A Letter to Rose #3: Christmas

My dearest goddaughter, Rose,

It's almost Christmas time- your very first! It is going to be one of the best Christmases for all of us since you're here with us. I want to tell you a story. . . it's not about Santa or the Grinch or even that little guy from the movie with the leg lamp (ask your Daddy about that one). It's about Jesus. 

A long, long time ago when the world was groaning in a pain and sin, not unlike today actually, God sent a message to a young girl named Mary. The message was that she would become pregnant and have a son and he would be called Jesus which means "he saves." Now this was not news that made the morning papers.  It was not news that one would find on CNN or MSNBC or even Fox. This was news that was meant for the poor and lowly, it was news that threatened those in power. It was controversial and yet at the same time it was joyous, hopeful, and dangerous too. 

Mary was not even married yet, which in her day was an absolute scandal, not like today where no one bats an eyelash about such situations. However, in Mary's day she could have stoned to death for being pregnant out of marriage so this was very serious. She was betrothed, that means she was promised to someone for marriage. His name was Joseph and he was older than her. It took an angel to come to him to convince him not to just let her go, to leave her in shame and in danger, but that angel convinced him that this child was indeed God's child. This child was the promised One of Israel. So Joseph took Mary and married her and the child was born far away from home in a town called Bethlehem because the couple had business there that had to be tended to.

The danger was not over though, Rose. Jesus was not born in a nice, sterile hospital with a gift shop like you were. Oh no, he was born in a stable. You know what that is, right? A barn! (If you ever hear your mama say, "Rose, were you born in a barn?" You can always tell her, "No, but Jesus our Savior was!") Jesus' delivery was a dangerous situation. He could have died out there in that strange town in that barn full of animals. But God protected him because he was to be the One to save his people from sin, death and the power of the devil. Joseph then had a dream which told him that the danger was far from over. . . he was to take Mary and Jesus and get out of town and go to the country of Egypt to wait out the danger. The King called Herod was on a rampage, he wanted that baby king to be killed so he killed every baby he could put his hands on. Horrific isn't it? But Jesus was spared thanks to divine intervention. 

There is more to the story, of course, but we get to that in due time. For now I just wanted you to know the real reason we celebrate Christmas. Jesus. He is the reason, because through his life, death and resurrection Christ has given us everything that is important! He has given us a relationship with the Creator, salvation from our sins and life eternal when we pass forward. 

I can't wait to see you again! Remember I love you and God loves you! 

Merry Christmas Sweetie,

Aunt Amy

In the "Mean"time

Zephaniah 3:14-20

¹⁴Sing aloud, O daughter Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter Jerusalem! ¹⁵The Lord has taken away the judgments against you, he has turned away your enemies. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall fear disaster no more. ¹⁶On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands grow weak. ¹⁷The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing ¹⁸as on a day of festival. I will remove disaster from you, so that you will not bear reproach for it. ¹⁹I will deal with all your oppressors at that time. And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth. ²⁰At that time I will bring you home, at the time when I gather you; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.

The news this past week is extremely sad and horrifying. For many it begs questions about theodicy, or why does God allow evil in the world? There are no good or satisfying answers to that question for sure. The only way I can wrap my brain around it is to understand that God created humanity in freedom, which unfortunately means that some human beings totally disregard the existence of God at all; they do not hold life to be precious and commit atrocities against others in their fear, anger and extreme brokenness. We can name in our own lifetime half a dozen examples: 9/11, Virginia Tech, Columbine and the list goes on. And each and every time it happens we are stunned, horrified and heartbroken. And so is God.

Our God is a god who knows and understands our grief, confusion, anger and horror! He weeps with us as we weep for the dead and injured. His heart is broken over the brokenness of humanity, and it's been that way since the garden of Eden. It's been that way since the first brother murdered the second brother. 

Back in Egypt when God’s people were bound in slavery and oppression, when the kind knew nothing of Joseph and his clan, Pharaoh murdered as many Hebrew baby boys as he could get his hands on. He feared the way they were multiplying, he was anxious that they would one day take over his kingdom. One was saved, Moses, and he led God’s people out of slavery and into the promised land. God made a way where there was no way. (Please hear very clearly that I am not implying that the other infants were less important than Moses. . . only that God used a horrific situation and made something out of it, something that in the end freed a people.)

In Jerusalem 2,000 years ago, King Herod ordered all baby boys under the age of two to be killed, because he feared  the magi's report of a new king which he thought threatened his power and way of life. St. Luke writes about the mothers who clung to their dead babies bodies as they wept in horror and grief.  But one was saved, the promised One, Jesus the Christ. God made a way where there was no way. 

The TV seems better left off if you want to have any peace at all these days: 22 children in China slashed with a knife on Friday; in Sandusky not long ago 2 children and their mother were murdered by an ex-convict who had just finished serving a 15+ year prison term for the same crime; in Vermillion an 18 month old was left to die of starvation; baby girls in China are slaughtered for being female and being the second child in a family; and in Newtown CT, 20 Kindergartners and 6 brave teachers were killed by a crazed gunman. 

There is a war on children. There has always been a war on children. There will continue to be a war on innocent life until the last days, when Jesus comes again and the old kingdom of this earth passes away. Until then, in the meantime we live in the MEAN time. It is mean and nasty and filled with terror, not everyday thanks be to God, but far too often to be sure! For the moment, we as God's children are called to be advocates to all children, to speak out and act out on behalf of those who are most precious to Jesus. Jesus made it very clear that children were a priority for him: he called them to his lap, he urged people to believe like they did, he knew they were precious and in need of protection. Perhaps he would have said it that way too: There is a WAR on children.

Our hope and consolation in times like this is that we know with certainty that God is with these families: Jesus our Emmanuel is certainly One who fully understands the horror, fear and pain of violence and murder, having experienced it firsthand. Christ is with the community of Newtown, with the families in China and with all those who suffer at the hands of violent, malevolent, cowards who neither love God nor fear him. We live in a world filled with people who are dark, who are plagued with fear and doubt and are susceptible to the evil one. But still, in this Third Week of Advent,  we are called to rejoice.. . called to hope, called to love, called to be people of peace in a world of violence, hate and terror. 

Advent promises us a new beginning, but still it is ONLY a promise so far-- we are not there yet. We continue to wait and watch for Christ's return when all will be made new, when there will be no more crying and pain, no more murder and violence. But we aren't there yet. The prophet Zephaniah proclaims God’s good news to us in the face of our enemies. Our enemies will be taken away. We shall fear no more. We will be renewed in love and brought HOME! Home is where God is. Home is where Jesus dwells. For now he dwells within our hearts and for the meantime that simply has to be enough. 

God's peace to you and his comfort and joy as well!

ACL

Blue Jeans= Relax!

This past Wednesday during our first Midweek Advent Service of the season I led worship in blue jeans. Levis to be exact. It's not about the blue jeans, really, its about being relaxed I think.

Just the day before I went to Physical Therapy for the first time in my life, though in college I spent every day in the Athletic Training room. The presenting problem? I threw my sacroiliac out AGAIN! I truly think that this happens when I get so frenzied, so busy, so stressed with all the balls I have in the air that something in my body says, "No more! Slow down or I WILL slow you down." Then I hobble around in excruciating pain for six days, icing, resting, taking the requisite pain relievers, only to start up again when I am mobile. So here I was lying on the PT's exam table as she is trying to get a reflex from my foot or ankle (I don't know what she was doing!) and she kept saying, "Relax. Relax. Relax!" Apparently I wouldn't give her what she wanted which was a relaxed foot. Then she said, "You need to learn to relax." To which I quipped, "Yes, I've been told that." We both chuckled.

So in act of relaxation (not defiance mind you) I wore a sweater and blue jeans to worship for the very first time in over 10 years! 15 if you count seminary. Know what I think? I think everyone else was a bit more relaxed as well. We had a lovely service of compline, we breathed deeply and exhaled out all of the stress together, and it was a beautiful quiet, peace-filled evening of worship.

So what do you think? What means relaxation to you? Is it a particular way of dressing? Is it music? Is it ___________? And further, do you think that worship ought to be more relaxed, or at least occasionally? Or does that bother you?

Have a very relaxing Friday, even if you are working, and a blessed first Sunday of Advent!

acl

Getting Back in the Practice

Over the summer I fell out of my normal routine of working out at least an hour every day. The reason was that I hurt my back and after about five trips to chiropractor it began to heal and stay in alignment. I lost all of the conditioning I had built up and it was pretty significant. The old adage, "use it or lose it" is so true, especially when it comes to being in shape physically. I recently read where if an athlete takes more than a two week break from training then they are basically starting all over again. Back to square one in their conditioning. Two weeks isn't very long in my book; sometimes two weeks flies by so quickly that it seems like a single day. So anyway, I've been back to my routine for about two weeks now and every P90X workout brings on newly sore muscles. Those muscles that were in tune to the workout are now being challenged to spring back into shape. It's tough. . . the older I get, the harder it gets but I feel so much better when I commit myself to working out everyday.

Yesterday I was feeling a bit tired, mentally, physically and spiritually fatigued. I was at a meeting out of town with two colleagues, one of which had to leave to go lead a noon worship service of Holy Communion. We decided to stay and worship because we knew we needed the break, the refreshment, the renewed connection with Christ. It was a quiet worship, only a dozen or so in attendance, but it was so peace-full. There was time to sit and talk to God. There was time to sit and listen. (And I didn't have to be in charge; I didn't have to make everyone feel at home; I didn't have to make sure everything was where it needed to be; I didn't have to think, I had the joy of just "being.") It was wonderful to get to practice just "being" for a time yesterday. So often the rush and pace of life prevents me from settling down and practicing what I know will truly bring renewal and refreshment. I make time to work out. . . to be in that sort of practice. . . I sometimes forget to make time for the other kind of practice.

How about you? Do you devote time to just "being" with God? Do you allow yourself the luxury, no the discipline, no the necessity of spending precious moments with our Savior? What gets in the way of such practice, because we know it's vital to our survival?! Will our spiritual muscles get flabby if we fail to put them into practice? From my own experience I would say, "yes."

Here's what works for me, and feel free to comment on what works for you so that all the readers of STS can benefit from your experience: I walk my dog, Martin Luther, just about every day. We go for one hour which is about 3.5 miles. This is the time I devote to Christ. I ask him to be with me by saying these words that indicate my assent to his presence, "Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy." I focus on breathing in the Spirit and exhaling the toxic stuff of my thoughts, fears and anxieties. It is my prayer practice. It works for me very well. It pulls me back to my grounding in Jesus and allows my day to go smoother, more grace-full. It changes me each morning into the person Christ would like me to be- okay so it's not a full change, I'm still simul justis et peccator, but you get the idea.

So seriously, what works for you? How are you doing on your practice? What keeps you from practicing?

May God bless your work and play, prayer and solitude, family time and rest. Amen.

A Letter to Rose: #2 Saints

This is the second letter in an ongoing series of letters to my niece who is also my goddaughter. She is the first child in my family that I had the joy of baptizing (I say "I" but I really mean that I got to pour the water and say the words and God did the real work since I can't do anything even remotely close to resembling what God does in baptism).

November 5, 2012

Dear Rose,

Yesterday was All Saints Sunday in church. That’s a day when we remember all of the faithful people who have died in the past year. We light a candle and read their names and we talk about the promise of Christ’s resurrection. It is always very moving for people, especially if they have had a loved one die recently. 

There are a few people in your family, Rose, that you will never meet because they had their resurrection time before it was your time to be born. They are still your people though! Most importantly your paternal grandmother, your daddy’s mama. None of us ever had the privilege of meeting her because she died when before your mommy and daddy met. Also, your paternal grandfather, your daddy’s dad who died not long ago, but again before you were born. (Maybe you crossed paths in heaven before you came to us??) Ask your daddy about them when you get older. Have him tell you stories about who they were and what they were like because it is a window into who your dad is and who you are too. 

Then there are the people on your mommy’s side, those I know because I am married to your mommy’s brother. There was your great-grandmother Anna Stull who your cousin is named after. Oh how they loved her! She was funny and sweet and smart. That’s grandpa Little’s mother. Grandma Little’s mother was great-grandma Marian Hoskins. She used to give your cousins stuffed animals that she won at bingo. Ask your mama about them because they are your people too and they will show you part of who you are. 

You are very lucky, little one, to have your Grandma and Grandpa Little. You have a special relationship with Grandma Little because your first name is part of her name (just like with your middle name was your daddy’s mama’s name). It is so neat to be named after someone; my middle name was my grandma’s first name. But I’m telling you from experience that your grandma and grandpa are the best! They love you so much and you give them such joy. So here’s my advice little girl, when you get old enough to read this letter ask them questions about their lives. Ask them questions about growing up, how hard it was, what they liked to do, where they met (back in junior high!!) and what it was like to be parents to your mommy. You will find out a lot about who you are when you talk to them and hear their stories. 

The saints in our lives (and you are a saint young lady by virtue of your baptism) give us so much. They love us, they encourage us to be faithful followers of Christ, they look out for us and help us grow in faith, love and service to the world. Hearing their stories strengthens us for the journey of faith and reminds us where we have come from and who we are. You are surrounded by wonderful people, Rose, so take advantage of their experiences as you grow into who God has created you to be.

I love you sweetheart,

Aunt Amy