Page 362 has been a family day as I let the teaching and sermon for this coming Sunday simmer in my mind a bit.  I began the day by finishing up the prayer guide that I wrote for next week.  I needed to make sure it was formatted and available for a church that is using them on a slightly different schedule than my normal publishing of them.  While the next prayer guide will correspond with the sermon I plan to share at Deer Run on Sunday, a lot of my “simmering” time today was focused on the prayer teaching I will do during the Bible School  hour.  One of the favorite teachings that I like to share is about what I call developing a lifestyle of prayer in the real world.  

As the director of a prayer ministry, I often get people to tell me, in one way or another, that they would like to have a more vibrant prayer life but it just isn’t possible for someone in their circumstances.  It usually goes something like this, “I would love to pray more if I could, I simply don’t have the time to pray that others seem to have.”  It is in responding to that scenario that I help people to see God’s command to “pray without ceasing” isn’t directed simply to people who have the time to do that.  No, it is meant for all of us which means God believes it is possible for us to develop a lifestyle of prayer no matter what our life schedule looks like.  Sure, it may take some adjusting to our schedule in areas that we consider “our time”, but mostly it involves praying no matter what our schedule finds us doing.  Each of us have a “real world” that looks different to some degree than everyone else’s, but we can learn some general principles of the who, what, and how to pray in all circumstances as we develop a lifestyle of prayer.

My wife’s birthday was today and part of the day we spent finding and photographing a few covered bridges.  With no leaves on the trees, some of the bridges are more visible during the winter than at other times of the year.  Unfortunately, the winter also brings with it an earlier sunset which limits the number of bridges we can get to in an afternoon’s daylight hours.  Today’s photo was taken through the window of one of the bridges as the sun was quickly dropping in the western horizon.  As I walked through the bridge, the light caught my eye so I stopped to shoot a few photos.  I believe God is constantly shining His light upon us with the desire that it will catch our eye and make us stop and acknowledge His presence.  

I pray that you and I would allow the Word of God and the teachings it contains to simmer in our life on a regular basis.  I pray that godly teaching would mature in our lives for the purpose of sharing it with  others.  I pray that each of us would desire to grow in a lifestyle of prayer as we learn how to incorporate a prayer life into everything we do.  I pray that we would pay attention to the light of God shining upon us.  I pray that when God shines His light upon us that we would freely share that light with the people around us.

Page 360 was Christmas Day with the bonus of being a Sunday!  As a double bonus, I had the privilege of preaching this morning at the North Wayne Mennonite Church.  And no, I didn’t feel bad about having to “work” on Christmas Day.  For me, the path that some chose to take of closing the church and not having Sunday services because it was a holiday seems rather strange.  I could think of no better way to spend the day which we set aside to honor the birth of Christ than to actually gather with other believers to do just that as we worshiped together and shared in God’s Word.  

This morning’s sermon continued a character study series I am working on with the series title of “Living As the Lord’s Servant”.  This morning we looked at the person of Mary, mother of Jesus, in a message titled, “Living as a WILL-ing Servant”.  It’s not too bad to think of ourselves as the Lord’s servant . . . at least until we are called upon to actually serve.  How often do we come up with excuses and do everything in our power to avoid the task before us when we are asked to serve in specific ways?  If we truly desire to live as the Lord’s servant, we can learn a great deal from the willing response of Mary after being told by an angel of the specific task she would have, “I am the Lord’s servant.  May it be to me as you have said.”

This morning we looked at four aspect of living as a willing servant, and in keeping with my style of sermon outlines we used the first four letters of the word willing with the “ing” being a commonality with each sermon point.  The first thing we addressed from Mary’s life was our need to live as a Worshiping servant.  When our life is lived in true worship of a living God, our response to the work God would have us to do is also expressed in worship.  After the angel had left, we have recorded by Luke a song of praise that Mary offered in worship of God.  Her worship gives us insight into how she saw God and why she could be a willing servant.  Worship is our expression to God of the worth He has to us, but it also serves as a reminder to us of why God is worthy of our serving Him.

As a willing servant of the Living God, Mary was also an Inviting servant.  At a time when a desire for some degree of privacy might seem like a normal response to having just delivered a baby, the shepherds were welcomed into the scene as this servant of God shared the moment with those who had come with curiosity about the news that had been told to them by an angel.  And later, when the Magi made their way to where Joseph and Mary were staying, they were invited in to offer their gifts and worship to the Christ child.  The message God delivered through Jesus is an invitation to all who would come.  When we seek to live as a servant of the Lord, we must live as an inviting servant because the Master has given instruction that we are to share His invitation with everyone.

In addition to being a Worshiping and Inviting servant, Mary was also a Learning servant.  On the surface, the response of Zechariah to the angel’s announcement concerning the birth of John the Baptist seems similar to the initial response given by Mary.  Both of them questioned how it could happen.  However, God’s response to each of them was quite different.  Zechariah’s question was seen by God as doubt and left him literally speechless until John was born and named.  Mary’s question was seen by God as a desire to learn and the response became a teaching moment regarding the way the birth of Jesus would come about.  I know many people who live as if they know more than God.  They would never say that, but there is no appearance of a willingness to learn as they serve.  In order to be a servant of the Lord, we must be a learning servant as we continually grow in the grace and knowledge that comes through God’s Spirit and our time in prayer and the Word.

Finally, living as a willing servant requires that we live as a Loving servant.  Mary’s love for God is obvious in her willingness to have everything the angel said come to pass.  We also see her love expressed in her worship of God.  Being chosen to be the mother of Jesus carried with it the responsibility of raising and loving this child as only a mother, or God, could.  When we realize our ability and capacity to love is something that comes from God, we should know exactly who to turn to when we need help being a loving servant.  When we understand that Jesus came to earth as an expression of God’s love, our serving God will also reflect His love.  It is through serving others with the love of Christ that we find ourselves serving God.  In fact, Jesus said that whatever we do for the least of His brethren, we do for Him.

I pray that you and I would make the most of every opportunity that God gives us.  I pray that we would find (and give) joy and encouragement in the times we gather with fellow believers.  I pray that we would desire to live as a servant of the Lord.  I pray that our relationship with Jesus would lead us to live as a willing servant.  I pray that our willingness to serve would be expressed as a Worshiping, Inviting, Learning, and Loving servant.

Page 359 is Christmas Eve and has been a fairly laid-back Saturday.  It was rather overcast and gloomy outside throughout the day, so there wasn’t any real pull toward going out and doing anything.  The morning was spent sleeping, going through social media posts, playing some Wii games, and prepping for tomorrow’s sermon.  We went out to Subway for lunch and then the afternoon was mostly a repeat of the morning.  The evening included a Christmas Eve service at church then after supper we gathered around the Christmas tree as Susan opened her Christmas gifts.  

Watching Susan’s excitement was fun and after she was finished unwrapping her gifts I played with different camera settings as I photographed some of the ornaments on the tree.  At the top of the tree is an angel tree topper that has held that position for a lot of years.  In fact, it has been on the top of our Christmas tree for so long that I can’t remember if we ever had anything before it or if it has been our only tree top ornament.  For Susan, the tree isn’t complete until the angel goes on the top.  I suppose that shouldn’t be too surprising given that she sees angels, talks with angels, and her favorite past-time is watching reruns of the old “Touched By An Angel” series.  

Based on the reactions of people in the Bible who encountered angels, I would say our pleasant representations of them are not very realistic.  I do wonder at times if it was always the appearance of the angel that frightened those who saw them, or if sometimes the fear had more to do with the knowledge that God was sending a message directed toward them.  Yes, at times the Bible describes the actions of angels that would make it appear they can be fierce warriors as they single-handedly destroy entire enemy armies.  Yet I also believe that if an angel appeared to me in a way that left no doubt it was an angel, even if its appearance was as pleasant as the one on my Christmas tree, I would be filled with a fear simply knowing that God was sending a messenger directly to me.  

As I worked on the sermon I’ll share tomorrow, I thought about the angel’s words to Mary, “Do not be afraid.”  Whether it was the physical features of the angel that were frightening or a fear caused simply because an angel appeared, the message from God had the power to change the initial fear into a response of “I am the Lord’s servant.”  God’s message to us continues to have an element of fear in it because it warns of the consequences of our not choosing Him.  Yet that fear can become a good thing when it creates a submissive response from us that mirrors the response Mary gave.

I pray that you and I would understand that the key to “keeping Christ in Christmas” is for each believer to “keep Christ in the Christian”.  I pray that we would celebrate the presence of Jesus in our lives each day that we live.  I pray that we would act as faithful representatives of Christ to all people.  I pray that we would accept God’s message to us with a willing response that we are His servant.

I had forgotten until I went to bed last night that the school’s Christmas break began today.  That meant that I didn’t need to set the alarm and wake up early, I just needed to get to work in time to do the cleaning and prep before the start of the preschool Christmas program this morning.  So page 358 began at a time that not too long ago I would have thought was early, but allowed me to sleep in some.  I did the cleaning and building prep and then served as photographer as the preschoolers had their Christmas program.  Once the program was over, I spent some time with the text for Sunday’s sermon.  As I worked on the sermon and spent time praying about the refining of it, another short poem showed up in my mind.  After typing it out on a photo background I went back to the sermon focus.  

With the school out on Christmas break and the preschool finishing up this morning, I spent the afternoon doing what is usually my Friday night cleaning to get the building ready for Sunday.  With an empty building, the afternoon ended up being some great prayer and reflection time as I worked.  With the building cleaned and ready for the weekend, I headed home with another short poem forming in my mind.  It seemed like a silly little rhyme about an elephant and a mouse that showed up in my house.  After it was written and posted as a photo on my Facebook page, I began to think about the symbolism of an elephant in the room.  Many times people get away with doing things that are questionable, or even unethical, because the actions become that proverbial elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about.  Sometimes things become so large that they seem to dictate everything that goes on around them as any other viewpoint is made to seem small.  I think of the elephant in the room when the 12 spies sent out from the Israelite people came back to report what they had found in the promised land.  The elephant was the majority report that made everyone agree that they were small compared to what they would be up against if they moved forward.  Everyone that is, except Joshua and Caleb who gave an honest report based on a combination of what they had seen and the promises of God.  Yet we know the story.  The elephant was too large.  The truth seemed so small.  The majority won . . . at least they thought so until God had the last word.  As it turned out, Joshua and Caleb were the only two out of all the adults living at the time who would eventually be able to settle in the promised land — the rest, all the majority, were buried in the desert over the next 40 years, as was their elephant.  Sometimes all the mouse can do is to remain faithful and let God take care of the elephant.

Often times it is our pride that grows into elephant size proportions in our life.  One of the reasons I like photographing outdoor scenes is because of the vastness of creation.  When pride begins to make me feel larger than what I really am, spending time surrounded by the beauty of nature can serve as a reminder of a need to see myself as God sees me.  Today’s photo is one of those where the beauty stretches out as far as the eye can see.  The humility part is a recognition that my part in the kingdom of God is important, but it is not the most important, it’s simply my part.

I pray that you and I would be aware of our own attitudes when it comes to how we present ourselves to others.  I pray that we would not make our ideas and projects into the elephants that push others aside.  I pray that we would humble ourselves — not just before God, but before one another as well.  I pray that we would see ourselves as God sees us — not larger than everyone else, but not smaller than them either.  

Page 357 has mostly been a day of rest, which is a good thing to have once in a while.  Since I was up after midnight, today’s page technically began with my going to bed for the night.  It felt good to be able to sleep in and Susan enjoyed sleeping in even longer than I did.  My morning eventually began with the checking of email and social media messages while I kept a cup of coffee close by.  I have friends who line up on every side of just about any topic, so my social media newsfeeds can become quite interesting.  While I don’t agree with everything, I usually enjoy reading the differing viewpoints to better understand where people are coming from.  Unfortunately, social media doesn’t seem to be a very safe harbor for discussions of opposing views.  The discussion that takes place in the comments sections are often venomous and insulting at best and they go downhill quickly from that.  The name-calling, vulgarity, and downright meanness escalates as the comments add up and it doesn’t seem to matter that one side is trying to claim a Christian perspective while the other is wanting a freedom from Christianity — the language and written tone is the same.  One of the discussions seemed to be a lot of angry back and forth about Christ being taken out of Christmas with one side angry about the perception that the “world” has taken Christ out of Christmas and the other angry about Christians trying to define how the world should live.  With neither side listening to the other, I’m pretty sure no opinions are being changed and that Christ isn’t being represented.  As I went through multiple discussions that all seemed to be going the same way, the following little poem showed up in my mind.

Christmas is a time of year
when peace and hope prevail.
Or does the way we live our life,
tell a different tale?

For us to share of peace and hope,
first we must receive.
If it’s not ours to give away,
then who else will believe.

Jesus said that the world would know we are His disciples by the way we love.  I believe there is nowhere that the way we love is more visible than in the way we interact with those we disagree with.  If our conversations, online or in person, are not seasoned with the grace we have received from God, it is highly unlikely that anyone will believe our message of peace and hope through Jesus Christ.

As the day wound down, I headed to the Riverwalk in Mishawaka to capture some photos of the setting sun.  Today’s photo is one of the reasons I like winter photography.  The snow covered ground provides a great contrast for the blue sky and vivid colors that seem intensified by the cold air.  The wisps of clouds scattered across the sky add to the sunset as they provide texture and capture some of the color from the setting sun.  Too many clouds and the sun is hidden from view with no sunset to photograph.  No clouds and the sun drops below the horizon as a ball of fire with little color surrounding it — it can be stunning, but not usually the sunset picture I have in my mind.

I pray that you and I would be mindful of the way we present ourselves to the world.  I pray that we would have great wisdom in understanding the when and how to interact with people we disagree with.  I pray that we would hold fast to the grace of God in our life as we share the true Christmas message of peace and hope.  I pray that our lives would be made of the right stuff to reflect well the light of God’s Word. 

Page 356 is a long work day and I’m in a state of mind that could make writing dangerous, so I’ll try to keep the written page short and on task.  The day began early with the cleaning and building prep which included extra attention to the floors.  They day is ending in the same manner it began as I get the building ready for tomorrow after teaching the elementary Bible class tonight.

After the cleaning was done, much of the morning was spent with God trying to put tonight’s Bible lesson into a form and level that the elementary students would understand some application from it.  When I needed a break from that topic, I would go through what I believe God wants me to share for a Christmas Day sermon.  As I worked on preparing both of those teaching plans, I was also praying for a number of people I know who are experiencing a first Christmas after the death of a loved one.  As I prayed, God began to form a poem in my mind which I typed out and posted on this blog early this afternoon.  The poem ended up being titled, “I Know”.  Much of its focus is about a God that understands our pain and grief and in the midst of our tears would simply hold us close and say, “I know.”

By early afternoon I headed out for lunch and spent some time wandering through the aisles of WalMart looking for inspiration for some type of activity to help solidify tonight’s lesson into the minds of my students.  This process was always a staple of mine when I had the role of youth and/or children’s minister, but today it seemed that I struck out so I headed back to work empty handed.  The lesson tonight, as we work our way through the Bible, focused on Deborah and her role as a judge in Israel as well as being a conduit for Barak to be able to find the courage to do what God was asking of him.  Since I had it in my office, the students played the game “Trouble” while I taught a lesson about our need to call out to God when we face times of trouble.  We also discussed how important it is to have someone who is fair and just that we can go to with our troubles.  While we like people like Deborah who will judge disputes fairly, God also wants each of us to look to Him for wisdom in helping others resolve their trouble.  He wants us to be encouragers who help others accomplish the work God has created for them to do.  

Today has been an overcast and dreary day which I’m sure contributes to my somewhat dismal mindset.  I didn’t make it anywhere to take pictures and there were no wildlife visitors outside my office window looking to have their photos taken today, so today’s photo is one I took yesterday evening.  It is one of the longest covered bridges I have photographed so far and is still in use with a rather busy road running over it.  While built in 1887, it should be obvious that it is only by regular upkeep, repairs, and maintenance that it continues to be in use today.  In a similar way, our usefulness in accomplishing the work God created for us to do is depend on regular upkeep, repairs, and maintenance in our spiritual life.

I pray that you and I would pay attention to how we feel and know when we have to be especially careful to guard our words.  I pray that we would be involved in listening to God for the purpose of knowing how to instruct others.  I pray that we would be mindful of how others feel as we live and share the good news.  I pray that we would trust a God who knows both what we feel and why we feel the way we do.  I pray that we would be useful instruments in the hands of our Master as we allow Him to do the necessary upkeep, repairs, and maintenance in our lives.