Awe and Wonder of Epiphany

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This candy cane tastes divine. I’m twisting it in my mouth and savoring this last taste of Christmas. Yes… I stashed away one last  candy cane for January 6 — Epiphany. I want to do everthing I can to hang on to the sweetness I feel in my heart coming out of the Advent season. This is my way of memorializing what God planted in my heart along the journey of seeking the Awe and Wonder…looking past the familiar of the season to see His goodness…His greatness. A candy cane is familiar. We pass around many of them through out the month of December. As I allow ever last centimeter of this little cane to melt in my mouth I’m looking past the familiar and capturing this moment in my mind. I’m trying to put to words what I want to take forth after Advent and the best I can come up with is…

CELEBRATE

Celebrate our Savior who fills every space in our heart––the empty––to overflow with His unconditional love.

Celebrate His creation oh so glorious if we choose to open our eyes to the sparkle…daily.

Celebrate daily the ever so good news of the Gospel that stands as TRUTH for all.

I’m celebrating Epiphany today because of just this…Jesus came first for the Jews (His chosen people) and also for the Gentiles––anyone who was not a Jew in the day. BUT>>>because of the cross…we are ALL God’s chosen. You are the one He died for. We are the ones He came down from Heaven to give us His Word to live by. You are the one He gifts His Spirit to for comfort and direction. You are chosen…

Will we choose today to choose to CELEBRATE Jesus?

Every year the traditions of many cultures celebrate on January 6th––the day that commemorates the arrival of the Wise Men–The Maji–(gentiles) to worship the newborn King. Epiphany celebrates the arrival and announcement of our Savior to the rest of the world…to US.

Where is this newborn, who is the King of the Jews? When we were far away in the East we saw His star, and we have followed its glisten and gleam all this way to worship Him. (Matthew 2:2 THE VOICE)

My candy cane tastes extra sweet with this in mind. I also can’t help but continue to nurture and grow my one humble poinsettia perched in my kitchen. Last year I kept mine outside for I’m no green thumb. Poinsettias are to be coddled and cared for inside as they are delicate flowers needing protection from the winter elements. I want to see the bright red and be reminded of Christmas though the rest of my decor is taken down and stowed away for next year. My son always cries a bit when I break the news that the Christmas tree must come down. (We traditionally take down the decorations on New Years day…not a moment before!) My best explanation for my 5 year old:

Honey, if we had the decorations up all year long you would loose interest. It would not be as special when Advent comes back around. We want it to be extra special each year, right?

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Oh how the celebration is extra special. But this year I’m hanging on just a bit longer. Savoring the peppermint. Beholding the beauty of the poinsettia. Mexican folklore tells of a sweet young girl who had not a gift to bring to church for Christmas. She picked weeds along the way to the church as a humble attempt to gift her King. As she presented the weeds on the alter, the weeds miraculously bloomed into fiery red blossoms.

Don’t you love that symbolism? When we bring Jesus even our meek and humble gifts and offerings (our LIFE!) He does His thing. His thing is to make all things beautiful and renewed.

Won’t you CELEBRATE that with me?

I sat quiet over the past several days since December 24 taking it all in and ever so grateful for you to join me in the Awe and Wonder series. I had no more words to write past Christmas morning though my emotions overflowed in reflection. Maybe that’s ok. Maybe I just needed to sit still. In fact sitting still and filling up on Jesus and less of myself is my theme for the upcoming year. This is where Jesus has me and I’ve promised Him that I will only move, only go forward when He says, “Go!” A tough thing to do for one who is action oriented and prides herself on brainstorming and planning.

Not much planning for me this New Year. I’m sitting still and grateful when He brings me opportunities to move forward on. Everything in me wants to make ministry events happen. Everything in me wants to jump up and just DO. But, I will obey. I will obey and sit. I will obey and sit and CELEBRATE today on this 2014 Epiphany.

Will you join me? Did you have an extra candy cane stashed away? Go grab something today that reminds you of what we captured in our hearts this Advent and CELEBRATE your King!

Hugs!

Oh…one more thing…Here’s a bit of art I made as part of The Documented Life Project I’m taking part in. Thinking about how to capture Advent and carrying it into the new year.

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Thoughts? Leave a comment…let’s chat.

(Poinsettia photo credit: Martin LaBar (going on hiatus) via photopin cc)

Advent: Awe and Wonder Day 24

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Day 24 Awe and Wonder

Oh it is so easy to get caught up in it all. To get caught up in preparation, perfection, activities, merriment over Christmas. That is what is most familiar to me: the attempt make everything look like a Norman Rockwell painting which will hopefully be engrained in everyone’s mind as the picture perfect Christmas experience. I got caught up in it yesterday, the day before Christmas Eve…the eve before the coming birth of our King. I got caught up and stressed out and all out cranky. It wasn’t pretty. But what is pretty is the idea that we are allowed, no…encouraged to bring Jesus our worship even if it is stressed out and cranky. For He makes all things new. (Revelation 21:5)

Today’s FINAL Advent Scripture from THE VOICE: Psalm 100

 1   Raise your voices;
make a beautiful noise to the Eternal, all the earth.

2     Serve the Eternal gladly;
enter into His presence singing songs of joy!

Lord, my beautiful noise might very well come out of the need to just shout Your name for out of desperation––the desperation that I have nothing more to give You than my beautiful noise. May the noise of my worship drown out the noise of the world around me. You are worthy.

3  Know this: the Eternal One Himself is the True God.
He is the One who made us;
we have not made ourselves;
we are His people, like sheep grazing in His fields.

Lord, I declare this to You today: You are my One True God. Today, as I worship You, the Son of God, the Word made flesh, I knock down all the things––the idols––that threaten my pure straight, forward focus on You alone. Thank you, God that I am YOURS.

4 Go through His gates, giving thanks;
walk through His courts, giving praise.
Offer Him your gratitude and praise His holy name.

Jesus! Thank you that I am daily, even minute by minute allowed in Your courts––in your presence. Thank You for shedding Your blo0d. I praise You for your resurrection. I look at Awe and Wonder at the veil that was torn for You made a way for me to enter Your courts. I dedicate my praise to You. Help me, Jesus, to LIVE OUT! my faith even when I just don’t feel like it. I praise You with my life because YOU gave Your life first.

5 Because the Eternal is good,
His loyal love and mercy will never end,
and His truth will last throughout all generations.

Thought my mind can’t completely comprehend, You are Eternal and I revel in this with much Awe and Wonder. I know that I stand firm and unwavering when I stand in Your presence…for You are unwavering and never changing.

Amen!!! Merry Christmas, friends!

 

Advent: Awe and Wonder Day 22

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Day 22 Awe and Wonder

 

This past year I embraced a phrase in my life––a theme if you will––that I feel guided my personal journey of worship, prayer and Bible reading. Two years ago my life phrase was “RISE UP! and Make Jesus Famous” which then turned into the theme of my next book. This year my motto, my theme, was all about “seeking God’s presence.” These themes don’t come out of thin air, but rather from taking time in prayer and in reading Scripture to discern what God wants me to focus on and wrap my heart around. It’s all about constant conversation and growth in my relationship with Jesus. Much of it is about obedience. Obedience to allowing His Word to permeate my life and not just skim it to check the box every day. Obedience to listening to His most often still soft voice rather than siding with the loud screaming in my brain that leans toward my own pride or selfish desires.

Obedience is not always easy. Dare I say it is usually not the easy choice. Today, let’s look at an example of one who listened to God (even after some heavenly reprimand) and then took his role in the unfolding of our Gospel story filled with Awe and Wonder.

Today’s Scripture from THE VOICE Advent Readings: Luke 1: 68-79

Zacharias: May the Lord God of Israel be blessed indeed!
For God’s intervention has begun,
and He has moved to rescue us, the people of God.
      And the Lord has raised up a powerful sign of liberation for us
from among the descendants of God’s servant, King David.
       As was prophesied through the mouths of His holy prophets in ancient times:
      God will liberate us from our enemies
and from the hand of our oppressors!

God will show mercy promised to our ancestors,
upholding the abiding covenant He made with them,
Remembering the original vow He swore to Abraham,
from whom we are all descended.
God will rescue us from the grasp of our enemies
so that we may serve Him without fear all our days
      In holiness and justice, in the presence of the Lord.

     And you, my son, will be called the prophet of the Most High.
For you will be the one to prepare the way for the Lord
     So that the Lord’s people will receive knowledge of their freedom
through the forgiveness of their sins.

All this will flow from the kind and compassionate mercy of our God.

A new day is dawning:
the Sunrise from the heavens will break through in our darkness,
And those who huddle in night,
those who sit in the shadow of death,
Will be able to rise and walk in the light,
guided in the pathway of peace.

Zacharias, a man. A man who’s social and religious lineage has him in the Jewish temple. Not just in the temple, but in the Holy of Holies––the most sacred space where the very presence of God resided. That fateful day where his name came up on the religious roles to call Zacharias into his preistly duties which would never come again in his lifetime. Zacharias finds himself called out directly by God. Can you imagine? God called him to have faith and believe God when He proclaimed that Zacharias’ long suffering prayers would be answered: his barren wife would give birth to a son. It didn’t stop there though. This boy would be the forerunner of Jesus––would prepare the way for the ministry of the Messaiah. We read in Luke 1 some explicit instructions and proclamations from God via the angel Gabriel:

Zacharias, your prayers have been heard. Your wife is going to have a son, and you will name him John.  He will bring you great joy and happiness—and many will share your joy at John’s birth…Your son is the one who will fulfill this prophecy: he will be the Lord’s forerunner, the one who will prepare the people and make them ready for God. (Luke 1: 13,14,17)

We then read how Zacharias at first balked at the heavenly proclamation and encounter with God’s messenger. He balked out of disbelief. For that, Zacharias was rendered mute until the birth of his son, John.

Oh how we balk at God’s truth and commandments out of fear and disbelief and distrust…we balk daily!

Yes, Zacharias made up for it and in our Advent Scripture reading for today we read his bold declaration and worship of the Lord. Obedience, a tough thing. Not always fun. Consequences happen when we neglect God’s way and follow our own path.

But oh! the blessings that follow when we listen to the voice of God and obey!

Zacharias’ blessing was the privilege of partaking in the Gospel––the good news of the birth of the long awaited Messiah.

Awe and Wonder:

Let us circle back to the greatest commandment proclaimed by Jesus: love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. The second, of course, being love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:36-40) We can love God with everything we have by pouring out our obedience to Him. For Jesus Himself said,

If you love Me, obey the commandments I have given you. (John 14:15)

Obedience in reading His holy, God-breathed word and taking in seriously in every part of life. (2 Tim. 3:16)

Obedience in believing we are who God says we are…we are children of the Almighty.

Obedience in serving and loving others because God first loved us with His all, His Son.

Obedience takes on many forms and in very personal ways. Where do you need to set aside your own pride, your own agenda and love God by listening to Him, by obeying Him?

What better way to worship the King during Advent than to do what He says? What better way to express your devotion than to obey?

Any thoughts? Leave a comment…let’s chat!