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A New Bucket List Item

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I spent the evening at one of my favorite places– the Opryland Hotel.

What makes this place so special is how they will spend 6 months putting together all their Christmas lights and decorations. The results are more than worth it.

As usual, I put in over 20,000 steps walking around from one conservatory to the next. It’s impressive. It’s ridiculously over the top in the best way possible. It’s overwhelming at times.

I think I have a new bucket list item. I want to stay in one of the rooms overlooking the Delta Atrium during the Christmas season (or at least when the lights are all up). I think I’d prefer to stay on either the very top floor or the one just below it. Either would work just fine for me. I think a weekend stay would suit me just fine.

I’d also like to dine at the Old Hickory Steakhouse. Even though I’ve never dined there, I always imagine it’d cost me at least one of my vital organs. Or just an arm and a leg.

I’m refraining from looking up how much all of this would actually cost. I don’t want to ruin my perfect little fantasy.

At the very least, I get to spend a couple of hours every year taking in all the holiday glory that is the Opryland Hotel in December.

Merry Christmas to me, indeed!

A Borrowed Advent Blog Post

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“… so yeah, amidst the noise of everything, that’s what it comes down to: Be silent stress, be silent worries, be silent fears,
just hush all worry, hush all hurry — & hear Him in the stillness:
“Know that I am God … Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at Me, your High God, above politics, above everything.” Ps.46:10, MSG
Sadness is never the end of the story. Jesus is the end of our story – and the beginning of our story and the best part of our story.
Above the pressures, above the pace, above the politics, above the news, above the rushing, above the deadlines, above everything — take a long, loving look at Him — your High God who is above all that is pressing in on you — & press into Him.
The Lord God Almighty is here among us, the Lord is Here —
so Peace is here among us,
& brave praise rises from amongst us,
& there are arms to carry us through all this here
because knowing that He is God means knowing we are His Beloved and we will always be held” (Ann Voskamp).

www.TheGreatestChristmas.com
bit.ly/GreatestGiftforyou

Your assignment, should you choose to accept it, is to read the above paragraph at least once a day for as long as it takes to sink in and become reality in your mind.

Also, to drink lots of egg nog (or whatever substitute you choose if you’re not an egg nog fan) and have a Merry Christmas!

 

Holding On to Hope

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“And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,

 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
    for he has visited and redeemed his people
and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
    in the house of his servant David,
 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old” (Luke 1:67-70, ESV).

This was part of the text from today’s sermon at The Church at Avenue South. As I heard these words, I couldn’t help but think of how utterly incredible and miraculous the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth was.

Think about it. Both were well beyond their child-bearing years. In ordinary human terms, they were way past hope. But in God’s story, nothing and no one is beyond hope.

That’s my takeaway for whoever needs it tonight.

No one is beyond hope in God’s story. The fact that you and I are still here means that God’s not done with us.

It also means that some of those dreams that seem lost and dashed to pieces might not be so dead after all. Just ask that elderly couple who gave birth to John the Baptist.

My hope isn’t in my dreams. It’s in the God who makes dreams come true. Or who has something in mind way bigger than my mind and dreams could ever conceive.

If you’re still waiting on a dream or a promise, trust God in the meantime. Learn to be completely content in where He has you right now, believing that God still knows what He’s doing.

 

Advent Sneaking Up

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Every year, I say that I will experience all the fullness of Advent and Christmas and not one little moment slip by, yet increasingly each year I find that the days in December slip by so quickly that I hardly have a chance to catch my breath before it’s all over.

I don’t feel ready or prepared, yet Christmas Eve is only 9 days away. Back when I was a kid, 9 days would last forever, but these days when I sneeze, 2 days go by.

The first Advent and Christmas snuck up on people. Those living in Israel were expecting a Messiah, but almost none of them were looking in the right place at the right moment when He arrived.

Few would have ever suspected tiny Bethlehem to be the birthplace of the King of the Universe. Fewer would have expected Him to be born in such a lowly place — whether it was a stable or a room for the animals attached to a house– and had His first crib be a feeding trough.

It seems we’re still missing Him today. He gets crowded out by lights, gift wrapping, tinsel, and all the hustle and bustle that comes with the season. These are all good and well, but not when we’ve forgotten the reason why.

It’s good to make time to be still and meditate on the true meaning of Christmas, remembering that the Child we celebrate lives in the hearts of people not just one day a year but in all the days of all the years (to semi-borrow a line from Dickens’ A Christmas Carol)

“Lord, sometimes You come quietly and with no disturbance. Babies threaten no one, and no memorials are raised to mark their significance. May my life bring Christ quietly into the circle of human need so that those who need You will not be frightened by Your presence but enveloped in it” (Calvin Miller, The Christ of Christmas).

Stepping Inside a Movie

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I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen the 1954 Christmas classic White Christmas. It remains my absolute all-time favorite holiday movie ever.

Each time I watch the part where they get to the Vermont Inn run by the General, I wish for a moment that I could step into the TV screen and live there.

I know it’s not real. It’s most likely a set built on a sound stage at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. Still, it looks and feels warm and inviting.

It’d be amazing if there were actual places like this. They’d almost have to be in the New England area or it would spoil the illusion.

Anyway, now you know my little secret. I want to live inside the movie White Christmas. With or without the floor show.

Thankful for Being Well

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“It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver” (Mahatma Gandhi).

“Health is the thing that makes you feel that now is the best time of the year” (Franklin Pierce Adams).

I’m slowly but surely on the mend. The fever’s gone, the energy’s returning, and the cough . . . well, as the great philosopher Meat Loaf once said, two out of three ain’t bad.

I never fully appreciate my good health until after I’ve been sick. It’s a lesson I have to re-learn over and over. The pattern goes like: 1) me taking my health for granted, 2) me coming down with a nasty fever, 3) me feeling like death warmed over and wanting to hibernate until spring, 4) me finally mending and getting well, 5) me being grateful for my heath– for a little while.

Then I read about someone who’s way more sick than I ever was. Or someone who’s been fighting chronic illness for years. Or someone who’s life expectancy went from years to months or weeks or even days.

In a culture where we have some of the most advanced medical technology and knowledge, it’s the norm to not give a second thought to your health. It almost feels like a given for most of us that we will live out our 80 years in relative comfort.

But lately, it seems like death has touched so many of my friends’ families. Even some of my friends and family. Sure, some lived to a ripe old age, but too many departed this life much too soon.

So, thank you God for my health. I’m grateful for each day, knowing that tomorrow is neither guaranteed nor promised. I will do my best to appreciate and enjoy and savor this one life as much as I possibly can and never take anyone in my life for granted.

 

At the Right Time

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“But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage. You can tell for sure that you are now fully adopted as his own children because God sent the Spirit of his Son into our lives crying out, “Papa! Father!” Doesn’t that privilege of intimate conversation with God make it plain that you are not a slave, but a child? And if you are a child, you’re also an heir, with complete access to the inheritance” (Galatians 4:4-7, The Message).

In this Advent time, it’s good to remember that for thousands of years people were looking forward to the coming of the Messiah. Many trusted in faith and died without seeing what they hoped for fulfilled, yet they still believed.

We are on the other side of history, looking back toward that blessed event. How much more should our faith increase at this time of year, knowing that the promised Messiah has come and the Kingdom He spoke of is here?

Still, for many of us, this is a difficult season. For some, it’s a reminder of lost loved ones. For others, it’s a season where life goes from busy to insanity.

Still, this is the season where we are reminded of Emmanuel– God with us. Advent means that God is still here with us and won’t ever leave us. Ever.

 

 

The Stocking for the Child Born in a Manger

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“All the stockings are filled, all that is, except one. And we have even forgotten to hang it up. The stocking for the child born in a manger. Its his birthday we’re celebrating. Don’t let us ever forget that.

Let us ask ourselves what He would wish for most. And then, let each put in his share–loving kindness, warm hearts, and a stretched out hand of tolerance. All the shining gifts that make peace on earth” (from The Bishop’s Wife).

With all the commercialization of Christmas, it’s easy to forget the real reason for the season. I was reminded of that as I watched The Bishop’s Wife, one of the movies that falls under the required holiday viewing category for me.

I’d say that we could all use more loving kindness, warm hearts, and that stretched out hand of tolerance. I see so much hostility whenever I read comments on Facebook posts. No one is allowed to voice a dissenting opinion, or disagree, or sometimes even state their own preference.

But Christmas is about peace on earth, good will to men. It’s about how a Savior has been given to us, and one of the names He will forever be known by is Prince of Peace.

My prayer is that you can receive this gift that came so long ago in that manger in Bethlehem. That you know that Jesus came to seek and save the lost.

Hopefully, in all the crazy insanity of the Christmas shopping season, we can all be a little kinder, a little more patient, a little more grace-full.

Oh, and it doesn’t bother me whether you say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” nearly as much as it used to. What good is a “Merry Christmas” if it’s followed by greedy impatient selfish consumerism? Again, words are cheap, but what really matters is how you live out your faith.

So, let’s be mindful of that empty stocking and be intentional about what that Child in the Manger, now Savior of the World, would want from us this Christmas season.

 

Scrooge and Elf

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I did a Christmas movie two-fer, also known in some circles as a marathon or a movie binge. I watched the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol and Elf.

I own 9 versions of the Dickens classic. I can’t exactly say why I’m drawn to the movies and the book other than the character of Ebenezer Scrooge.

I can think of no other character outside the Bible who transforms so dramatically from beginning to end. Scrooge goes from the most unfeeling, miserly, cold-hearted man to ever live into the patron saint of Christmas.

The 1951 movie especially captures the meanness of the pre-spirits Scrooge and the giddiness after. Alastair Sims captures all of the range of this character better than any other actor that I’ve ever seen.

And Elf. It’s such a goofy movie that I love so much. You have a grown-up kid who thinks he’s an elf because he grew up among elves. However, it’s not all candy canes and twirly swirly gum drops.

There’s actually a dramatic part of the story where Buddy the Elf doesn’t feel like he fits in anywhere– neither the world of elves or the world of humans. I think that resonates with just about every one of us at some point.

The key is when Buddy finally finds his purpose, what he’s good at, and quits trying to please everyone else and fit their ideas of what he should be.

So that’s my Christmas two-fer. I feel all warm and fuzzy inside now. So Merry Early Christmas to all and to all a good night.

Only 17 more days!

Both Just and a Sinner

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“Simul justus, et peccator, totus, totus” (Martin Luther).

In case you were wondering, this quote is Latin and can be translated as “Simultaneously both just and a sinner.”

I find out how very true that is in my own life on a daily basis. I can echo the words of Paul when he said that the good he wanted to do, he didn’t do, and the bad he didn’t want to do, he did.

I don’t think this expression is a license to indulge in sinful habits and choices. I do think that the reality is that as long as we live in the flesh in this life, we will battle the fleshly desires that still dwell within us.

The part I love is where God declares those of us who have put our faith in Christ to be just. It’s not a righteousness that comes from any part of who we are or what we do but is entirely from God and is completely the righteousness of Jesus given to us.

I see it as good reason not to get puffed up in thinking how spiritual I am simply because I’ve come to faith in Christ. I may be just in the eyes of God, but I also know that that sin nature that still dwells in me can rear its ugly head from time to time and at very inopportune moments.

The good news is that it won’t always be this way. God in Jesus has promised that He will finish the good work He started in me (and you). That’s not a wishful thinking kind of hope or a pie-in-the-sky fantasy kind of dream. Because God has said it, it’s already as good as done, as true as the God who has spoken it.

Lord Jesus, let it be done.