May the mumbling commence!
We get it right – sometimes. We get it right in certain parts of the calendar year – sometimes. Many of us in America know Thanksgiving as a time to spend with family and friends and loved ones. Many of us know Christmas as a time to spend with loved ones and friends and family. At least, when we do not allow the commercialism of the season drown out the call to relationship.
Today is Christmas Eve. I’ve spent most of my day with my family – my wife and son. We don’t often get that opportunity. For the next couple of days, we will be able to enjoy each other’s company during most of our waking hours. We will travel to family nearby, eat, fellowship, and exchange gifts. We may understand, at some rudimentary level, that being together is one of the greatest gifts of all.
And, tonight will be special. We will gather with our family of faith to sing Christmas Carols and hear the Scripture Lessons. We will remember that special moment in time when God came to earth in the form of a baby boy so long ago. We will remember how God sought us out for relationship. Let us embrace this relationship with God. Let us celebrate it. And let us glory in the intricate web of relationships that the Lord has blessed us with. Read from Psalm sixty-three:
O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
Because Your loving-kindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.
Thus I will bless You while I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips.
When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches.
Because You have been my help,
Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
My soul follows close behind You;
Your right hand upholds me. (Verses 1-8)
I will seek you early and often, O Lord. My soul thirsts for you even as the dry and parched land I lived in thirsts for water. I search unendingly for you because of Your power and glory that is displayed in Your loving-kindness. I will praise the Lord. I will bless the Lord. I will lift up my hands for the sake of the Name.
With You, I am totally satisfied – to the very marrow of my bones. Tonight, I will dream not of sugarplums dancing. Instead, I will dream of a renewed and vibrant life with You that will saturate all my relationships – for the better. You are my help. You uphold me.
Because of You, I have the potential to do good things, godly things. Help me live up to my full potential to bring praise to Your Name. May I chase after your heart under the cover of the shadow of Your wings. My trust is ever in You. Read from Proverbs chapter twenty-two:
So that your trust may be in the Lord;
I have instructed you today, even you. (Verse 19)
Yes, all good instruction guides us to put our trust in the Lord
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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