Christmas Musings Day 10

 A Truly New Thing

Ezekiel 43:18-19 (ESV) ¹⁸ “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. ¹⁹ Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

               One of the challenges of arriving at the ripe old age of sixty-one is the catalog of failure built up over the passing decades. Sadly, I developed quite the list of personal failures during my life, some egregious and public, others private and just as appalling. By human standards, I have done well; however, compared to the stringent holiness of God I am an abject failure. Those inner hatreds nursed, grudges held, ignoble passions stoked, all the fruit of a prideful failed human heart. This is why I cherish the Advent season so.

               As I make the Advent journey from Eden to Bethlehem, God speaks to me. He counsels and comforts, “Remember not the former things…” Dwelling on my failed past does not sponge away the stain of guilt or provide strength for future battles. Advent focuses me on what God does. He is doing something new, something bold, something unimagined. Here in Lubbock, we often endure long periods of drought, just as we humans endure periodic failure. God says, “I will make a river flow in the desert.” Advent surprises me with new possibilities that I cannot imagine. Advent reminds me that God changes the dynamic of human existence. Failure need not dominate my life. Advent focuses me on the radical possibilities generated by God drawing near and making things new. I am blessed to live on this side of Bethlehem. I enjoy the daily Advent of God in my life. It is present tense, not future. What new things is God bringing forth in your life? 

Christmas Musings Day 9

 A Role for Me

Matthew 1:1 (ESV) ¹ The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

               When I was younger, I often gave in to the temptation to skip the genealogy of Jesus as recorded in Matthew and Luke. The names are difficult to pronounce, and the long list seems rather boring and inconsequential. Why take the time? How do people, mostly ancient Jewish men, relate to me, a twenty-first-century white man some two millennia down the road? I would jump over to what I considered the meat of the story, the Annunciation, the Magnificat, the Angelic visit to the shepherds, the visit of the Magi, and most important the birth. This habit robbed me of a special lesson of hope woven into Advent.

               Reading the long list of names reveals one of the great miracles of God. He regularly uses imperfect, egregiously failed humans to forward His plans and desires. Their abject failure pales when compared to His mighty and powerful purpose. Look carefully into the genealogy of Jesus and you find adulterers, murderers, liars, and cheats. There are even non-Jews in the Messianic lineage. For His own reasons, God revels in restoring and using failed humans to flesh out and complete His strategies. For me, a grievously failed goy, this is good news. His love and plan overpower my sin and failure. There is hope for me. Through Advent, not only do I find forgiveness, but I also find purpose. Advent proclaims that there is a place for me in the broad sweep of God’s plan for restoration and wholeness. 

Christmas Musings Day 8

 Desperate Need

Genesis 16:2 (ESV) ² And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

               I like to think of myself as self-sufficient. I fully imbibe in the West-Texas myth of pulling myself up by my own bootstraps. After all, I worked hard most of my life, and aside from a period of wandering in late high-school and shortly thereafter, I have stayed true to the Lord…at least that is how I see it. Even though my logical thought-self understands the fallacy, my heart-self truly thinks I am a pretty good guy, after all, I do not commit any of the biggies…any more. In my mental and spiritual calculus, I worked off those indiscretions long ago. Like Abram and Sarai of long ago, I designed a plan to help out God. But God, through the Advent journey, reminds me of my desperate need.

               Some time after the birth of Ishmael, God appears to Abram, reminds him of the promise, and changes his name. Abram has the temerity to remind God of Ishmael, saying, “¹⁸ And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!” Genesis 17:18 (ESV) He’d worked out a plan to fix the problem of Sari’s bareness. But as usual with mankind, his plan failed to account for the majesty and power of the Lord, as well as his own depravity. God gently reminds him, “…No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac.” Genesis 17:19 (ESV) God is insistent. His plan will be the one. Our own maneuverings fall woefully short.

               Reviewing the long-unfolding story of Advent serves to remind me that no matter how hard I might try, whatever machinations I might develop, they all fail to meet my needs. My good efforts just do not stack up. They may be nice. They might even make me feel better, but the truth is, I need God’s help to solve my fundamental sin and guilt issues. As I consider the wonderful and poignant journey of Advent, I must come face to face with my own desperate need and the overwhelming love of God that pays my debt. I stand on the common ground of human need in awe of a God that would come so far just to be with me. 

Christmas Musings Day 7

 Still Useful

Hebrews 11:12 (ESV) ¹² Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

               Twelve years ago, I retired from the Army and chose to pursue a new career, wanting to step through a different door. Throughout my time in the Army, I had observed many men that retired and took jobs as DA Civilians or contractors. They loitered on the edges of military life, reminiscing about their days in uniform. They were trapped in the twilight watercooler region of marginal purpose, living on memories and “war-stories.” I deisred something different, a new challenge, and settled on teaching. Next year I will turn sixty-two and be eligible to collect Social Security. Fortunately for me, a teacher does need great physical prowess to keep on working. I still provide a function society considers useful, even important in some circles. Unlike many, in a world devoted to youth, I enjoy a life of meaning and purpose. For many people my age, life loses direction and purpose. But that is not God’s plan for us.

               As I make my way through Advent, I think of Abraham. In both Romans and Hebrews, scripture notes that Abraham was as good as dead. Men moved by the Holy Spirit penned that seemingly harsh judgment. The dude was as good as dead, but God still had a purpose for his life, something important for him to do. God’s actions in bringing about Advent remind me that He often uses the improbable to achieve the impossible. In many ways, Advent is a several millennia-long string of dubious, or even unbelievable, events hung together culminating in God breaking into our mean and meager existence with breathtaking results. Advent teaches that age is not the deciding factor in living with purpose…or into purpose, faith is.

Christmas Musings Day 6

 The Long View

II Peter 3:9 (ESV) 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

               Christmas takes the slow train. As a kid, I remember how the days crawled by with agonizing slowness. It was as if the calendar developed a slothful attitude after a roadrunner-like summer. Each year I anxiously waited as the Christmas milestones rose on the horizon and slowly passed. First came the preparation for the Christmas concert, then the J.C. Penny’s and Sears catalogs with the special Christmas toy sections arrived. After that came the trip to Gibson’s on the corner of Sales and South First to ogle the toy section. Soon we would go out and find a Christmas tree and decorate it. Then the Christmas TV Specials made their long-anticipated appearance. Rudolph, the Little Drummer Boy, and the Grinch flickered into our living room. Then came the annual HTR (Harper, Thompson, and Robinson) Christmas Party. It was always a joyous evening and one that I still dearly miss. These events filled the days while I counted down to the biggie…Christmas. I relished this vision with its associated anticipation and various signs all swirling in my head. Like Abraham, I looked forward with eager anticipation to the glorious day.

               Abraham, and his role in Advent, reminds me that God works on a different timetable. He made a promise to Abraham which took millennia to work out; yet, Abraham saw it from afar and greeted it with joy. Hebrews 11:8-13 Advent counsels patience. In my hurry-up lifestyle, Advent reminds me that some things, some exquisitely wonderful things, take time to sort out. When his name was still Abram, Abraham placed his trust in God and His ability to work things out as promised. So, as Advent unfolds, with its attendant joyful anticipation, I must exercise patience. After all, someone waited nine months for their joy to come to fruition. 

Christmas Musings Day 5

 Christmas Musings Day 5

Whispers of Hope

Genesis 3:15 (ESV) ¹⁵ I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

               This world does not work right. Of course, you know that. Promises are broken. The innocent perish. Hatred flourishes. Families break up. Loved ones age and die. Calamities strike randomly. All of creation groans. Anyone old enough to read this has dealt with the harsh realities of life in a world stained with sin. Sadly, we all also know the guilt of our own abject failure. We continue to contribute to this awful mess. Some days we feel hopeless in the face of continued tragedy. God knows the feeling and has tended to it.

               In the Genesis account of the fall we hear the whisper of hope, “…he shall bruise your head,…” At that of darkness and reckoning, God whispers to us, “I’m coming, and I will make things right, at a cost.” Hope helps us hang on in the dark times, in the painful times, in the lonely times. Hope enables us to face the grim reality of our earned mortality. It engenders the courage needed to face down the fear of our own failure. Yet, hope deferred makes the heart sick. Often our hope fades with repeated encounters with darkness. That is why Advent is so important.

               Advent reminds us that God has not forgotten us. He promised in the garden and delivered in Bethlehem. He delivered again on Calvary, but that is another page for a different time. In Advent, God breaks into the darkness and whispers…no shouts…”peace among those with whom He is pleased!” The annual journey to Bethlehem restores hope in the one who always keeps His word. When my heart grows sick with the failure I see in this world and in myself, I look to Advent and am reminded that from the beginning He had a plan, and He saw it through. Advent pushes back against the darkness that seeks to overwhelm. The darkness tries oh so hard, but Advent prevails and restores my hope. 

 Christmas Musings Day 4

It’s All a Matter of Choice

Genesis 2:15-17 (ESV) ¹⁵ The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. ¹⁶ And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷ but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat[d] of it you shall surely die.”

               In class today, I spoke with my sophomores concerning my policy regarding rounding up grades. I asked them what they expected me to do if they had an eighty-nine in my class? They all responded, round up to a ninety. Then I asked them what my decision matrix was to determine if I would round up? This question flummoxed them. They responded with a variety of mathematical answers. Imagine their surprise when I explained that their behavior in class determined my decision to round up, or round down. They found it hard to believe that I would in fact round down if they were ill-behaved or displayed a poor attitude. When I added the fact that poor behavior or lackadaisical attitudes towards work would keep them from promotion, increases in pay, or longevity at work, the classroom got very silent. They were quite uncomfortable with the thought that their attitudes or behaviors, their choices, influenced the outcomes of their lives. We have always sought to avoid the results of our choices.

               God built choice into the relationship equation. He bestowed the gift of choice on humanity. Fundamentally, Kimmy, our cat, behaves as her built-in instincts direct. She does not enjoy choice. Though she is declawed, if given the chance, she will hurl herself at any interloper in our backyard. Instincts rule. God built us differently. We get to choose. Sadly, we often choose poorly and then bemoan our fate when we suffer the consequences of our faulty decisions. Advent reminds me that God too has choice. He could have walked away from the mess that we made; however, He chose a different route, rolled up His divine sleeves, and set about fixing our mistake…no matter the cost. Every Advent season reminds me that He chose grace and mercy.