mini-updates (#3 - advent)

Before this year I have not really "experienced" advent as a part of the church calendar. But this year I have really been listening to the advent part of the services on Sunday, and thinking a lot about what it means to prepare ourselves to receive our King.

A friend of mine recently gave me her much used and beloved copy of book entitled: Jesus, Be in My Christmas (morning and evening meditations for every day of advent) by Sarah Hornsby. She told me how blessed she had been by it over the years, how the Lord had used it to minister to her specifically through its pages. And then she told me that she felt like the Lord had told her to give it to me. She didn't want me to feel burdened or as though I had to enjoy it.

But I was able to tell her this week how sweet and special it is to me already.

A few quotes for you to consider:

from pages 84-85: Jesus, Be in My Abounding
"Father God, You are the One who enables me to be faithful. Pour out on me the abundance of gifts needed to communicate Your healing presence in this hurting world. Grow in me the abundance of fruit needed to nourish and sustain life in the Spirit. Jesus, be in my abounding."

from pages 72-73: Jesus, Be in My Plans
Psalms 20:4 May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.
"Mary and Joseph planned their engagement, but God had other plans. Mary and Joseph planned to dedicate their baby and then take him back to Nazareth by the normal route, but God had other plans.... God has a perfect plan for every one in his creation. Only God knows all the circumstances and relationships that touch and shape me and the flow of my history. In spite of all the pressures of the world to conform to its ways, in spite of my own weaknesses and sinful nature, in spite of the hate-filled strategies of Satan's furious forces, I can seek and find God's path. God is committed to me...."

wow.

And the reading for "today" - the third Friday in Advent:
from pages 90-91: Jesus, Be in My Wounds
"The blessing of God does not mean that everything will be easy and comfortable. After Simeon's blessing, he warned Mary that this Child would change the way things had always been done in Israel, in the world. There would be violent disagreements. Powers would clash, a sword would pierce their souls. The conflict over who Jesus says He is continues. Every person who hears of Him must decide if He is Lord. And if He is Lord, He is due total allegiance. That rubs against the grain of all other people and institutions that demand my time, resources, allegiance, homage. I will be involved with some of these, but as a representative of God's kind of government, I will be an advocate for the poor, homeless, hungry, blind, imprisoned, sick. Being involved with these people in the name of Jesus will hurt, but it is also where the blessing of His presence abounds."

I was thinking as I read this today about Mary and Jesus and then a friend of mine was considering Mary and this is what I said in response to her; thoughts which began, I suspect, with this devotion:
I can resonate with your questions about Mary. Sometimes its hard to remember she was a real person, that they aren't just literary characters created to teach us a lesson. I'm glad for the historical references to Jesus outside of the bible to know that he was real, and if HE was real, then he really had a mom. I think that our moms are probably more like Mary in a lot of ways than we realize. The things that potentially made Mary cry: her hopes for Jesus, his fears about his future, contemplating what all the different things said about him (i.e. by Simeon or Anna or the Magi, etc) really meant and how this little boy could do what was hoped of him...... all these things probably made our moms cry when we were growing up, too. You should ask your mom about it. Ask her what her hopes were for you when she first found out she was pregnant with you, what her expectations for you were at that 2nd birthday party.
So I was thinking about this and thinking that ultimately my life will be a thorn, because Jesus was a thorn. Its uncomfortable to think of. I may be a thorn to my family because I make different choices than they, to my friends, my community, the world. But as long as I'm following Jesus and doing what he says, then its what I have to do. Ouch.

So the mini-updates do not conclude here, except "for now". I'm re-reading Hinds Feet and have more of that to include soon, too!

Much love to you!