Advent word...

I got this passage in one of my advent readings this week. It actually wasn't a new passage to me, but it seemed as if, at the right time, God pulled it out of the recesses of my addled mind, dusted it off, and said- Now OWN it!

It turned out to be a Word for a small group at my house as well, as the message was in line with this- and so I was able to pass it on. If nothing in it touches you, I hope you can be encouraged by the fact that there is nothing you go through that God doesn't have a Word of life in it for you. He has a specific word for your specific situation.

That's why He came. That's why He died. And that's why He rose.

NOTHING CAN SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF JESUS!

Isaiah 61:4-10

" Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed.

Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame;

For you will forget the shame of your youth;

And will not remember the reproach of

your widowhood anymore;

For your Maker is your Husband,

The Lord of hosts is His name;

And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel;

He is called the God of the whole earth.

For the Lord has called you

Like a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit,

Like a youthful wife when you were refused,"

Says your God.

"For a mere moment I have forsaken you,

But with great mercies I will gather you.

With a little wrath I hid My face from you

for a moment;

But with everlasting kindness I will

have mercy on you."

Says the Lord, your Redeemer.

"For this is like the waters of Noah to Me;

For as I have sworn

That the waters of Noah would no longer cover the earth,

So have I sworn

That I will not be angry with you, nor rebuke you.

For the mountains shall depart

And the hills be removed,

But My kindness shall not depart

From you,

Nor shall My covenant of peace be removed."

Says the Lord, who has mercy on you.

Little brothers

Jack and Miles were having a great time playing boy with kitty in tow one day. Jack was the boy and Miles the kitty. Jack calling kitty and holding the back of Miles' shirt while Mi-Mi crawled through the house by Jack's side. They were all up and down the hall and in and out of the room for a good 1/2 hour or so, which, anyone knows, is a very long time for a 2 and 4 year old to stay at one thing. Jack had a name for him, which I forgot, so I will say it's Timothy.

After a while, they were both sitting in the living room, Jack on the couch and Mi-Mi playing with bristle blocks. Jack called, "Timothy," as he'd been doing.

To which Miles yelled abruptly and angrily , "NO! Me NO Tim-thy! Me Miows.! ( 2 yr. old for Miles)

A quiet pause, then Jack in matter-of-fact tone stated, "So. You're not playing kitty anymore, then."

Jack and Miles!

What child is this?

"...And a little child will lead them.." Isaiah 11:6

Luke 10:21 And Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit in that hour and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.

Is. 12:3 " For Yah, the Lord is my strength and my song;

He has become my salvation.

Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

I WILL GREATLY rejoice in the Lord;

My soul SHALL be joyful in my God.

For as the earth brings forth it's bud,

As the garden causes things that are in it to spring forth,

So the Lord will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all nations."

Spring forth, Lord. Stir up the innocent child within us. That part made in the image and likeness of God..

Let us rest on your chest as the lamb on the Shepherd's. And then lead me, show me, humble me to be like a child that I might enter in to the joy of Your kingdom, that kingdom which is upon us as we birth Your Son in us.

As Mary did on that first Christmas, may we say today, "I am the handmaid of the Lord, may it be done to me as You have said."

For in the birthing of Jesus is the birthing of true Joy!

Advent in Cell 92- Jay Cormier

This morning's devotional had in it the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran preacher who was arrested and executed by the Nazis in 1945 for opposing their atrocities.

37 years old and engaged, he wrote to his beloved Maria,

"I used to be very fond of thinking up and buying presents, but now that we have nothing to give, the gift God gave us in the birth of Christ will seem all the more glorious; the emptier our hands, the better we understand what Luther meant by his dying words, ' We're all beggars, it's true."

The poorer our quarters, the more clearly we perceive that our hearts should be Christ's home on earth."

Jay Cormier, the author, adds this: " From a prison cell, a young pastor proclaims the uncompromising hope and unconditional love of Advent. ....

these days of Advent also invite us to embrace the poverty of the Christ Child who comes to illuminate the poor stables of our own lives with the light of God's hope and grace.

Come, Lord Jesus, and release us from our prisons of fear and disappointment; fill our empty spirits with your compassion and grace."

Advent & New Life

My younger daughter, Rosie, is having a baby. She's ripe with life, a precious baby growing inside of her. She's an awesome nurturer, giving love and patience to her 4 and 2 year olds while trudging along with baby in belly.

I'm using this blog to process this morning. I read on FB about how much more important it is to focus on the 2nd coming of Christ. And I ask myself , "How important is Christmas, really?"

Got an Advent booklet in the mail. I'm thinking of the old man, Simeon, who waited all his life to see the Savior. When he saw the baby Jesus, he was filled with joy, prophesied over him, and was at peace.

Advent (from the Latin word adventus meaning "coming")

The subtitle of my booklet says, "Waiting in Joyful Hope."

Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy kingdom come..."

When 2 or 3 gather in His name, He is there. He comes. He is in us, but a special "visitation" of His Spirit comes."

In the birth of a child, His coming to us with that gift fills us with Joy.

Isaiah 11:6 says, "... and a little child shall lead them."

Jesus said, "Unless you become like a little child, you shall not enter the kingdom of God."

Our denomination- the Vineyard talks about the now and the not yet..."

As in His kingdom is upon us, but the fullness of that Kingdom, where ALL disease, suffering, etc. is abolished, is not yet here.

Might the looking back on the "Joy to the World" brought by the birth of Jesus, be just as important for what we need now- that Peace on earth in our hearts, that stirring of Good will to all men, and that Joy of a little child over this special Birthday Celebration- as the next coming of our lord?

"THE JOY OF THE LORD IS OUR STRENGTH.'

May He strengthen you with His joy, that you might enter into a true celebration of Christmas!