Lent begins in two weeks. In my church and I think this is true for other denominations, we don’t sing any Alleluias during lent. Why? I don’t know. I looked it up. In the season of Lent we focus on repentance and being sorry for our sins. Singing or saying the word "alleluia" has historically been suspended during Lent's forty days. The omission of alleluia during Lent goes back at least to the fifth century in the western church. Some churches even sing farewell to Alleluias the Sunday before Ash Wednesday. One other unusual ritual with this normal expression of praise is “burying the alleluias.” Yep, you read that correctly. Some churches make an alleluia from paper, fabric, metal, wood, or some other natural material that may be carried in procession or might lead a parade accompanied by instruments and singing. Burial could take place in the ground, or the alleluia could simply be placed in a suitable container that will remain in the worship space as a visual … [Read more...]
Advent – Do “Ewe” Know Who Watched the Sheep?
“Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” I love the enthusiastic response of these ordinary shepherds to God’s announcement of the birth of the Messiah. These passages are one of my favorites for this time of year telling us about the Christmas shepherds. But last night I wondered, “Who watched their sheep?” Did they all take off deserting the poor creatures? Did one abandoned shepherd draw the short straw and got left behind doing the work of many and missing the birth of the King? Did the angels come back and hover over them with divine protection? Phillip Keller wrote the classic book, A Shepherd Looks aPsalm 23 and described the not so complimentary nature of sheep. Sheep are timid, feeble creatures vulnerable to missteps and attacks. They are easily panicked by loud noises and flashing lights. Duh, a whole host of angels descending suddenly on this midnight pasture with joyous singing and beaming … [Read more...]
Advent: the Gift of Time in Present Tense
The gift of time. December blew in with a chilly and crystal clear star- shimmering night this week in Ohio. I gazed out my back window into the darkness. The light from the brilliant half moon and the twinkling of a million heavenly lights captivated my being. I paused and embraced that one moment. How are You preparing my heart for Christmas, Lord? How will I be transformed by Your coming? Advent is an in-between time. A time of waiting. A time of reading the old stories. A time of anticipating what will come. Time of preparing my heart to receive the good news. Advent - the interval between stuffed grateful Thanksgiving and joyous, noisy, family filled Christmas. We wait impatiently for family to arrive. We live in expectation of the future. We ignore the present. Somehow I don’t think God wants our Advent time to be this … [Read more...]
Advent – The Gift of Waiting
Advent is the four weeks preceding Christmas and is a time of waiting and preparation for the arrival of the Christ Child. More and more church traditions are celebrating this special time of year. The next four Thursdays I will be writing about Advent, a time of wait and anticipation. Waiting is difficult. Most of us are terrible waiters. Waiting is a time of powerlessness where the imagination runs wild with the what if’s and when will this be over. Our inability to control the unknown generates fear and anxiety when we wait. You have heard the statistics. In an average lifetime, we spend five years waiting in lines and six months waiting at traffic lights. We are now waiting for the Christ Child. At least for this time of wait we do know the end date and what will be happening. Yet like kids knowing Christmas gifts are coming, we fidget and fret as time moseys through December. We are impatient people. We fill this time with parties, to do lists, wrapping, … [Read more...]
Summer Snapshots: Journeys
Living a reflective life is a powerful spiritual discipline. Periodically and intentionally looking back over the past months brings insights, joys, and perhaps regret. (Regret can be a wonderful teacher, full of lessons that motivate future behavior.)I like to get out my journal and with a highlighter in hand, reread key passages and words that resonated within my heart. I savor times I felt God’s presence and appreciate circumstances, both difficult and joyous, that drew me closer to Him. I see once again failures, ego-driven moments, and times I let emotions distract me from keeping my eyes and heart set on Jesus. I learn. I grow. And I embrace life on a new level when I “harvest” my journal.“Reflective thinking turns experience into insight.” John MaxwellOne of my favorite blogs is Finding Heaven. Writer Jen Ferguson challenged us to write about a mutual theme: Summer Snapshots, a glimpse into our summer. What you learned? What you did you see? How has God moved in your life? … [Read more...]
Praying our Uncertainties – a Holy Saturday Quote
Take time to pray your uncertainties, lifting them up to God for comfort and guidance, knowing God is with us in the wilderness.Life is often a time of Holy Saturdays with no resurrection in sight. Like the "valley of the shadow" of Psalm 23, we can train our senses and heart and mind to experience God's Spirit in the darkest valleys. We can gain sympathy for those persons who are struggling as we face our own Holy Saturday struggles. While our resurrections are uncertain—our successes still in suspense—we can listen for God's voice of companionship, care, and counsel as we live the uncertainty of Holy Saturday.Bruce Epperly … [Read more...]
15 Lenten Practices
Patty Wysong has created a fun meme where once a week bloggers posted on the letter of the week. Check out the details here. It is called A2Z: Take 2. A2Z as she challenges bloggers to write a post each week going through the alphabet. Take 2 since this is the second time she has used this meme. Anyone can join in and you don’t have to always participate. F = Fifteen 15 Lenten Practices The season of Lent will soon be here. Ash Wednesday is February 22. As few weeks ago I began exploring how to have a healthy spiritual heart in preparation for Lent. I asked myself, “how best can I prepared my heart of my Lenten journey? How will my heart be healthier by Easter?” Seeking answers for these questions, I have found some great resources to deepen our journey through the 40 days of Lent to the cross and resurrection on Easter morning. I am not going to attempt all of these, but thought I would share what I discovered with you today. Perhaps one or more of the following … [Read more...]
New Year Eve’s Quotes of the Week
For last year’s words belong to last year’s languageAnd next year’s words await another voice.And to make an end is to make a beginning.” T.S. Eliot(Thanks Laura for this quote) We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called “Opportunity” and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.Edith L. Pierce … [Read more...]