By Kristi, a dear friend and guest-writer
The guilt started as we drove home in the dark after a “not so silent night” at my parents Christmas Eve service. Much of motherhood, especially the preschool years, must be met with humor and a lot of patience. This night was no exception. During the Children’s Message (in which all of the kids in the church service were invited upfront), my boys and their partner-in-crime cousin thought it would be a good idea to have a wrestling match. As the pastor closed in prayer our boys were piled one on top of each other like a triple stack at IHOP. Then, at one point during the service I looked around and was alone on the back pew, save for my sleeping 3-month-old in her carrier. The other 9 people in my extended family were in the foyer due to poor behavior! Surprisingly I was not bothered by these chaotic events – it just typifies the season of life that we are in. However, as we drove home that night the mental barrage began: “Once again, another Christmas season has come and gone and I have not claimed the real meaning of Christmas for my family. The Advent wreath underutilized; the Jesse Tree made but not experienced; so many great ideas that never happened. When will I get it right? When will baby Jesus not get lost in the to do lists, the presents to wrap, the Christmas cards to address, the out of town packing?” As this mom guilt was heaped upon my shoulders, all of a sudden it hit me. A silent nudge from God. “What about the rest of the year?” What if I did everything “just right” during the holidays but Jesus was not celebrated the other 11 months of the year? I can surely seize more moments next Christmas season, but if that is the only time of the year that baby Jesus – King Jesus – is lifted up in our house, then something is clearly wrong. What does my everyday life speak to my kids about Jesus? About His love, His patience, His grace and forgiveness. How does discipline in our home bring them to a better understanding of the true reason why He had to come as a baby? How does the joy that I exhibit through trials or suffering demonstrate the power of a living God inside of me? What if Christmas is not like a firecracker that flashes in the sky and fades as quickly as it appeared? What if Christmas is the culmination of this growing crescendo throughout the whole year? This would give greater texture and veracity of the Truth of the Christmas story for our kids. They would know that it is real, not because the calendar says so, but because of a well lived (absolutely not perfect!) life before them. So, for those like me who are burdened by the guilt of “I didn’t do this right… somehow, I missed it again this year…”, let’s throw off the lie that the enemy is feeding us. Christmas is not a once a year celebration! One that we either “got right” or “missed the boat…again!”. The story of Christmas is for every day. Every day I mess up, fall short, and indulge in the selfishness of sin. Every day I am in need of a Savior, a baby Jesus, to come and make things right, to make me new again. Every day I can be part of His redemptive story, living out the Truth before my kids in such an attractive way that they can’t help but notice what’s up with their crazy mom. So, let’s seek Him in the “not so silent” moments of our chaotic lives. And even if we seem to have “missed it” this Christmas, we always have today! As you finish this, reflect on the verses of Romans 8: 1-5 (World English Bible) There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who don’t walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and of death. For what the law couldn’t do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God did, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh; that the ordinance of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. Kristi is one of my great friends. I'm blessed to know her over ten years, which is a true gift from God! One of the first things I noticed about Kristi was her joy, which I soon learned comes from her faith in Jesus. I once asked her how she was always happy and she responded, "how else would I be?" She's a devoted wife, mother, and friend with a heart for global Christian partnership and discipleship. I'm excited to welcome her as a guest writer to Be Blessed Prayer. To God be the glory, Sarah Copyright January 2018, Kristi G., All rights reserved. Posted on Be Blessed Prayer with permission.
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he restores my soul
Psalm 23: 3a NIV 1984 Presents are unwrapped (if they were given), family is leaving (if they were able to come), and life is returning to pre-holiday normalcy (whatever that means in your world). The world as through TV and social media would tell us presents, time, and family are the meanings behind Christmas. The day after Christmas is possibly one of the best days to remember why we celebrated the day before. Family, time, and presents, while good, all end and remind us that we live in a temporary state, a state needing restoration. As believers we know the meaning of Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ, our Savior. We celebrate our Savior because we need saving. Without Jesus we cannot have restoration for our souls. We can’t get to God on our own. No good deed. No kind thought. Nothing can restore us to God but God. Only God restores our souls. So God came down, fully man and fully God, as a gift from God to restore our souls. Jesus was born so He could rescue us, restore our relationship with God, and restore our souls in the process. Psalm 23:3a isn’t a Christmas verse, but the reminder that restoration of our needy souls comes from God, through the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus, couldn’t come at a better time. I don’t know what challenges you find in your life this Christmas season. I imagine there are many. Child of God, I encourage you to remember that He, Jesus, restores our souls! Sing with the angels! Merry Christmas. To God be the glory, Sarah Personal Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to save me. I celebrate your birth. Help me remember that You restore my soul. In Jesus name I pray, amen. Consider this: Psalm 23:3a—Break down each word in the first part of Psalm 23:3, Who is He? What does it mean to be restored? When has your soul needed restoration? What does restoration look like? John 3:16—think upon what it means when it says God the Father GAVE Jesus, His only Son, for us. Now that’s a present! There are few things in life less intimidating than a sleeping baby, especially a baby sleeping on its mother’s lap.
More than two thousand years ago there laid a child, Jesus, on his mother Mary’s lap asleep. I have no doubt that like many other mothers before and since she marveled at her baby boy. She marveled at the little person in her arms with fingernails a quarter the size of hers, whose fingers wrapped around and clung to her own. Mary stroked Jesus’s head and examined his tiny eyelashes and took in his sleeping sounds and wiggles. He was finally here, after nine months of waiting, she finally got to see his face. What child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping? This child is Jesus-- fully human, but COMPLETELY DIFFERENT from any baby ever born before or since. Jesus is also FULLY God! It’s a mystery we cannot fully comprehend, yet, true. The baby Jesus, completely dependent on Mary's love and care for everything, who laid in Mary’s lap, had SPOKEN the universe into being at the beginning of time. The baby who laid in Mary’s lap had formed man and woman, with the Father and Holy Spirit, from the work of His hands and breathed life into them. The baby who laid in Mary’s lap, snuggled by his mother’s warmth, had parted the waters of the Red Sea and led the people of Israel from a life of slavery into one of identity, purpose, and place, foreshadowing what He would do roughly 33 years later on the cross through His death and resurrection. What child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping? This child is Jesus, the second Person of God who is one God, yet three Persons. This Jesus in so many ways is incomprehensible, and yet left Heaven to dwell with ordinary people to become human so the world could know God in a different way. To look at the baby in Mary’s arms you’d think he looked like any other everyday miracle born to a mother. He didn’t appear special. He didn’t glow as we often see on the Christmas cards, his glory, while yet there was masked (Philippians 2:6-8). His ordinariness was in direct contrast to his Godhood, but that’s how He choose to come. Through Jesus, God took the world by surprise! What child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping? This child is Jesus, who would change mankind’s course in history forever. He had been foretold by the prophets of the LORD to the people of Israel. They were looking for a powerful Savior who would come as king and rule forever. They were expecting God to send a man to come and save the people from their oppressors, like Moses, like King David. They looked for the king who would come and fulfill all the promises that had been spoken about Him. This child, Jesus, did come to save. Jesus, as a man, would save people through faith in Him, and the way He would do it would confuse many. Jesus came to save even more than the people of Israel. He came to save those in the world who would believe in Him in a way so incomprehensible that many would believe in awe... and yet many would deny Him. What child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping? Isn’t that really the question we should be asking ourselves this Christmas season? What child IS this? What God is this who would entrust Himself into our care? Are we so trustworthy? No. Is He so faithful that He would come to save an imperfect, rebellious creation? Yes. If our answer is that this child, this Jesus, is our Lord—what then? How will our relationship with Him affect our hearts this Christmas season? Ask yourself, once again, and sit in the question and your response to it. What child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping? Follow up: Read The Christmas Story in Luke Chapters 1 through 2:21 Meditate on Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Prayer: Dear Lord, we pray that You’d immerse us in the question “what child is this who laid to rest on Mary’s lap is sleeping?” this Christmas season. We pray you would lead us to the true answer, that Jesus is God and man, God with us, and a savior like no other. God, to You be the glory. Amen. Growing up and listening to Christmas hymns I never realized what an amazing combination it was for God to put angels in the presence of shepherds in the field, telling those shepherds about the birth of Jesus. Do you know why it’s so astounding?
Back in Biblical times shepherds weren't high on the social rung in society. They spent all day outside... around animals, and were thought to be a little wild. I wonder, however, if God has a special place in his heart for shepherds? Moses was a shepherd when God spoke to him in the burning bush, and David was taken from the fields to rule Israel, as a man after God's own heart. And, of course, there's Jesus, who names himself the Good Shepherd and describes his relationship with those who follow him as sheep to a shepherd, saying he would go so far as to lay down his life for his sheep. When I was trying to understand the parable Jesus teaches about a lost sheep being found by his shepherd (Luke 15: 1-7), I had to learn a little about sheep and shepherds. I found out that sheep are easily distracted animals. They wander off if they are not carefully shepherded. They don't wander off because they're trying to be bad or leave the flock... they see something interesting and go off to examine it... or aren’t paying attention and get left. It's also interesting to know that the shepherds in Biblical times often had names for their sheep. They knew each one individually and the sheep knew their shepherd’s voice. Every sheep in the flock mattered to the shepherd. The two tools, the rod and staff King David writes about in Psalm 23, are the tools that the shepherd uses to protect his sheep (rod) and bring it back to the group (staff). We created images (human beings) are a lot like sheep, if not worse. We get distracted by things that aren’t God and go and seek after the bright and shiny distractions that enter our line of sight. We’re not especially picky about the distraction— fame, power, money, happiness, success, love… many bright and shiny things can get us distracted from God if were not paying attention to the Good Shepherd. Post distraction we’re completely lost and scared... and completely unable to get back on our own. We need saving. We sheep need the Good Shepherd to come get us. Thankfully, that’s exactly what Jesus, the Good Shepherd does. He comes, picks us up, and carries us home. Why? If we’re on his shoulders we can’t go the wrong way, and we’re certain to get home. Jesus, the baby in question in this beautiful hymn, grew up to find and save the lost sheep who couldn’t save themselves. He beat off sin and death using His divine staff of His death on the cross and resurrection from the grave. Jesus then used His divine crook, the guidance of the Holy Spirit for all believers, to direct us through life and bring us back Home. As we think about the angels celebrating Jesus’ birth, it’s not surprising that the first people God the Father and the Holy Spirit told were the shepherds. The shepherds knew what sheep were like… and they were sheep themselves. The angels announced the coming of the shepherd’s Shepherd who would lead them (and us) to green pastures and still waters forever. So ask yourself this season-- what child is this-- whom angels greet with anthems sweet while shepherds watch are keeping? This child, Jesus, grew up to be the Good Shepherd, and if we let him, our Good Shepherd, to enjoy a relationship with Him, keep us from danger, and lead us safely Home. To God be the glory, Sarah Scripture to meditate on: Luke 2: 8-21 Psalm 23 Luke 15: 1-7 Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for telling the good news about Jesus to the shepherds first. You told normal people who worked hard at getting their distracted animals to go where they should. Thank you for being our Good Shepherd, for coming to this world to be born, live, die, and rise so that we, your sheep, can know the goodness of you now and for eternity. Thank you, Jesus, for Christmas. Through Christ our Lord, amen. |
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