“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11 ESV) This morning came begrudgingly, as it often does after a grief-filled evening. Sorrow sings the loudest in the wee hours and sleep typically…
Tag: Christmas
t’s always alarming to me how when someone important passes away, the sun still rises, the coffee still brews, the the laws of physics hold steady and the world moves on even without our loved one in it. We have gone still in grief and shock but everything and everyone around us marches forward as though their life meant so very little in the grand scheme of things.
I have long viewed Herod as an ugly exaggeration of our worst selves: egocentric, paranoid, destructive – an unchecked narcissist at full steam. But today I noted how Herod struggled with the same surrender we all battle. When Jesus is born into our lives, the right response is abdication of our throne. Anything less is a coup and counterproductive to the Kingdom.
When precious people pass on, they leave a gaping hole in our lives: a personal Grand Canyon we must learn to maneuver in and around. It’s difficult and different, but by the grace of God, we learn to manage.
I was sitting again in Luke 2 this morning when it occurred to me how the principle players in the nativity saga have one thing in common: an uncommon commitment to obedience.
Mary allowed the Lord to ident her life in new and uncomfortable ways. She surrendered her uterus; dare I say the most intimate part of the female frame? She allowed God to have His way with her heart and He left an exquisite impression upon it.
What if we spent the entire month of November in actual gratitude? If we refused to run full-speed toward Decembers festivities? If we intentionally allowed the infringing cold and darkness to slow our soul a bit and warm our hearts by giving thanks?
“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout Daughter Jerusalem! See, your King comes victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the goal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9 NIV) I’ve long heard it preached; a king riding on a donkey comes in peace, a king…