I find myself in one of those seasons where the words in my head are tripping over each other, and I don't know which sentence to start with. Should I blog about blessing our children (Chapter three in my new favorite book, Prayer Saturated Kids)? Should I blog about Advent resources so that any of you who want can join those of us doing something daily with family during this month before Christmas? Or should I blog about what's on my heart from quiet time this morning? I think quiet time wins, but check out my new quote today which gives you a glimpse of the idea of blessing our children, and watch this space for Advent resources in the next few days.
So, on the back of our church bulletin this week was a list of daily scriptures to help us "remember and celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ." I picked it up this morning and was drawn to the readings from yesterday, November 30th. I'm sure there are perfectly good verses listed for today - December 1st - but that wasn't what I was drawn to. It's interesting where we end up sometimes when we follow the gentle nudges of the Spirit, rather than the letter of the law, or what we "should" do. (I call those "the shoulds" and it's pretty near a curse word at our house, but I digress.)
Told you my words were tripping over each other today!! Back to the reading for November 30th. The bulletin led me to Isaiah 9:2, which you can read in the sidebar today. This is not a new verse for the Christmas season. I can't venture to count how many times in my life an advent reading has pointed me to Isaiah 9:2. But today was different. As I was reading, these words popped out at me - kind of jumped off the page, if you will: ". . . on those living in the land of the shadow of death. . . " And here is what followed, what I wrote in my journal:
(Editors apology: by offering you this glimpse into my journal, I feel a need to explain that I edit my thoughts for this blog, while I do not edit my thoughts for my journal. So if some if it seems to skip around, be a bit hard to follow, or just plain crazy, that's because I wrote it for my personal quiet time, not for public viewing. However, when I finished writing, I just had the thought that it might be valuable to post it here. Take it for what it is, and let the parts that don't make sense to you go. Apology over.)
"Earth, or just certain season of history on earth, have been "the land of the shadow of death." What we take for beauty and reality - all we know, all we aspire to, all our science, reason, emotion and life - is lived in a place that is under the shadow of death. What hope it gives to know that there is a heavenly place where no shadow exists. Because of Satan's rebellion, and fall, this planet is shadowed - But glory to God, we don't have to live under the shadow of death. We can walk in the light of Life. A foretaste of heaven - when no life is under the shadow created by sin and evil, rebellion, greed and death. O Lord, for the beauty of Life, and to be a giver of life, I pray. Lift my eyes to you, that in my times of despair, I might see it as only a passing shadow. A hint of death that can truly do me no harm - because I live in the light of Your Life. Thank you, Lord, for hope. Amen"
In what do you place your hope today? Is it something from this shadowed planet, or something reflecting the true light of life? Let's be careful to examine our hope, our desires, our dreams. . . and discern what is truly at the root of them. For anything born of earth will die, but anything born of heaven is eternal.
God bless you today with Hope.
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