Eve traditions is the post-dinner screening of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. I always feel a little guilty about finding so much pleasure in the Griswold family’s holiday pain, but seeing the movie each year helps temper my expectations of a “perfect” Christmas at home.

If Clark hadn’t fallen from his roof while stapling 25,000 twinkle lights; if Cousin Eddy hadn’t parked his rust bucket on wheels in the driveway; if Snot hadn’t lapped up all the Christmas tree’s water; if Uncle Lewis hadn’t taken a break from dinner to light a cigar; if that pesky cat hadn’t gnawed on an electrical cord…. You get the picture. If families were perfect, they wouldn’t be much fun. And if all of God’s children (that’s us) lived up to his expectations from Day 1, the adventure we all call life would lose so much of its zest.

Paul’s words give us a strangely uplifting notion to ponder this month: We are all slaves to sin, incapable of living the lives God wants us to live. But in this Advent season when we strive to better our lives in the coming year (and to finally mold our families into the iconic Norman Rockwell paintings we all strive to live in) Paul’s message liberates us.

No, we aren’t perfect. And we never will be. Our families will always be a little more Griswold than we care to admit, and no matter how hard we work to honor God’s will, we will often fall short. But there is great joy to be found in aspiring for greatness and purity. So when we gather for Christmas in a few weeks from now we can still fret over the small things. We can sweat all the details—working so very hard to make everything just right. And then as we watch my dreams of a “perfect” Christmas disappear quicker than you can say “Jelly of the Month Club” let us all strive to find comfort in Paul’s words and understand that only by first acknowledging our weaknesses can we fulfill God’s expectations for us.

(If you’ve yet to meet The Griswolds, tune in to ABC Family on Wednesday, December 11 at 8 p.m.)

Noah Bunn, FirstChurch Communications Consultant, UrbanLife member