Something is Waiting
When
the song of the angels is stilled,
when
the star in the sky is gone, / when the kings and princes are home,
when
the shepherds are back with their flocks, / the work of Christmas
begins:
to find the lost, / to heal the broken,
to feed the hungry, / to release the prisoner,
to rebuild the nations, / to bring peace among the people,
to make music in the heart.
to find the lost, / to heal the broken,
to feed the hungry, / to release the prisoner,
to rebuild the nations, / to bring peace among the people,
to make music in the heart.
—“Now
the Work of Christmas Begins”
by Howard Thurman
As
we enter this Christmas season and the New Year, we are invited to
hold the tensions of mortality—life and death in a moment—and to
allow ourselves to be deeply human, fallible, imperfect, beautiful,
messy, brilliant, uncertain. For just like the baby Jesus—born
into our world once again—we each cradle a multitude of births and
deaths in our own lives. Something is waiting to be born in us. And
something is waiting to die.
Jesus
is born into our world to demonstrate the powerful possibilities of
being deeply human—to live and die—in all our complexity—in
indivisible relationship with others. This is so very important.
That no matter what, we are not alone. We are surrounded by vast
communities of God’s other children. No matter what exists in this
moment—good, bad, and everything in-between—Emmanuel. God with
us. Even in the bleakest and most heartbreaking circumstances. Even
in anxiety, frustration, and overwhelm. Even when we can’t seem to
find hope or peace or joy or love. Emmanuel. God is with us.
And
we are the ones God calls—in this moment—to do our best to
incarnate the hope and peace and joy and love that the world so
desperately needs. And this has always been the case. Our God has
always chosen the most unexpected, unsuspecting people to do the most
incredible and world-changing things. Like asking a poor, unwed,
teenaged, Palestinian girl to give birth to the Prince of Peace, the
King of Kings, the Savior, the Christ. Who would have expected that?
And likewise, God invites us—and people everywhere—to be deeply
human, to rely on relationships with others, to trust Emmanuel—God
with us—and to incarnate the justice and joy, the goodness and
grace, and the hope and possibility that will liberate an imprisoned
and broken world.
You
are invited to be a tabernacle for the holy. God chooses to dwell in
you. And if we listen closely, we will hear our own
annunciations—the voices of angels whispering to us continually,
“Do not fear. You are not alone. The Holy One has great things in
store for you.”
See
you in church,
Christy
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