Sermon Notes for December 18th
December 18, 2005
“Let us walk in the Light of the Lord”
Isaiah 2:1-5, Mathew 24:36-44
1. Well, friends here it is again…the season of Christmas…
For me, my 62nd Christmas…how many have you had? What was
The most memorable Christmas in your life?
How long has it been, since you came into the world? When I was
Born it was November of 1944 and the world was at war…the biggest
Of all Wars….World War II…How many of you remember that?
2. A close friend of mine was in the Navy during Viet Nam. He recently
emailed me with an item about how even today
Oil droplets bubble to the surface of Pearl Harbor above the USS Arizona, creating a vivid link to the past where on a quiet Sunday morning December 7, 1941 Japanese surprise air attack left the Pacific Fleet in smoldering heaps of broken, twisted steel.
Today, visitors come from around the world to see the USS Arizona Memorial, which spans the mid-portion of the sunken battleship. The national memorial is designed to encourage quiet contemplation, and to appeal to our memory and sense of sacrifice.
He said:
I've been there and saw the escaping oil bubbles surfacing from the sunken U.S.S. Arizona as my navy ship passed by on Thanksgiving Day of 1972. We were on our way to Vietnam, but U.S.S. Inchon made Pearl Harbor its port of call for the day. In a rental car several of us radar men toured the island. We stopped at the old International Market and dined at the Mongolian Restaurant. We saw a surfing championship on the north shore of Oahu. It all seemed surreal as if everything was slipping away from us because none of the sights we saw hit us like the Arizona memorial and the black bubbles of oil coming from the ship below which entombs the crew. On our way to the war in Vietnam we were passing by the fateful place that ushered in our entrance into World War II.
Not much to celebrate back then…or was there?
Well, this Christmas, what with the war in Iraq and all the rest many people are thinking a little differently about Christmas and what is important in life…
And what is important – what is most important in life?
3. What is it that we celebrate at Christmas…the second most important
Of all Christian holidays?
Today, we lit the fourth of the advent candles -- the candle for joy …So, I ask, what are the advent candles supposed to represent?
Well … Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy
Nothing less…I suggest than the highest ideals of human life…
What would life be like if we could all share peace, hope, joy and
Love at Christmas… or … WHAT WOULD LIFE BE LIKE IF WE
DON’T SHARE THEM? PRETTY MISERABLE, WOULDN’T YOU SAY?
4. So, Peace, Hope, Joy, and Love…are what Christmas is all about…In fact, I decided to look through all the familiar Christmas carols that we sing…and there they all are, of course….
Peace – as in … Peace on Earth and good will to men…
Love – as in… Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, Love divine
Love was born at Christmas
Joy – as in … Joy to the world, the Lord is come
And Hope - as in … Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy
People free; from our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest in thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, hope of all the earth though; dear desire of every nation joy of every longing heart.
5. And so we will soon read… again on Christmas Eve the words
Of Luke on which all of these songs were based:
And so the angel said to them, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord. And suddenly, There was with the angel a multitude of heavenly host praising God and Saying: Glory to God in the highest and peace among men with whom
He is well please.” – Luke 2:10-14
Sounds good! But how? How does love come down at Christmas? How does peace reign on earth? Where is the joy? Where is the Hope?
Oh, sure, we hear it all the time…on every radio station…in the supermarket…even now at the gas station…you can’t get away From it…elevator music for Christmas…And lately they seem to
Have turned up the volume…louder and louder…what is that they are trying to drown out? We seem to live in a world of musak..
Reminds of time I worked at the Red Cross…
Some years ago someone decided to put on muzak on the intercom at work because they thought it would improve working conditions…so they played the same tape every day…of the week…pretty soon I began to notice that every day at exactly 4:00 PM they would play “House of the Rising Sun” – at the Red Cross…every day at 4:00 o’clock…and there it was –it was so sad -- the great rock and roll song by Eric Burden and the Animals was reduced to elevator music at 4:00 o’clock…
6. And that is the problem, isn’t it? Everything gets turned into elevator
Music…until we stop listening… it all becomes background noise…drowning out the real problems of the world…the hunger, the violence, the Poverty…the intolerance…the hatred… well, maybe not completely at least this year the background music won’t drown the threat of terrorism…no Matter how high we turn up the volume…
So, maybe that could be the solution this Christmas: Turn down the volume…so we can see, and hear and feel…what is going on…and get real…again – maybe we need to turn down the volume so we can hear the real message of God – the message of hope, love, peace, and joy…in our hearts…to hear what we need most of all to hear…
Isn’t that what it’s all about…aren’t we really living in world that is crying out to hear the real thing? Aren’t we really living in a world that is crying out for out for real peace, and joy, and love…and hope…and where will this message come from if not from God?
Well, not everyone is listening to musak this Christmas…my friend Dave, who was in the Navy in Viet Nam is also a poet and former seminary student … but for most of his life he has been a clothing salesman at Bloomingdales at the Mall of America and other stores. Only this year he got laid off … and this is what he had to say … recently …
This Christmas season is new to me. For the first time in 22 years I'm not working the retail holiday industry and am increasingly thinking about this Christmas season in new ways.
Last night I watched the 1965 Charlie Brown Christmas special, replayed after 40 years because of its uniqueness (no laugh tracks, no adult voice-overs for child cartoon characters, low-volume jazz beats in the background, and, quotations from the Gospel according to Luke).
This year, he writes (since he doesn’t have much money to spend) That instead of shopping for Christmas cards, expensive gifts, and going to endless parties, and lots of holiday cultural events I take walks at night-- no matter how cold it is--to look at stars, evergreens, vacant field s glowing with street lights on the snow, and I meditate on a designated theme such as prayer, hope, peace, and what it means to give. I always find one scene on my walk and stop and I stare at it for a long time as if it's a painting. Then, I try to record its details in my mind as a memory, trying never to forget it. That helps me remember the details of my meditation, which includes silence w/o thought, focusing on how to be aware of the presence of the One Who Is--creator, sustainer, redeemer; …
He goes on by asking, What is the sound of a gladdened heart, or one hand clapping, and why does it feel like it goes beyond the body and grows in a dimension not exclusive to time and space? The ancients called it the soul. We moderns call it the psychology of consciousness. Whatever we call it, it makes the material world glow with an unseen light even in our era of spiritual darkness (fear, anxiety, etc.) No wonder it was said in days of old "The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light."
7. So, after reading his fine words, the other day I decided to follow his advice. Only I went cross country skiing way back in the woods behind my place … a couple miles … to where know one was around … and it was very quiet … and the solitude was so great you could reach out and touch it … and I thought … okay … here I am … and guess what … nothing happened …! Was something supposed to happen? I guess, I wasn’t exactly sure …
Well, after a little while, I skied back to my house. And I sat quietly in my chair with some coffee … thinking about a book I had been reading in the morning… by Parker Palmer … called a Hidden Wholeness …
(Recently, I was invited to be in a kind of prayer/support group with 4-5 other Methodist ministers down in Brainerd that meets every couple of months. And this is the book we have been looking at.)
Parker Palmer, who is kind of a Quaker, says among other things, that almost like a wild animal the soul is very shy. At first I didn’t quite understand what that meant. Perhaps because “wild animal” is not something I would relate to our spiritual life … but, the more I thought about it … it began to make more sense …
Palmer says that, like a wild animal, the soul is tough, resilient, resourceful, savvy, and self-sufficient. It knows how to survive in hard places.
In his book, Palmer describes how he suffered from severe depression at one point in his life … and said that all the usual things he relied on in life were of no help:
My intellect was useless … my emotions were dead … my will was impotent … my ego was shattered … But, from time to time, deep in the thickets of my inner wildness, I could sense the presence of something that knew how to stay alive even when the rest of me wanted to die.
I think, in AA, this is called “hitting bottom?” And I think all of us have at one time or another “hit bottom” - even without AA.
8. Palmer very interestingly writes that the soul, despite its toughness, is also shy. Just like a wild animal. If we want to see a wild animal, He says, we know that the last thing to do is go crashing around through the woods yelling for it to come out. But if we will walk quietly into the woods, sit patiently at the base of the tree, breathe with the earth, and fade into our surroundings, the wild creature we seek might put in an appearance. We might see it only briefly and only out of the corner of the eye … but the sight is a gift we will always treasure as an end in itself.
Well, as I was sitting in my chair meditating … it suddenly happened right in the corner of my eye I actually saw a great big pileated woodpecker swooped down on my suet feeder right in front of the big window on my porch -- only a few feet away from me. Bang! Bang! Bang! It pounded away at the suet … all the while cocking its head and looking around … and, then, suddenly, it was gone again … Now, if anything, I think, is the epitome of “wildness” it is the pileated woodpecker which is so extremely shy that it will fly away at a moments notice. Isn’t that true?
Wow! And then and there I realized that there it was … right from one of my favorite hymns … the “Lone Wild Bird” – a metaphor, of course, for the Holy Spirit … which comes from an old southern American folk hymn:
1. The lone, wild bird in lofty flight is still with you, nor leaves your sight. And I am yours! I rest in you, Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.
2. The ends of earth are in your hand, the sea's dark deep and far off land. And I am yours! I rest in you, Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.
3. Each secret thought is known to you, the path I walk my whole life through; my days, my deeds, my hopes, my fears, my deepest joys, my silent tears.
So, here I was, just like in Palmer’s book, charging off into the woods in search of something spiritual and all I needed to do was sit still and let it come to me … do you get the picture?For such are the ways of God’s Holy Spirit … and the mystery of the human soul … and the truth that we are all really beginners on life’s spiritual journey.
9. Well, back for a moment to Christmas and the idea of Peace and Joy and all the rest....is it all a reality…or is it all a dream? And just how then do we find peace and joy in the world at Christmas? Do we go out and just grab as some people seem to do … or do we wait and let it come to us?
In Jesus time, the Romans believed also in Peace…the Peace of Rome…Pax Romana…and they enforced it with the sword…step out of line…and you could be executed … and then along came Jesus…and they didn’t know what to do with him…and his peaceable kingdom…a different kind of peace…the peace of Christ…Pax Christi…in Latin…so they executed him…in fact, the Romans didn’t know what do to the Jews either, so the destroyed them as well…in 70 AD…power makes right…at least for a while…and then eventually Rome, too, fell apart…and all we Have left…is statues…and the coliseums where they persecuted the Christians…and anyone else who got in their way …
10. And now the world of Rome is long gone…and the world of Jesus time is also gone, too …and what remains are merely a words – the timeless words of the prophet…Isaiah…that the word of the Lord shall go out from Jerusalem…and the people will beat their swords into ploughshares…and their swords into pruning hooks…
Was it all a dream? Was Isaiah merely dreaming…or was he speaking
the word of God…to his people…and to us today…as well…
And why does this dream still capture our imagination? Why does it still stir our feelings…why is the dream of peace one of the deepest longings of the human soul…?
And why is the story of the birth of Jesus still the “greatest story ever told?” – Is it because it speaks to our deepest heartfelt longing…a longing for peace…a flame that burns…a light that pierces the darkness…that somehow behind it all is the eternal God…who still speaks to us through the prophets, like Isaiah…and then through Jesus Christ…who as a young child would get up in the synagogue and be given the same book of Isaiah…and would read…
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
Because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
And recovering of sight to the blind
To set a liberty those who are oppressed
To proclaim the acceptable day of the Lord.
11. And there you have it…the word of God…for this Christmas…the never
ending dream that God is on the side of peace…that God truly did reveal Himself…in Jesus Christ…to confound the mighty…and give hope
The poor and downtrodden…and bring peace to the world…
Can we believe it? Only, perhaps if we turn down the volume…and take time to
Ask ourselves a few basic questions this Christmas:
A. Where is peace to be found in my life…right now?
B. Who really needs my love…this year?
C. What is it that brings me the greatest joy… in my life?
And, D. What is it that I truly hope for most in the world this Christmas?
Some important things to meditate about this Christmas – don’t you think?
So, I really hope that like my friend Dave you take some time…in the business of the holiday season to …stop… and turn down the volume and ask God … or the Holy Spirit … or the Lone Wild Bird … to come into your life … just for one brief unforgettable moment!
Of course, I can’t say for sure, how this will happen … I just don’t know … but I can tell you this … you might be surprised at when and how it comes … for you must realize that your soul is very shy … and that the Spirit comes often like the Lone Wild Bird --- when we least expect it …and it certainly won’t be the same for everyone…in fact, it shouldn’t be…but what is most important is that you let there be time in your heart for God’s special message to you…this Christmas. Are you ready for the real Christmas? -- For God’s love to be born again within your soul?
“Let us walk in the Light of the Lord”
Isaiah 2:1-5, Mathew 24:36-44
1. Well, friends here it is again…the season of Christmas…
For me, my 62nd Christmas…how many have you had? What was
The most memorable Christmas in your life?
How long has it been, since you came into the world? When I was
Born it was November of 1944 and the world was at war…the biggest
Of all Wars….World War II…How many of you remember that?
2. A close friend of mine was in the Navy during Viet Nam. He recently
emailed me with an item about how even today
Oil droplets bubble to the surface of Pearl Harbor above the USS Arizona, creating a vivid link to the past where on a quiet Sunday morning December 7, 1941 Japanese surprise air attack left the Pacific Fleet in smoldering heaps of broken, twisted steel.
Today, visitors come from around the world to see the USS Arizona Memorial, which spans the mid-portion of the sunken battleship. The national memorial is designed to encourage quiet contemplation, and to appeal to our memory and sense of sacrifice.
He said:
I've been there and saw the escaping oil bubbles surfacing from the sunken U.S.S. Arizona as my navy ship passed by on Thanksgiving Day of 1972. We were on our way to Vietnam, but U.S.S. Inchon made Pearl Harbor its port of call for the day. In a rental car several of us radar men toured the island. We stopped at the old International Market and dined at the Mongolian Restaurant. We saw a surfing championship on the north shore of Oahu. It all seemed surreal as if everything was slipping away from us because none of the sights we saw hit us like the Arizona memorial and the black bubbles of oil coming from the ship below which entombs the crew. On our way to the war in Vietnam we were passing by the fateful place that ushered in our entrance into World War II.
Not much to celebrate back then…or was there?
Well, this Christmas, what with the war in Iraq and all the rest many people are thinking a little differently about Christmas and what is important in life…
And what is important – what is most important in life?
3. What is it that we celebrate at Christmas…the second most important
Of all Christian holidays?
Today, we lit the fourth of the advent candles -- the candle for joy …So, I ask, what are the advent candles supposed to represent?
Well … Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy
Nothing less…I suggest than the highest ideals of human life…
What would life be like if we could all share peace, hope, joy and
Love at Christmas… or … WHAT WOULD LIFE BE LIKE IF WE
DON’T SHARE THEM? PRETTY MISERABLE, WOULDN’T YOU SAY?
4. So, Peace, Hope, Joy, and Love…are what Christmas is all about…In fact, I decided to look through all the familiar Christmas carols that we sing…and there they all are, of course….
Peace – as in … Peace on Earth and good will to men…
Love – as in… Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, Love divine
Love was born at Christmas
Joy – as in … Joy to the world, the Lord is come
And Hope - as in … Come, thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy
People free; from our fears and sins release us; let us find our rest in thee. Israel’s strength and consolation, hope of all the earth though; dear desire of every nation joy of every longing heart.
5. And so we will soon read… again on Christmas Eve the words
Of Luke on which all of these songs were based:
And so the angel said to them, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord. And suddenly, There was with the angel a multitude of heavenly host praising God and Saying: Glory to God in the highest and peace among men with whom
He is well please.” – Luke 2:10-14
Sounds good! But how? How does love come down at Christmas? How does peace reign on earth? Where is the joy? Where is the Hope?
Oh, sure, we hear it all the time…on every radio station…in the supermarket…even now at the gas station…you can’t get away From it…elevator music for Christmas…And lately they seem to
Have turned up the volume…louder and louder…what is that they are trying to drown out? We seem to live in a world of musak..
Reminds of time I worked at the Red Cross…
Some years ago someone decided to put on muzak on the intercom at work because they thought it would improve working conditions…so they played the same tape every day…of the week…pretty soon I began to notice that every day at exactly 4:00 PM they would play “House of the Rising Sun” – at the Red Cross…every day at 4:00 o’clock…and there it was –it was so sad -- the great rock and roll song by Eric Burden and the Animals was reduced to elevator music at 4:00 o’clock…
6. And that is the problem, isn’t it? Everything gets turned into elevator
Music…until we stop listening… it all becomes background noise…drowning out the real problems of the world…the hunger, the violence, the Poverty…the intolerance…the hatred… well, maybe not completely at least this year the background music won’t drown the threat of terrorism…no Matter how high we turn up the volume…
So, maybe that could be the solution this Christmas: Turn down the volume…so we can see, and hear and feel…what is going on…and get real…again – maybe we need to turn down the volume so we can hear the real message of God – the message of hope, love, peace, and joy…in our hearts…to hear what we need most of all to hear…
Isn’t that what it’s all about…aren’t we really living in world that is crying out to hear the real thing? Aren’t we really living in a world that is crying out for out for real peace, and joy, and love…and hope…and where will this message come from if not from God?
Well, not everyone is listening to musak this Christmas…my friend Dave, who was in the Navy in Viet Nam is also a poet and former seminary student … but for most of his life he has been a clothing salesman at Bloomingdales at the Mall of America and other stores. Only this year he got laid off … and this is what he had to say … recently …
This Christmas season is new to me. For the first time in 22 years I'm not working the retail holiday industry and am increasingly thinking about this Christmas season in new ways.
Last night I watched the 1965 Charlie Brown Christmas special, replayed after 40 years because of its uniqueness (no laugh tracks, no adult voice-overs for child cartoon characters, low-volume jazz beats in the background, and, quotations from the Gospel according to Luke).
This year, he writes (since he doesn’t have much money to spend) That instead of shopping for Christmas cards, expensive gifts, and going to endless parties, and lots of holiday cultural events I take walks at night-- no matter how cold it is--to look at stars, evergreens, vacant field s glowing with street lights on the snow, and I meditate on a designated theme such as prayer, hope, peace, and what it means to give. I always find one scene on my walk and stop and I stare at it for a long time as if it's a painting. Then, I try to record its details in my mind as a memory, trying never to forget it. That helps me remember the details of my meditation, which includes silence w/o thought, focusing on how to be aware of the presence of the One Who Is--creator, sustainer, redeemer; …
He goes on by asking, What is the sound of a gladdened heart, or one hand clapping, and why does it feel like it goes beyond the body and grows in a dimension not exclusive to time and space? The ancients called it the soul. We moderns call it the psychology of consciousness. Whatever we call it, it makes the material world glow with an unseen light even in our era of spiritual darkness (fear, anxiety, etc.) No wonder it was said in days of old "The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light."
7. So, after reading his fine words, the other day I decided to follow his advice. Only I went cross country skiing way back in the woods behind my place … a couple miles … to where know one was around … and it was very quiet … and the solitude was so great you could reach out and touch it … and I thought … okay … here I am … and guess what … nothing happened …! Was something supposed to happen? I guess, I wasn’t exactly sure …
Well, after a little while, I skied back to my house. And I sat quietly in my chair with some coffee … thinking about a book I had been reading in the morning… by Parker Palmer … called a Hidden Wholeness …
(Recently, I was invited to be in a kind of prayer/support group with 4-5 other Methodist ministers down in Brainerd that meets every couple of months. And this is the book we have been looking at.)
Parker Palmer, who is kind of a Quaker, says among other things, that almost like a wild animal the soul is very shy. At first I didn’t quite understand what that meant. Perhaps because “wild animal” is not something I would relate to our spiritual life … but, the more I thought about it … it began to make more sense …
Palmer says that, like a wild animal, the soul is tough, resilient, resourceful, savvy, and self-sufficient. It knows how to survive in hard places.
In his book, Palmer describes how he suffered from severe depression at one point in his life … and said that all the usual things he relied on in life were of no help:
My intellect was useless … my emotions were dead … my will was impotent … my ego was shattered … But, from time to time, deep in the thickets of my inner wildness, I could sense the presence of something that knew how to stay alive even when the rest of me wanted to die.
I think, in AA, this is called “hitting bottom?” And I think all of us have at one time or another “hit bottom” - even without AA.
8. Palmer very interestingly writes that the soul, despite its toughness, is also shy. Just like a wild animal. If we want to see a wild animal, He says, we know that the last thing to do is go crashing around through the woods yelling for it to come out. But if we will walk quietly into the woods, sit patiently at the base of the tree, breathe with the earth, and fade into our surroundings, the wild creature we seek might put in an appearance. We might see it only briefly and only out of the corner of the eye … but the sight is a gift we will always treasure as an end in itself.
Well, as I was sitting in my chair meditating … it suddenly happened right in the corner of my eye I actually saw a great big pileated woodpecker swooped down on my suet feeder right in front of the big window on my porch -- only a few feet away from me. Bang! Bang! Bang! It pounded away at the suet … all the while cocking its head and looking around … and, then, suddenly, it was gone again … Now, if anything, I think, is the epitome of “wildness” it is the pileated woodpecker which is so extremely shy that it will fly away at a moments notice. Isn’t that true?
Wow! And then and there I realized that there it was … right from one of my favorite hymns … the “Lone Wild Bird” – a metaphor, of course, for the Holy Spirit … which comes from an old southern American folk hymn:
1. The lone, wild bird in lofty flight is still with you, nor leaves your sight. And I am yours! I rest in you, Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.
2. The ends of earth are in your hand, the sea's dark deep and far off land. And I am yours! I rest in you, Great Spirit, come, rest in me, too.
3. Each secret thought is known to you, the path I walk my whole life through; my days, my deeds, my hopes, my fears, my deepest joys, my silent tears.
So, here I was, just like in Palmer’s book, charging off into the woods in search of something spiritual and all I needed to do was sit still and let it come to me … do you get the picture?For such are the ways of God’s Holy Spirit … and the mystery of the human soul … and the truth that we are all really beginners on life’s spiritual journey.
9. Well, back for a moment to Christmas and the idea of Peace and Joy and all the rest....is it all a reality…or is it all a dream? And just how then do we find peace and joy in the world at Christmas? Do we go out and just grab as some people seem to do … or do we wait and let it come to us?
In Jesus time, the Romans believed also in Peace…the Peace of Rome…Pax Romana…and they enforced it with the sword…step out of line…and you could be executed … and then along came Jesus…and they didn’t know what to do with him…and his peaceable kingdom…a different kind of peace…the peace of Christ…Pax Christi…in Latin…so they executed him…in fact, the Romans didn’t know what do to the Jews either, so the destroyed them as well…in 70 AD…power makes right…at least for a while…and then eventually Rome, too, fell apart…and all we Have left…is statues…and the coliseums where they persecuted the Christians…and anyone else who got in their way …
10. And now the world of Rome is long gone…and the world of Jesus time is also gone, too …and what remains are merely a words – the timeless words of the prophet…Isaiah…that the word of the Lord shall go out from Jerusalem…and the people will beat their swords into ploughshares…and their swords into pruning hooks…
Was it all a dream? Was Isaiah merely dreaming…or was he speaking
the word of God…to his people…and to us today…as well…
And why does this dream still capture our imagination? Why does it still stir our feelings…why is the dream of peace one of the deepest longings of the human soul…?
And why is the story of the birth of Jesus still the “greatest story ever told?” – Is it because it speaks to our deepest heartfelt longing…a longing for peace…a flame that burns…a light that pierces the darkness…that somehow behind it all is the eternal God…who still speaks to us through the prophets, like Isaiah…and then through Jesus Christ…who as a young child would get up in the synagogue and be given the same book of Isaiah…and would read…
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
Because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
And recovering of sight to the blind
To set a liberty those who are oppressed
To proclaim the acceptable day of the Lord.
11. And there you have it…the word of God…for this Christmas…the never
ending dream that God is on the side of peace…that God truly did reveal Himself…in Jesus Christ…to confound the mighty…and give hope
The poor and downtrodden…and bring peace to the world…
Can we believe it? Only, perhaps if we turn down the volume…and take time to
Ask ourselves a few basic questions this Christmas:
A. Where is peace to be found in my life…right now?
B. Who really needs my love…this year?
C. What is it that brings me the greatest joy… in my life?
And, D. What is it that I truly hope for most in the world this Christmas?
Some important things to meditate about this Christmas – don’t you think?
So, I really hope that like my friend Dave you take some time…in the business of the holiday season to …stop… and turn down the volume and ask God … or the Holy Spirit … or the Lone Wild Bird … to come into your life … just for one brief unforgettable moment!
Of course, I can’t say for sure, how this will happen … I just don’t know … but I can tell you this … you might be surprised at when and how it comes … for you must realize that your soul is very shy … and that the Spirit comes often like the Lone Wild Bird --- when we least expect it …and it certainly won’t be the same for everyone…in fact, it shouldn’t be…but what is most important is that you let there be time in your heart for God’s special message to you…this Christmas. Are you ready for the real Christmas? -- For God’s love to be born again within your soul?
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