Matthew 1: 2-17

I have over 5,000 in my Facebook account, so I decided that, to do this year’s Advent devotional I would ask a very simple question: How it is you see God in your lives?

One person wrote of her infidelity and the hope to be able to reconcile with her husband. Her time to regain his trust led to a healthy happy baby girl and how she thanks God for this miracle.

Another simply asked that I pray for her.

One said she wants to leave church a better person than when she came. To her, in God’s eyes we are the wonder He created and that in her lifetime she aspires to be the person He intended her to be.

Another thinks God moves mountains for us; is a teacher who empowers us to live a life of blessing; is a spirit never leaving us to face anything alone; a majestic ruler of the universe; and our Father who calls us His own.

A provocative answer called God an energy — one you will not meet but one you will see everywhere from the greatest and tiniest things and facts in life and beyond life.

I thought it would be easier to summarize what it is we all see to be God working in our life. It was not. I think if I took things from these answers I would say it is an energy, it is a mover of mountains, one who is there no matter how tiny the thing in life we have going on, one who we turn to for prayer; a redeemer who sees the flaws in a person’s life and still rewards one with a gift so precious that it humbles us to this day.

I think if I could say how I see God in my life? I have a quiet belief as I move from place to place and task to task that, yes, there is a power, an energy a feeling of comfort that makes me want the person next to me to feel. I hope you all can feel the stability I feel knowing He is there in both times of good and bad.

PRAYER: May we all have that feeling of God’s power, energy and comfort. Amen.

Doug Reynics

Luke 2: 41-52

A Carol for Christmas

Sing carols at Christmas
Repeat the old tales
Of wise men and angels
Of starry-lit heavens.

Sing songs of the shepherds
The stable, the star,
Of Mary the mother –
No room in the inn.

The words of the carols
Ring clearly of love
Come down to the manger
To dwell among men.

These tales of nativity
Kindle a glow;
We treasure the stories
And tell them anew.

The babe who was king,
With incense and gold
Was also the Christ
Who died for us all.

The star and the stable
Gave way to the cross.
Christ’s spirit within us
Still teaches his love.

Sing joyfully, telling
The good news abroad
Of God’s love incarnate
In Jesus his son.

PRAYER: God, in today’s Scripture You give us the only glimpse we have of Jesus’ youth. May we have the same kind of zeal for You as Jesus, which caused Him not to worry about the time, but to be eager to be in Your house. May you fill us with the Holy Spirit that we may desire to be with You each and every day, that we may get “lost” in our time spent with You. Amen.

Mary Elizabeth Etheridge

Luke 2: 21-33

As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we are reminded in this passage in Luke of Jesus’ strong Jewish heritage. Eight days after his birth, he was circumcised. After completing the 41-day ritual of purification, his parents presented their firstborn to God at the Temple with a sacrifice of a pair of doves or pigeons. Have you, like me, focused more on shepherds and wise men than on these Jewish traditions in the early days of Jesus’ life?

In the midst of the Jewish ritual of presentation at the Temple, Simeon proclaims that the salvation Jesus brings is for all people. We are reminded by Simeon that Jesus’ light will shine not only for the people of Israel but for everyone. In other words, Jesus will be guided by but will transcend his Jewish heritage in sharing his message to the world. We learn that Jesus’ devout Jewish parents – who were probably still dazed by personal visits from angels and from shepherds who talked about singing angels – were amazed by what Simeon said.

Simeon is described in Luke as a good, God-fearing man. He had been assured by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Messiah before he died. When he saw Jesus at the Temple, he immediately recognized him as the Messiah and gave thanks to God. May we be as faithful and as confident as Simeon that we will readily see Christ in our midst and respond with praise to God.

PRAYER: Dear God, We celebrate with joy the birth of Jesus, the greatest gift we have received. Like Jesus, help us to be guided by our faith to reach out to all people everywhere. Like Mary and Joseph, help us never to cease being amazed by your gracious and abundant love. Like Simeon, help us to recognize Christ among us and to show our gratitude to you. Amen.

Carol Morgan

Christmas Day

Luke 2: 8-20

A Child is born!
Christmas!
The birth of Christianity.

As I read and reread this passage,
Other than the story of the angels appearing,
what I appreciate is the significance of the shepherds.
If I isolate and hone in on the shepherds, I see a story of
triumph over fear,
belief overcoming disbelief,
and trust leading to witness.
Today, we celebrate the birth of Jesus, but also significant is how
God uses the most unsuspecting and often the most unlikely of us to
witness for God. Extraordinary things from ordinary people.
That is the story of Jesus. That should be the story of our own lives.

PRAYER: Dear God, In our times of fear, disbelief and awe, we pray for courage and faith. We give thanks for your promise of forgiveness and unending love. We lift our hearts in grateful praise. Amen.

Jon Colgrove

Christmas Eve

Luke 2:1-7

“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled.”

What emotions these simple but majestic words arouse! What memories! Christmas pageants. Worship services. My best memory is of Robert Shaw reading Luke 2 prior to directing Handel’s Messiah, and my excitement and expectation as I heard the opening strains of that beautiful oratorio.

“Joseph also went from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judea, the city of David.”

We are on the road to Bethlehem, the scene of God incarnate, the beginning of the Christian story and experience. There is hope, joy, and yes, some fear. What changes may be required of me after Bethlehem?

“And Mary gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths.”

He is here. It is Christmas and nothing will ever be the same for any of us.

PRAYER: Lord, we can never be worthy of your great gift, but knowing your amazing grace, we gratefully accept it. Amen.

John Hollender

Isaiah 9:2-7

Wouldn’t it be something if we declared a national mission statement that read something like this:

1. “Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire.”
2. Of the increase of our government and peace, there will be no end.
3. He (or She) will reign over our nation, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from this time on and forever.

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace–I believe.
And therein lies the joy.

Prayer: For the Future of the Human Race

O God our heavenly Father, you have blessed us and given us dominion over all the earth: Increase our reverence before the mystery of life; and give us new insight into your purposes for the human race, and new wisdom and determination in making provision for its future in accordance with your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

The Book of Common Prayer (p. 828)

Charlotte Stone-Black

Isaiah 12:1-6

The prophet Isaiah concludes the first section of his book with two short hymns of thanksgiving contained in these six verses. Isaiah affirms that God is our strength and salvation. We need not fear. Let us sing praises to God and be joyful.

There are those whose lives demonstrate the power of Isaiah’s words. My Aunt Helen Turlington, whose funeral I attended on October 18th, was one.

As a little girl Aunt Helen heard about Lottie Moon, the famous Southern Baptist missionary to China, and she knew God was calling her to be a missionary like Lottie Moon. In 1947, with two young sons and a two-month-old daughter, she and her husband boarded a converted navy ship for their first mission to China. Their work was cut short by the Chinese Revolution, but later they returned to the mission field, serving in Tehran, India, Japan, and the Philippines.

Aunt Helen was a teacher, social worker, preacher, wife and mother. She led an interfaith council. Micah 6:8 was her favorite Bible verse: And what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

For us, as for Aunt Helen, there is assurance in knowing that God is our strength and salvation. We can answer the call, wherever it leads, with confidence and joy.

PRAYER (excerpt from the benediction Aunt Helen chose for her service):

May God give you grace never to sell yourself short;
Grace to risk something big for something good;
Grace to remember that the world is now too dangerous for anything but truth
And too small for anything but love.

So may God take your minds and think through them.
May God take your lips and speak through them.
May God take your hearts and set them on fire.

-William Sloane Coffin

Bobbie Wrenn Banks

Isaiah 7:10-17

The main emphasis of this passage is that “God is with us”. We know this from the use of the name, “Immanuel” for the boy to be born, because “Immanuel” is Hebrew for “God with us”.

We surely know that God is with us from our own experience of Him every day. But remember that this passage is a ’sign’ to Ahaz and his people at a time that Ahaz was uncertain about his experience of the Lord. By the use of “Immanuel”, we rejoice that it points to the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

The passage reassures us that God is present with us always and everywhere; as “Lord” over the depth of Sheol (dwelling place of the dead) and to the height of heaven. Because of God’s omnipresence, we are always able (when we are willing) to find Him and His guidance to help us tell what is evil and to give us strength to choose what is good.

PRAYER: Gracious and loving God, we thank you for being with us always and for your love which is enduring. We thank you for Jesus and His love, His teachings and His sacrifice for each one of us. Hear our prayers when we ask for help, for guidance and for strength to do what is right; to do what is good. Enable us to overcome Earthly temptations and distractions that we might not disappoint you, but that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts will be acceptable in your sight. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.

Jan Heckler

Luke 1:39-56

And Mary said: my soul magnifies the Lord… (v. 46-47)

Praise God.
What is the pinnacle of the Advent and Christmas season celebration?

Some of us may say it has to do with family traditions or with participating in special projects or trips. It may be gathering with family or friends separated by distance and circumstances.

As we move toward December 25 there is a real quickening of the pace of life and celebration . Mary sings out – My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.

Mary’s song, called the Magnificat, is an ancient Christian chant. It links the themes of the coming Savior to those found in the Old Testament as its sounds were much like the Song of Hannah (1 Samuel 2) in the Old Testament.

I am reminded of two things when I come to Mary’s Magnificat. First, I am reminded of how important music is to celebrate this season and all parts of our faith life. And then, I am reminded that the birth of the Savior changes things up. God’s love helps re-order the world.

And that is why we sing: God’s love is so great that it s the occasion to sing and find joy. And it is the opportunity to know that all that is wrong will be made right.

PRAYER: Wonderful God, help us sing with the joy of Mary. Let us share the song of joy and hope that the wrong way things are will not always be. The power that rises from your grace and love will bring joy to the world. Amen.

Joel Alvis

Luke 18: 15-17

In Luke’s passage, we can glean that we must all have the heart, faith, expectancy, and unconditional love of a child. We want to see through a child’s undiscriminating eyes, hear through trusting ears, and commit to God and God’s justice with the passion of a child’s hug. The world would be a much better place, if we could achieve just a fraction of that wish. We can also read Luke’s words as a call to us to be servants to our neighbors – to put others ahead of us. In Jesus’ day, a child was at the bottom of the societal hierarchy. For Jesus to say that the way to God is through a child is to say that “to be first, one must be last of all”. As we approach the Christmas season, let us open ourselves to God with a huge hug, and let us remember that the homeless person on the street, the family on welfare, and the starving child in a far-away land are the first in God’s heaven.

PRAYER: God, thank you for all your children in the world. Help us to be children, looking to you and your words for guidance, ready to embrace the world with a big, ole hug. Help us put others’ needs before ours, as Jesus did, over and over, again. Amen.

Jill Jacques