Advent resources Week 3

I love the words of my friend Dave Kieffer, leader of Disicple Makers, who reminds us what it is like to run the race….(Hebrews 12: 1-2)

“Life’s struggles turn precious over time. During the cruelest legs of a long race, every small step is more painful than I anticipated. I am impatient to pass each new mile marker. Looking ahead I doubt I can make it to the next milestone. But after the race, a strange thing
happens . . . almost immediately. My perception changes. What was so vivid in my experience (the heat, the aches) becomes hazy in my reflections. “Were there two long hills . . that’s right, there were three . . . or was it four? I can’t remember, it all runs together.” I begin to feel it wasn’t that bad after all. In fact, it went surprisingly well. The glory of a race finished works backwards replacing doubts with confidence and complaints with joy.”

Dave reminds us that Christmas is very much like the race ……
“Christmas is the starkest reminder that redemption works backwards. Jesus was born in weakness, turmoil and poverty. In life, He was misunderstood, betrayed, and mocked. Ultimately he died innocently. Yet, he finished the race that no one else could. He lived the life we all know we should live to save us from the life we have lived. He completed the most amazing race. That reality changes everything. Not only is death defeated, but it means that all suffering will ultimately be viewed from the perspective of His total victory. As we grasp this, His redemption begins to work backwards into our lives — bitterness is replaced by forgiveness, anxiety by peace, fear by hope. What a Savior!”

As you prepare for the Advent of our Savior’s birth may you once again realize with great joy the reality of the gift of Jesus in your life. May you experience grace and peace because of our Lord’s birth.

Advent Resources Week 2

Running, non-stop…How can we possibly quiet our souls to prepare for the Christ child?

I too struggle with running so much trying to get everything done during Advent that I want to make sure I have time to cleanse my own heart in order to welcome the Christ Child. In the midst of so much grief and heartache from yesterday’s news, how do we prepare our own hearts?

And yet, we know that Christ came into this world to break through the darkness for exactly times like this….for times like this when we have no answers, for times like this when there seems like there is no hope…for times like this…..and the Light begins to shine in the darkness.

There are no answers, I wish there were. Sometimes all we can do is sit and be with God ourselves, and pray….we can pray for that light that shines in the darkness to burn brighter, we can pray that we can become bearers of that light for and with Jesus the Christ.

Here are some web sites that I use for my own preparation of heart:

These are visuals from Jan Richardson for Advent week two.

One of my favorite places to find meditation readings for Advent and beyond is here from The Edge of Enclosure by Suzanne Guthrie. Suzanne also writes another blog called “Come to the Garden”, here she speaks of quieting our souls for Advent.

There are many songs that help prepare my heart, here is one of them by Amy Grant, Breath of Heaven:

May you have time to quiet your soul this Advent season, as we wait and wonder about the miracle once again.

Advent Resources Week 1

There is something compelling about watching the flame of a candle, or better yet, watching a fire burn in front of you. (A controlled fire, like a bonfire.) As you stare at the dancing flames they almost seem to jump out at you. All of our senses get involved as we smell the fire, and we feel the heat upon our skin.

Think on these things as we anticipate the light of the world to show up once again. Jesus is called the light that has come into the darkness. That light is not always a nice, little gentle flame, but rather sometimes the flames get hot! The flames from this light can spit fire, or it can be as peaceful as the little flame of a candle.

What does the light entering into the darkness of the world mean for you? Have you experienced darkness this year? Does the flame need to heat up in a place of your life?

As you prepare for the Christ child once again, think of how this light has filled not only our own spaces, but the spaces of those around us. What would it look like for the light to penetrate into all the dark corners?

So put down all the busy things, and contemplate on the light that has entered the world. Maybe you want to read the Scripture from John 1.

Maybe you just need some peace from the kids and everything else pulling you away from Jesus. You are not alone. This song from Amy Grant reminds us that we all struggle to find time to prepare our hearts, and our minds for the coming Messiah.

We all need time for a “Silent Night”. So, light a candle, see the flame dancing before you, settle in, and meditate upon that light, the light that has come into the darkness.