Advent: The Candle of Peace

I have told you these things, so that in Me you might have peace.

John 16:33

CANDLE OF PEACE

Peace is an elusive commodity in our stress-filled lives and fractured world.  As human beings, we long for a time of peace – in our world, our nation, our community, our family, and our individual selves.  The second candle on the Advent Wreath reminds us that the key element in true, lasting peace is the presence of Christ, and the knowledge that God is in control.

The Apostle John quotes Jesus as saying, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”  John 14:27   When the pressures of life threaten to overwhelm you, look to Jesus for:

PEACE in P rayer

·         Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.  1 Peter 5:7

PEACE in E ffort

·         Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy…  Hebrews 12:14

PEACE in A cceptance

·         God demonstrates His own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ

died for us.  Romans 5:8

·         Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through

our Lord Jesus Christ.  Romans 5:1

PEACE in C ontentment

·         But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

1 Timothy 6:6-8

·         …I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.  Philippians 4:11b

·         …be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.  Hebrews 13:5

PEACE in E xpectation

·                                  Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in Me.  In my Father’s house  are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.  John 14:1-3

When peace like a river attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea-billows roll;

Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,

“It is well, it is well with my soul.”

Advent: The Candle of Hope

And now remain these three:  faith, HOPE, love…

1 Corinthians 13:13

Advent wreaths have their origins in the folk traditions of northern Europe, where in the deep of winter people lit candles on wheel-shaped bundles of evergreen. Both the evergreen and the circular shape symbolized ongoing life. The candlelight gave comfort at this darkest time of the year, as people looked forward to the longer days of spring.

Later, Eastern European Christians adopted this practice. By the sixteenth century, they were making Advent wreaths much as we know them today. An advent wreath traditionally contains four candles-three purple and one rose. The three purple candles in the Advent wreath symbolize hope, peace, and love. These candles are lit on the first, second, and fourth Sundays of Advent. The rose candle, which symbolizes joy, is usually lit on the third Sunday.  A fifth candle of white is placed inside the Advent wreath. This candle is lit on Christmas Eve and symbolizes the birth of Jesus Christ.

CANDLE OF HOPE

Isaiah says, "The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope.  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”   Romans 15:12-13 

The Apostle Paul states that Hope is… “an anchor to the soul.”  Faith and Hope lie embedded deep within us, securing us through the storms of life.  When you feel helpless (and hopeless) inside, putting your trust in the Jesus of Christmas will give you these four things: 

HOPE for H elp

·         Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.   Hebrews 4:16

HOPE for O pportunity

·         “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11

HOPE for P ower

·         …He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.  1 John 4:4

·         My grace is sufficient for you: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.  2 Cor. 12:9

HOPE for E ternity

·         For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  John 3:16 

We have this hope that burns within our hearts:

Hope in the coming of the Lord.

We have this faith that Christ alone imparts:

Faith in the promise of His Word.

The Killing Fields

Thou shalt not kill...

Exodus 20:13

My daughter chose accounting/auditing as her career path, and she currently works in Washington, D.C. as a consultant to the Federal Government.  She visits a wide variety of government facilities in her daily activities - one of which is the Navy Yard.  Thankfully, she was not there last Monday when Aaron Alexis began shooting in Building 197.  When all was said and done, he had taken 12 lives, then forfeited his own in a hail of gunfire.  His goal:  to kill as many people as possible.  His motive?  Unknown.

This morning, masked gunmen burst into a shopping mall in Nairobi, Kenya, killing at least 39 people and injuring many others.  Their goal:  To kill as many people as possible. Their motive: To force Kenya to withdraw troops from Somalia.  Seemingly endless examples of such tragedies are plastered all over the Internet and the news.

When God delivered to Moses the "rules"  (10 commandments) that should govern human existence, the sixth one in line was You shall not murder.  That heavenly regulation has become earthly law in every civilized nation on earth.  Outside of a war zone (a different topic altogether), no human being has the right to take another human being's life.  I do not have the authority to decide when your life should end, and vice versa. 

More than that - I do not have the right to force you to pay for my pain.  Every person on earth will, at some time in their lives, experience pain, heartache, tragedy, and grief - some far more brutally than others.  Every life is marked with grievances, slights, rudeness, and inequality.  Believing that hurting my neighbor will somehow lessen my misery is an emotional error with devastating consequences.

Jesus said, Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. God offers comfort and peace in our times of depression, anguish, and pain.  Anger and a weapon (of any kind) only bring further misery and suffering.  

Goodbye...

O Grave, where is thy victory?

O Death, where is thy sting?

1 Corinthians 15:55

 

When you have worked in the same local church for as long as I have (almost 12 years), sooner or later you are going to have to bury someone that you strongly care about.  Such will be my experience on Monday.  One of our congregants died unexpectedly this week - a woman who has been a fixture at the church for years.

She didn't like me much when I first arrived, and if I am honest, I would have to say that the feeling was mutual.  But over the years, time and circumstances forged a strong friendship between us, one that I believe we both valued.  More times than I can count, she came to me with the question, "How can I help?"  She developed a strong affection for one of my high school voice students -  a young man with a wonderful baritone voice.  Almost every time she saw me, she would ask about him, and inquire as to his needs.  When her family revealed her personal wishes for the participants in her memorial service, this young man's name was toward the top of the list.

This precious woman endured tragedy after tragedy that would have felled many others - men or women.  Clinging to her faith, she fought her way through the grief and the tears.  She will long be remembered as the one who arrived on Sunday morning with a smile on her face and an inquiry as to everyone's health.  She was the little lady with the apron pockets full of goodies, surrounded by children as she made her way through the fall bazaar booths.  She loved to laugh and she loved to hug.  She was full of hope, happiness and life and will be greatly missed.

As my vocal student and I searched for the right song to sing in her memory, I came across an old hymn that suddenly seemed to fit just right.  It was the way she lived her life, and the way she met her death.  

Until Then

 

My heart can sing when I pause to remember
A heartache here is but a stepping stone
Along a path that's winding always upward.
This troubled world is not my final home.

But until then, my heart will go on singing.
Until then, with joy I'll carry on.
Until the day my eyes behold that City -
Until the day God calls me home.

 

Fear of the Needle

Fear not, for I am with you...

Isaiah 41:10

 

This afternoon, I was trying to figure out how to make a side dish out of a half of a bag of frozen shredded potatoes when I thought of the (not so) bright idea of perhaps utilizing some of the potato soup I had in the pantry.   I opened the can (tear-off lid), tasted the contents, and immediately realized that it would not be useable with the shreds.  I dumped the contents into another container, grabbed my Dobie pad, filled the can with water and soap, and jammed my hand down in the can to clean it out for recycling.  I immediately felt a jab of pain in my little finger, and knew that I had cut myself on the sharp inner edge of the can.  Sure enough, blood was running everywhere as I surveyed a short but relatively deep cut.

I immediately wrapped it in a paper towel with some pressure to stop the bleeding, and reached for the hydrogen peroxide.  After thoroughly dousing the injury with the peroxide, I put on a bandage and sat down for a minute to catch my breath.  That is when the thought hit me - "You need to go get a Tetanus shot!"  I had just been outside with the dog and the dirt, and I haven't had a Tetanus shot in at least 20 years.  I sat in that chair for quite a few minutes, arguing with myself about why I did NOT need to go get a shot.  In the end, however, my rational side overcame my timid one, and I grabbed my keys to drive over to Patient First.

I wish that I could tell you that I talked with God on the trip to the clinic - verbalizing my fears and remembering His promises.  Unfortunately, however, I spent the 15 minute trip ramping myself up to the horrible experience of a needle - an experience that has terrified me since childhood. By the time I reached Patient First, my blood pressure was quite high and I was rapidly becoming a basket case.  Forty minutes later when the nurse finally arrived to administer the shot with the tiniest needle I have ever seen on a syringe, the experience was over in the blink of an eye, I didn't even feel the needle, and I felt like an utter fool as the young nurse said, "See?  All that anxiety over nothing!"

On the way home, I apologized to the Lord for my lack of faith - actually, for my lack of communication with Him at all prior to receiving the injection.  Even after all these years, I am still struggling to remember that it always works better when prayer comes before panic. 

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

...choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods 

your fathers served in the region beyond the river,

 or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. 

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Joshua 24:14

We all make decisions each and every day - scores of choices big and small.  Some decisions we agonize over, but many others are made with very little forethought.  What, where and when to eat, for example, are usually not determinations that involve heavy-duty thinking.  There is nothing in our day-to-day lives, however, that does not include decisions: work, school, leisure, vacation, entertainment, exercise, and nourishment. 

I am an avid reader of mystery novels - who-dun-it's, and one of my favorite authors is Anne Perry.  Her marvelous books are set in the Victorian era in England, and showcase either the sleuthing skills of William Munk, or Inspector Thomas Pitt.  I have just finished Acceptable Loss, featuring Mr. Munk, his wife Hestor, and their friend Oliver Rathbone, a famous London barrister.  At the heart of the story are three additional characters - Mr. Rathbone's wife, Margaret, his father-in-law, Arthur Ballenger, and Rupert Cardew, a dissolute but kind young man.  These three characters form the emotional core of the story, and each makes decisions - some rash and on the spur of the moment, that drastically alter the course of their lives (not toward goodness, but in the opposite direction).

I have to laugh at myself sometimes, because I am often found arguing with one of the characters in a book - cautioning them regarding a choice they have made or are making.  "Oh pleeeease, don't go there!!!"  Obviously, it does little good to talk to a character in a novel.  But processing what decisions are being made and what the outcomes are likely to be is a wonderful learning experience for me, if my heart is open to accepting the lessons that are there.

All of us have decisions to make today, and again tomorrow, that will affect the path of our lives.  One of those choices is to whom we will give our allegiance.  The Old Testament leader, Joshua, knew this.  In his confrontation with the people of Israel, he demanded of them, "CHOOSE... Choose whom you are going to serve - the pagan gods from your past, the gods of your Amorite neighbors, or the Lord God."  That same question comes to us today.  Who will you choose to serve?  Yourself?  The gods of money, power and prestige?  Or the Creator of the universe?