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Posts Tagged ‘Ancient Christianity’

Installment #4 was my assignment for this weekend’s worship services. My title for this message was “Rules of the Road: God’s Way of Loving Ourselves and Loving Others.” As is my custom, I have included the manuscript, sermon outline, and small group discussion questions along with the audio file. I am always interested in constructive critique and feedback.

download manuscript (.pdf file)

download outline and sm.grp. discussion (.pdf file)

2010JAN24 ChristianJourney 4jb by valleychapel

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I received a copy of Dug Down Deep: Unearthing What I Believe and Why It Matters by Joshua Harris from WaterBrook Multnomah who provided it for my review. My first impressions are solid; the book is good and I would (will) recommend it for reading. Pardon my pun, but I found the book “earthy,” meaning it was easy to read in a manner that is very conversational. The book addresses the building blocks of doctrinal theology and Harris follows a very systematic approach as he develops each of these foundational blocks. Below is my own chart comparison (First column is the name of the doctrine of study; second column describes the study; third column is Joshua Harris’ chapter title that teaches on that description and doctrine. This may or may not have been the author’s intent, but it is my gleaning) from my interpretation and reading.

The book is not about systematic theology as much as “why it matters” (as reflected in the title). Harris follows his own experience with stories, anecdotal experiences, metaphors that help to keep the reader involved. I don’t want to sound condescending with my next statement and I hate stereotypes, but I don’t know how else to articulate my impression. This book is a great resource for the “unstudied” Christian, the seeker-curious, new convert, and anyone else that might fall into any category outside of Bible scholar. I think it might be helpful for the egghead-academic-ivory-tower-sanctified-saint too. It might help us to get over our sanctimonious self-importance and think more toward the practical when talking to others about our faith.

Personally, I think the book might be a little too “western flavored” for my tastes; and by that I mean traditional evangelical in its temper, but that is my opinion. Regardless of my opinion, I think it is a great addition to my useful resource list of tools and books to help people understand why it is necessary to know what and why they believe what they believe. I firmly agree that we should “own our faith” rather than “parrot” someone else’s faith. To this end, I am encouraging my fourteen year old son to read Dug Down Deep now that I have finished it…and will be placing it on a recommended reading list in my local church.

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Here is a collection of quotes that I have read over the past few weeks.

“God is a clever designer of crosses. Some are heavy as iron or lead. Others are as light as straw…In spite of their great variety, crosses have two things in common. They are hard to carry and they crucify.” ~Francois Fenelon

“Blessed are those whom God corrects; …For he wounds, but he also binds up; he injures, but his hands also heal.” (Job 5:17-18) “He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; He has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.” (Hosea 6:1)

Then I read this “jaw-dropper” from Martin Luther today…

“When God wants to build people up, He first tears them down. When God wants to heal, He first breaks in pieces. Whom God wants to bring to life, He first kills.” ~Martin Luther

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Book Review: The Tangible Kingdom

The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community by Hugh Halter & Matt Smay

Hmmm…what to say, what to say…

LOVED IT.

A book like this requires some degree of back-story, and it was provided, so it was a little long for me to get to the nitty gritty of what I was searching for in the story. It was around chapters nine and ten that I found myself getting “sucked in” to the heart of what Hugh Halter was driving at. I am incredibly excited about the community described in the tangible kingdom. It brings great joy to me to hear that people are living the life that Jesus taught…and not some cheaply interpreted facsimile of it.

Chapters ten through around fourteen were mostly about deconstruction from the “way we have always done things.” I appreciated that Halter was not overly critical toward the methods he was deconstructing; in fact, he seemed very sensitive to the people entrenched in those systems.

Chapters fifteen through eighteen were rebuilding chapters; teaching the foundational elements of this “incarnational community.” Everything that was shared in these chapters just seemed to make such beautiful sense… I found myself saying over and over; “yes, yes, yes, yes…!!!”

The final chapters, nineteen through twenty-one, were about the focus and outcome of the three primary components of the community once people decide to “join” the community. This focus hinges on togetherness, oneness, and otherness…and I’ll stop there. The teaching and the illustrations used by Hugh Halter and Matt Smay are very clear and easy to understand. It would be my great desire to see this community with my own eyes. I would love to get some one-on-one leadership development from an existing-healthy-functioning community.

In my opinion, this is another 5-star book and another must read for those people and leaders desiring to live missionally and incarnationally (buzzwordsy I know, but I don’t know how else to describe it). Personally, I don’t know that I’d follow everything from this book… I have some personal convictions that differ from the authors, but I understand the heart of his passion and with that I agree 100%. I recommend this book very highly. I’m glad to kickoff my 2010 reading year with this one; a great way to start it out.

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A Final Christmastide Reflection: Clearly – Appeared and Revealed…

Epiphaneia

2 Timothy 1:8-11

“He has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News.”

Today marks the day of Epiphany and the conclusion of the church Christmas season (Jan.5^th). Today, and for the next season in the cycle of the church calendar, we celebrate and reflect upon the revelation of God made man in the person of Jesus Christ…the appearing of the Incarnation. This Epiphany is extremely significant in what it represents. Not only does it recognize the coming (appearance) of the Christ, but also his manifestation to the gentiles (the Eastern wise men aka Magi) and his manifestation as Son of God to the world at his baptism in the Jordan River. His first miracle, turning water into wine at the marriage feast in Cana, (another manifestation and affirmation of his deity) is commemorated during this season of reflection and wonder as well.

Isaiah 60:1-22

¹ Arise, Shine; For your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. ¹⁶ You shall know that I. the LORD, am your Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. ¹⁸ …You shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise. ¹⁹ …The LORD will be your everlasting light, and your GOD will be your glory. ²² I am the LORD; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.

What happens when we realize the truth and gravity of what has happened among us? How does this affect and change us? What does it really mean to us when the “glory of the LORD has risen upon you”? I am reminded of the words from Thomas Merton who writes the following:

“We who have seen the light of Christ are obliged by the greatness of the grace that has been given us to make known the presence of the Savior to the ends of the earth…not only by teaching the glad tidings of His coming; but above all by revealing Him in our lives… Every day of our mortal lives must be His manifestation, His divine Epiphany, in the world which He has created and redeemed.”

Epiphaneia: to cause to appear or to bring to light…

“Come and See…” “Go and Tell…” (Mark 3:14)

A great and marvelous light has come into the world. Jesus is that light and it amazes me that He desires to make his abode in the likes of me, but the writings of Paul to Timothy tell me this was the plan of God before creation and time…  “So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News. For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News. And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.” (2 Ti. 1:8-11). I want this to be the only thing I live for; my consuming desire…to bring Glory to Him, My God, Savior-Redeemer, Jesus.

I have been praying a prayer that I found from Columbanus for the last couple of days; I will continue to pray this prayer daily for at least the remainder of the week. It follows:

Lord, I pray that You may be a lamp for me in the darkness. Touch my soul and kindle a fire within it, that it may burn brightly and give light to my life. Thus my body may truly become your temple, lit by your perpetual flame burning on the altar of my heart. And may the light within me shine on  my brethren that it might drive away the darkness of ignorance and sin from them also. Thus let us be lights to the world manifesting the bright beauty of Your gospel to all around us. Amen. –Columbanus

“May all kings fall down before Him, all nations give Him service…” (Psalm 72:11)

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Christmastide Reflections: The Passionate Commitment…

Isaiah 9:2-7

⁴ You will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders… ⁶ For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace… ⁷ His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The *passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen.

*Passionate Commitment is a translation for the New Living Translation. In other versions it is translated as “zeal.” Looking up the definition of zeal in several online dictionaries was enlightening to me. The following reflects the sum of my findings:

Zeal: Fervor for a person, cause, or object; eager desire or endeavor; enthusiastic diligence; ardor

Synonyms: intensity, passion

I love that… passionate commitment; zeal; enthusiastic diligence, intensity…passion. This is the description of our God, the Creator-Savior-Redeemer, Jesus. The Rescuer who has come to save, reconcile, and restore us. He does this with passionate commitment. He determined that HE WOULD MAKE THIS HAPPEN with enthusiastic diligence and ardor (intense devotion, eagerness, and/or enthusiasm; burning heat). I love this!!! He would see (and did see) that the burden of sin, the yoke of slavery to the broken flesh, would be lifted! His peace and our reconciliation would never end! Our redeemed and restored relationship would extend ETERNALLY! Why? Because HE WAS-IS Passionately Committed to His creation and His children. Thank God! Immanuel. God is with us!

“Each day proclaim the good news that He saves…” (Psalm 96:2b)

At His birth the world changed. The pregnancy of Hope and the conviction of divine possibility were joined. God is with us…Immanuel. The physical birth of Jesus is exponentially larger than a baby in a manger. Christmas marks the coming of a whole new world. As modern day Christians we know that Christmas is the precursor of the cross. Christmas and the cross are truly a single event. With the fulfillment of God’s promise for deliverance come in Jesus, humanity was invited to coexist with deity for eternity… Immanuel… God with us, God among us, and God in us: Redemption, Reconciliation, and ultimate Restoration. Hallelujah! He Has Come. Immanuel.

“God makes the first move, one of sheer grace; the next move is theirs (ours)…” –Bobby Gross

“Christmas is meant to take us to the level of spiritual maturity where we are capable of seeing in a manger the meaning of an empty tomb.” –Joan Chittister

Isaiah’s prophecy describes the character, conscience, and countenance of Jesus…”The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace…” This is the Image by which we were created (Genesis 1:27) and it is the Image to which we are being transformed (Romans 8:29). Christ himself, has prayed (John 17:22-23) that we (the sons and daughters of God) would be instruments and reflections of His Glory. The image we should radiate and reflect is the same description as depicted by the prophet Isaiah; wisdom, power, love (agape), peace (shalom). As I reflect upon these truths and meditate upon all that it holds for us as “awakened” children of God, I am stricken with a somber dose of reality… I think about the quote from Bobby Gross (above) speaking about the lowly shepherds to whom God announced through His angels the arrival of Messiah Jesus. God did make the first move and the shepherds responded with joyful obedience. I wonder about those who do not respond to God’s move… Ironically, the arrival of Jesus in the flesh of humanity not only signaled life-eternal, but brought with it death as well (Matthew 2:13-18). So, to this end, I ponder… the fulfillment of Promise and Life sealed darkness and death for many. Sadly, I think it does still for those who decide to ignore “God’s first move.” I am reminded of an observation made by the ancient church father, Jerome; “The Lord is born on earth, and he does not have even a cell in which to be born, for there was no room for him in the inn. The entire human race had a place, and the Lord about to be born on earth had none. He found no room among people…” O, Dear God, please…please may this not be the case about Your people today. My prayer today is for us who know you and for those who do not…

Almighty and everlasting God, you have revealed the incarnation of your Son by the bright shining of a star, which the wise men saw, and offered costly gifts in adoration; let the star of your justice always shine in our hearts, that we may give as our treasure all that we are and all that we posses, to your service; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

From before time was, Your plan was to manifest Your image in all you create and now You have provided us the way and the means to this completion through rebirth and re-creation. May we be as the shepherds and respond boldly to Your move; Your invitation to grace and shalom. I pray, O Lord, for the blindness and arrogance of my brothers and sisters…that their hearts might not be hardened, but they would be melted to joyful submission and receive this great gift of salvation from Immanuel… You, who are, God With Us. It is your passionate commitment and merciful magnificence that brings men to repentance… I pray that darkness is dispelled and death destroyed for the sake of those who still do not know or refuse you… may they greet you with adoration and joy, responding to Your “first move” and passionate commitment.

Christ is born: glorify Him. Christ comes from heaven: go out to meet Him. Christ descends to earth: let us be raised on high.

– prayer written from my own words, the words of Gregory of Nazianzus and the Gelasian Sacramentary

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Christmastide Reflections: The Great Exchange…

Reconciliation is here…Restoration beckons us to come.

The past several days I have remained in a state of contemplative wonder; considering still the miracle of deity and flesh converging for the purpose of redeeming light from dark and life from death. For many people, Christmas is over…there is still the novelty and newness of gifts given and received, but the wonder of the Great Exchange has been forgotten; swallowed in the glitter, flash, and furious flurry of commercialism and consumerism. Such is life in the 21^st Century. In the great traditions of the church, however, Christmas is not over…the celebration has only just begun.

Christmas is not merely a day like every other day. It is a day made holy and special by a sacred mystery. It is not merely another day in the weary round of time. Today, eternity enters into time and time, sanctified, is caught up into Eternity.

—Thomas Merton

Christmastide: A Season of Feasts…celebrating the joining of Heaven and Earth

The wonderful nativity story from the gospel of Luke that is so romanticized by our culture has become our poster child of the Christmas season. We gather together, read the story, force a tear, stifle a yawn, and then with alarming speed we rush through the day of Christmas and begin our race towards the New Year holiday parties. And the birth of our Savior is all but forgotten; lost in the midst of fanfare-ous clutter and media mayhem.

The waiting is over, the promised Savior is here…The waiting is over, the Holy One is born…The waiting is over, the Light of the World dawns. If Advent is waiting, Christmas is a season of wonder.

As I have considered this magnificent event, God coming to earth in the flesh of man (Luke 2; Philippians 2), I have noted some parallels…similarities to other stories I have not previously considered. Mary gives birth…delivers the Deliverer, Jesus, with great and joyful exhaustion. I have been present through the births of three of my own children. It is an incredible and “full-body” experience—painful, messy, and very emotional. Giving thought to these experiences, my imagination is stirred to reflect upon the “rebirth” process. After all, this is what the divine birth is the precedent for. I think the process of rebirth is very similar to the original birth…perhaps just as much fraught with pain, mess, and emotion…sometimes exhausting and sometimes exhilaratingly joyful too. Birth and rebirth do not start and stop with a single event; both are beginnings. I wonder why so many of us treat the birth of Jesus as a single event during the Christmas season. I wonder why so many of us (professing Christians) treat our “rebirth” as a single event during the course of our lives. Both events are beginnings; the starts of something so incredible and so incomprehensible that it is hard to put into words. Laurence Stookey does an admirable job of describing the indescribable, the Great Exchange; he writes the following:

Christmas is the enfleshment of God, the humiliation of the Most High and divine participation in all that is painful, ugly, frustrating, and limited. Divinity takes on humanity, to restore the image of God implanted at creation but sullied by sin. Here is the great exchange Christmas ponders, that God became like us that we might become like God. God accepted death that the world might accept life. The Creator assumed temporality to redeem creation from futility.  –Laurence Stookey

My, oh my… How then can we ignore this great exchange, this great salvation? (Hebrews 2:2-4)

I have decided to take on the suggestion from one of the books I am reading during this immersion into the liturgical year; while society and culture moves on to the next thing, I will treat this Christmastide season (these twelve days of Christmas) different. I will linger and reflect on the Season of Feasts; for indeed, Heaven has kissed Earth and reconciliation is here. Restoration beckons us to come.

“Don’t be afraid…I bring you Good News that will bring Great Joy to all people. The Savior—Yes the Messiah, the Lord has been born today.” Luke 2:10-11

“Then I witnessed in Heaven an event of great significance… It has come at last—salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ.” Revelation 12:1-10

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Meditation #8  December 21, 2009

Advent Reflections: Reconciliation, Restoration, and Joy…

“Then I witnessed in Heaven an event of great significance… It has come at last—salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ.” (Revelation 12:1-10)

“Don’t be afraid…I bring you Good News that will bring Great Joy to all people. The Savior—Yes the Messiah, the Lord has been born today.” (Luke 2:10-11)

Reconciliation is here… Restoration beckons us to come. What was broken does not have to remain broken any longer. Reconciliation and restoration are here; the timeless Lord, and Savior of men, King Jesus is here. Salvation has come. How can we ignore or take for granted such a great and significant event? John the Revelator exclaimed; “I witnessed in Heaven an event of great significance… It has come at last—salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ.” Hallelujah! The threshold of reconciliation has been breached! We have life-giving relationship restored with Creator God! This is the Good News! This is the great Joy of the hallelujah chorus sung by the angels of Heaven’s armies.

Let us meditate on the following prayer compiled from an ancient Christian prayer, Psalm 80:1-7, and writings from the book Living the Christian Year.

O God, enthroned above the cherubim, display Your radiant glory. Show us Your mighty power come to rescue us! Turn us again to Yourself, O God. Make Your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.

We praise You, Father, invisible, Giver of immortality. You are the Source of Life and Light, the Source of all Grace and Truth; You love us all, and You love the poor, You seek reconciliation with all and draw them all to You by sending Your dear Son to visit them, who now lives and reigns with You, Father, and Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever.

Therefore, we ask You; turn us again to Yourself, O God of heaven’s armies. Make Your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.

O Mighty One, You have done great things and Holy is Your Name; Your mercy is for those who fear You from generation to generation. May my heart and my life be that as the blessed virgin…here I am, O Lord, Your servant; let it be with me according to Your word. Come Holy Spirit enlarge Your presence in me this day, that I may bring into the world more of Your life and more of Your love. Amen

Reconciliation is here…Restoration beckons us to come – “it has come at last!!!—Salvation and power and the Kingdom of our God, and the authority of His Christ.” (Revelation 12:10)

Joan Chittister writes in her book, The Liturgical Year: the Spiraling Adventure of the Spiritual Life; “We come to Christmas looking for the signs of Jesus’ presence manifested in our own life and age, in us and in the world around us. Christmas is not about a baby, not about sentimental piety, not about Christian fantasy. Christ is a very adult feast. It stretches us far beyond a manger in Bethlehem. It brings us to recognize who ti is that we, like the people of Jesus’ own time, will, in everything we do in life this year, either accept or reject.”

Reconciliation is here…Restoration beckons us to come – “Don’t be afraid…I bring you Good News that will bring Great Joy to all people. The Savior—Yes the Messiah—The Lord has been born today.” (Luke 2:10-11)

On the day that God became flesh in the child named Jesus, Eternity was healed…time became no more. The rip in Creator God’s cosmic tapestry caused by the sin of one man was sewn together through the act of humble submission and eternal love by one man—the God-man—Jesus.

“Then I witnessed in Heaven an event of Great Significance…” Reconciliation is here…Restoration beckons us to come

Christmas is not merely a day like every other day. It is a day made holy and special by a sacred mystery. It is not merely another day in the weary round of time. Today, eternity enters into time and time, sanctified, is caught up into Eternity.

—Thomas Merton

Good News, Great Joy, Reconciliation, and Restoration — an event of Great Significance indeed. Praise You, Lord Jesus. Maranatha — even so, come now, Lord Jesus, come.

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Book Review: Primal – A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity

By Mark Batterson

Before I get into the meat of my review, I have to confess that Primal started off rather slowly for me. I’m accustomed to the writing style of Mark Batterson and pretty familiar with his speaking and teaching style. I’ve listened to his sermons from NCC and followed his blog for several years in addition to reading his books. It is/was probably me, but it just seemed that this book seemed a little sluggish in getting moving with the storyline, but I might be getting ahead of myself. Let me tell you a little about the premise of the book; the following is from the back cover:

“Our generation needs a reformation. But a single person won’t lead it. A single event won’t define it. Our reformation will be a movement of reformers living creatively, compassionately, courageously for the cause of Christ. This reformation will not be born of a new discovery.  It will be the rediscovery of something old, something ancient.  Something primal. What would your Christianity look like if it was stripped down to the simplest, rawest, purest faith possible? You would have more, not less. You would have the beginning of a new reformation—in your generation, your church, your own soul. You would have primal Christianity.”

—Mark Batterson, Primal

Mark takes the heart of his premise, primal, from the great commandment; “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, and all your strength” –Jesus (Mark 12:28-30). He then breaks this down in the book into four parts, deliberately and methodically unpacking these primal elements:

• The heart of Christianity is primal compassion…
• The soul of Christianity is primal wonder…
• The mind of Christianity is primal curiosity…
• And the strength of Christianity is primal energy…

So, while (and this speaking according to my personal preferences) I thought the book started a little slow, the cadence picked up rather quickly and by the time I reached part two (The Soul of Christianity) momentum was “full-on” and I found it difficult to read more than a page or two before I was having “Oh wow, I gotta write this down” moments.

I’m still debating this, but I think the Seventy Faces chapter (chapter five) may be my favorite. There were a number of great quotes in it that I’ll be “borrowing” (Don’t worry Mr. Batterson; I’ll be giving credit where it is due). This chapter is about reading, study, and becoming the word. I especially loved the following thoughts on the need to meditate on Scripture:

“Meditating on it (the Word) turns one-dimensional knowledge into two-dimensional understanding. Living I out turns two-dimensional understanding into three-dimensional obedience… Meditation is the way we metabolize Scripture. That’s how it gets into our soul.”

—Mark Batterson, Primal

I mentioned following Mark’s ministry at NCC and his Evotional.com blogsite. One of the endearing qualities for me with Primal is my noticing some of the teaching illustrations and metaphors that have evolved and become crystal clear in this work. Several years ago I remember a teaching series at the NCC I listened to many times on my iPod (still have this one saved actually) called The Neurology of Faith. I recognized quite a few points from the Neurology series as well as a number of illustrations from various blogging posts. I particularly enjoy seeing things that have developed from the “now and raw” into cohesive and fully formed teaching. I believe that Mark Batterson is a very gifted teacher and speaker; his latest book as well as those that have preceded Primal: A Quest for the Lost Soul of Christianity are proving him to be an equally gifted writer as well.  You can get a sneak peak from the publisher, Multnomah, here. Read the rest of this entry »

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Meditation #7  December 13-18, 2009

Advent Reflections: Anticipating Zion; the joy of God’s universal shalom, considering “peace,” “completion,” “joy,” and His divine “splendor.”

Coming Joy –

“Let it be unto me, Your servant, according to Your will…” Mary (Luke 1:38)

“I must decrease, so that He may increase…” John the Baptist (John 3:30)

Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! For the Lord will remove his hand of judgment and will disperse the armies of your enemy. And the Lord himself, the King of Israel, will live among you! At last your troubles will be over, and you will never again fear disaster. On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be, “Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid! For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

Anticipate ~ Watch ~ Wait ~ Alert

The promise of His return is before us. While “no man knows the time or day” of the return, we know that it is imminent. Therefore, how we wait is important. Our wait should be with eager anticipation; baited and hungry for fruits of righteousness born from our own lives that indicate lifestyles of repentance. It was John the Baptist who said, “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.” (Luke 3:8) As we wait…as we watch, our attitudes are that of eager, alert, and hungry anticipation; bearing fruits of repentance until His return.

Remember ~ Return ~ Readiness ~ Repentance

Remembering helps us to stay ready. It is easy to slip into complacency; even ambivalence, while we wait if our minds and hearts do not stay “ready.” Remembering helps us to ward off the tendencies our nature has to relax. What is it that we remember? We can remember the historical works of God from the Holy Scriptures. We can remember the promises fulfilled even now by our great and faithful God. We can recount the works of transformation, blessing, provision, and perfection that He has done in our lives individually as well as the lives of people who are close to us. In these acts of remembrance, we stay ready for His return with eager and repentant hearts. Maranatha; Come Lord Jesus…

Redemption ~ Reconcile ~ Restore ~ Rejoice

Redemption is an incredible thing…a concept that explodes into our lives with new meaning once we are awakened to our brokenness. The English dictionary provides us with the following definitions for “redeem”: (1) to make something acceptable or pleasant in spite of its negative qualities or aspects (2) restore a reputation (3) to pay off the outstanding portion of a debt (4) to fulfill a pledge or a promise. Redemption is a work that God promised even in the early chapters of the Genesis account. Redemption is an act that no man can perform on his own behalf. Without God, there is no hope for redemption and awareness of our brokenness only brings paralyzing despair. But…redemption is an incredibly real act that has been completed by our God for every man and woman; past, present, and future. With redemption comes the invitation to reconciliation, an even more gloriously stupendous reality…the invitation to be reconciled (oneness of unity) with the Triune Person of God. This is restoration…taking back that which was broken to its original and unbroken state; the restoration is in process and working towards ultimate completion and perfection. For this, we rejoice!

Hope ~ Delight ~ Peace ~ Joy ~ Shalom

Our hope is looking forward to completion and ultimate reconciliation with our Father and Savior God. Anticipation of this day brings delight even now as we live out repentant and grateful lives with peaceful joy always staying alert and ready for His return, but stalwart in our confidence of being held by Him until the universal Shalom of God is ushered into the ReCreation (The New Heaven and New Earth). This is our joy. “I’m bringing you,” the angel says, “good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day… a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:10-11). And so it is; Great Joy… past, present, and ultimate future. Hope; with joy now, looking forward to eternal reconciliation and complete restoration. This is Joy. This is the universal Shalom of the Creator-Savior-King, the Triune God.

Joan Chittister, writes in The Liturgical Year; “If, focused on the Christ Child at the very beginning of the liturgical year; we do not have the spiritual vision to see meaning there and to develop it within ourselves, there is nothing else on earth that will ever be able to supply it for us.” Indeed.

Additional thoughts on joy that I pulled from the writings of Joan Chittister follow:

1. Joy is not about what happens to us…
2. Joy is the meaning we give to what we do that determines the nature, the quality of the lives we live.
3. Joy is not about self-centeredness (John 5:30)
4. Happiness (true happiness) is not about self-satisfaction; it is about the joy that comes with a sense of purpose.
5. Joy comes from living our lives immersed in the will of God; not self-aggrandizement.
6. Joy is not in things; it is in us…

A prayer as we enter into the week of Light and Joy:

O Lord, my God, grant us your peace; already, indeed, You have made us rich in all things! Give us peace of being at rest, that Sabbath peace, the peace which know no end. O great God of Peace, sanctify me entirely; may You keep my spirit, soul and body sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because You have called me and You are faithful, I believe You will do this.

O Lord, mindful fo Your Great mercy, grant that I might serve You without fear, in holiness and righteousness this day and all the days of my life. May it be so to Your glory and the coming of Your Kingdom Eternal. Amen.

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