Less presents, more presence

As we enter into Advent, anticipating the birth of our Saviour at Christmas and knowing that He will return, it’s critical to remind ourselves what this season is and is not about…
 

   
Prayer of confession
Lord God, we honestly admit that when it comes to Christmas, we do a lot more shopping, spending and stressing than worshipping.  Please give us not another present, but rather Your presence, Your Holy Spirit to help us to make good choices this year.  …Choices that free us to give of ourselves – our time, our abilities, our resources, our love.  And in that way, may we reflect Your love, shown so amazingly through Your Son, born of the virgin Mary, who was crucified, dead and buried, but on the third day rose again for us and our salvation.  It’s in His name we pray. Amen.
  

Assurance of God’s salvation
”…When the set time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.  Because you are His sons, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.”  So you are no longer slaves, but God’s children; and since you are His children, He has made you also heirs.” – Galatians 4

“Shine, Jesus, Shine”
  

Rededicating our lives to Godly living
“God’s gift to us [is] a relationship built on love. So it’s no wonder why we’re drawn to the idea that Christmas should be a time to love our friends and family in the most memorable ways possible. Time is the real gift Christmas offers us, and no matter how hard we look, it can’t be found at the mall. Time to make a gift that turns into the next family heirloom. Time to write mom a letter. Time to take the kids sledding. Time to bake really good cookies and sing really bad Christmas carols. Time to make love visible through relational giving. Sounds a lot better than getting a sweater two sizes too big, right?”*

Let’s follow God’s example and learn to give.  This Advent and Christmas, let’s reflect our God and give of ourselves – our time, our abilities, our resources, our love.  It might mean a few less presents, but a whole lot more presence – with each other and in worship to our loving God.
    

Notes:
*This paragraph comes from the Advent Conspiracy website.
All of the above was part of today’s 11am worship service at Telkwa Christian Reformed Church.
 

Revolutionaries who remember

 

I doubt anyone came to the Telkwa Cenotaph for today’s Remembrance Day observation thinking they were radicals or revolutionaries.  But in at least one way, everyone there was just that by the very fact that we were taking time to remember.

Remembering is not an activity that is held in high regard in our society and culture; anything over a month (a week?) old is irrelevant.  How far back does your Facebook newsfeed go by default?  A few hours?  A kid who’s part of the same church as I am told me the other day that my 2-year-old computer is an antique!  In general, if we’re not preoccupied by the present moment, we’re thinking about the future – our own personal future, or what the world or technology or the climate will be like in years to come.  That we spend time remembering things that may well have happened long before we were even born can certainly be seen as radical, even revolutionary in our time!

I submit, however, that remembering is not only a good thing to do (e.g. to be encouraged by God’s provision in the past or to learn from yesterday’s dumb mistakes), it’s also a biblical thing to do.  Think of the Israelites crossing the Jordan River.  Ushering them into the Promised Land, God parts the waters like He did with the Red Sea at the beginning of the exodus.  However, before they all make it across the Jordan, God commands some people to take boulders from the middle of the riverbed and pile them up on the other side.  Why?  Here’s God’s reason:  “In the future when your descendants ask their parents, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’  For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over…  He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God” (Joshua 4:21-24).  In short, God wanted them to remember and pass along what He had done for them.

Similarly, we gather at a monument today to remember fallen soldiers who fought so that we may have a free country (something we so often take for granted).  As we remember events from the past, we can give thanks to God for how He has orchestrated history in such a way that Canadians live in freedom today.  But what’s more, in thinking about historical events, we see ourselves as part of something bigger than just ourselves.  We find ourselves part of a larger story.  We might not know a single one of the soldiers who sacrificed their lives, and yet our lives have been impacted for the better by them.

The apostle Paul encouraged young Pastor Timothy with these words: “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David.  This is [the] Gospel…”  I don’t think Paul only means for Timothy to remember Jesus’ divinity and humanity as historical facts or as a spiritual reality – though those things are certainly good and true.  I hear Paul encouraging Timothy to remember Jesus so that Timothy can find himself part of the larger story of Jesus’ life and mission.  It’s as though Paul is saying, Think about Jesus and how, because of Him, you are part of a grand, ongoing story that has meaning and a purpose.

This is a great story.  It will revolutionize your life.  This story takes seriously our brokenness and pain.  It takes seriously the wars that were fought and are being fought – many overseas, many in our own strife-filled homes.  This grand story reminds us how we are lost in sin.  …Lost in sin apart from Christ.  In Christ, there is forgiveness and redemption!  This isn’t something to just think about on your deathbed; this is something in which to immerse yourself today.  Jesus invites you to find your identity, to locate and live your particular story within the larger narrative of His story of redemption.

Part of this involves remembering men and women who have given us the ability to explore such things in freedom regardless of our convictions about warfare.  And part of this involves remembering who you were apart from Christ, how He has rescued you from the devil-warlord, and where He desires to lead you in freedom as you are obedient to Him.  (Freedom in obedience…  It sounds like a paradox, I know.)

So I encourage you to remember.  And to remember well.

Artwork:
”Valiant Poppies” by Amanda Dagg

Inspired in part by:
”Jake’s Gift” by Julia Mackey

That’s a good story!

This is good stuff, these daily devotions I mentioned the other day!  Today’s takes seriously our stories of faith and how God uses our stories to bless others.

“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.” – Romans 1:8

Can you imagine someone thanking God for you because your faith – your story – is being shared with people all over the world?  Maybe that is too much too imagine.  How about your story – the story of how your walk with God has helped you not only get through the tough things you’ve gone through but has enabled you to live your life with joy and fulfillment – can you imagine how that story could be of some inspirational value to the people you work with, or your neighbours, or perhaps people within your own family?  You will never know what God can do with your story until you start sharing it.  Remember God uses ordinary people like you to spread His love.  So how about it? Not sure what to share?  Just answer these questions…

What difference has walking with God made in your life, your marriage, your family, your purpose, your joy, your fun, your work, your friends?

What experiences have you had that have reassured you that God is real and that He has a purpose for you?

How has walking with God made thing different for you, your marriage, your family, your life?

For Discussion:  Take some time to answer the questions above, and share those answers with someone(s).  Can you think of some concrete ways in your life that you can share your faith with other people?

Prayer:  Lord our God, we want to share our faith in you with everyone, including our families, friends, co-workers, and neighbours.  Please give us the wisdom and the courage to do that, and to know when to do it. Amen.

– written for CRC Home Missions by Steve Elzinga

Waiting in a “right now” world

We live in a “right now” world.  Overnight delivery.  Microwave dinners.  Fast food.  High-speed internet.  We are forgetting how to wait, forgetting how to persevere.  A week-long series of devotionals in anticipation of Reformation Day begins with speaking about the courage (yes, courage!) it takes to wait…

As we near the end of the first decade of the 21st century, we have witnessed the advent of new and innovative technologies. From iPhones and iPods, to YouTube, MySpace and Twitter, the method of communicating and transferring information has dramatically changed.  It is no secret that it is much easier now than 20 years ago to move knowledge, insight and information around the globe. But at what cost?  The recent economic crisis has shown us that now more than ever we reside in a microwaveable society, where human beings need and want everything right now.  We have to have a house, right now.  We have to have a new career, right now.  We have to have the latest clothes, computer or car, right now.

The Reformation reminds those of us in the body of Christ of the need to develop the courage to wait; and not just wait for new things, but wait for God to renew our minds, body and soul.  The early reformers of the church had a mission: to bring the church back to a Bible-centred approach in regard to its doctrine and practices. Reform was (and is) not easy; but through many trials and tribulations, the reformers did not give up or give in.  They had the courage to wait for renewal to come; to the church, in particular, and the body of Christ as a whole.  As Isaiah 40:31 so eloquently states, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

For Discussion:  Talk about something you thought was important, that you had to wait for.  Was it a new toy?  Summer vacation?  Your favourite TV show season premiere?  Now think about how we wait for something much more important: God’s renewal in our lives.

Prayer:  God, we ask you to give us the courage to wait for You to renew us, in mind, body and soul. Amen.

— written for CRC Home Missions by Ed Rockett

It’s Friday, but Sunday’s comin’!

(Thanks, Jenny, for showing me this!)

The story of Jesus’ crucifixion is one of betrayal, brutality, despair, and pain.  Yet we know even before His death that redemption was promised to be coming soon.  We know that the story does not end at the cross.  We know what many did not realize – that Sunday’s comin’…

“I bind myself to Thee…”

I bind unto myself today the strong Name of the Trinity,
by invocation of the same the Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this today to me forever by power of faith, Christ’s incarnation;
His baptism in Jordan river, His death on Cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb, His riding up the heavenly way,
His coming at the day of doom I bind unto myself today…

I bind unto myself today the power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay, His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach, His hand to guide, His shield to ward;
the word of God to give me speech, His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin, the vice that gives temptation force,
the natural lusts that war within, the hostile men that mar my course;
or few or many, far or nigh, in every place and in all hours,
Against their fierce hostility I bind to me these holy powers…

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

Words: St. Patrick; versification by Cecil F. Alexander; public domain.
www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/t/stpatric.htm