December, 2008
Reflections on Luke 2:1-20, for the long
winter nights,
They traveled a long way to pay their taxes. I wonder if we would?
They trusted the voices of angels in their dreams. I wonder if we could?
He trusted her and pledged his love and support, even though they were not yet married. Would we?
She gave birth in a barn, wrapped her baby in rags, and snuggled him into a feeding trough. Would I? I guess I would do what I had to do. Would you?
They were out in the fields with their sheep, an angel reassured them and gave them the "good news." They believed. Would we?
What did they see when they went into that barn, besides a man and woman and a newborn baby? How did they know it was a holy thing, God and his mother and her fiancé taking refuge in that straw-filled animal stall?
The shepherds knew, and they told others what they had seen. Would we believe such a fantastic story, and even if we did, would we dare tell anyone?
Mary knew, and she received their words as affirmation from God. She clung to their excitement, somehow she knew the angels were from God and so was her baby.
The shepherds believed and immediately praised God for what they had experienced. They did not brag about themselves for being the first to see this holy thing. They praised God. Would we?
It is a funny thing, Christmas - mysterious and implausible, extraordinary and unbelievable. Yet, I believe. I believe in this strange and beautiful story because I believe in a God who is mysterious and beyond my imagination. I believe a young girl was overwhelmed by God's Spirit and gave birth to a child who was also God. If I do not believe this, then God becomes as small as I am and only capable of doing what I can do. And with all my being, I want God to be bigger and greater than anything I can imagine. I pray that I will never think that I have figured out God, or that I have all the answers to the mysteries of God. Last month the liturgist at the church where I serve said she gets nervous and forgets the order of service whenever she stands in front of the congregation. What should she do? Thank God, I said. Thank God that it makes you nervous to stand in the presence of God and presume to lead others in worship of our great and unbelievable God. Thank God, for you are inviting others to travel closer to God as the shepherds did.