Category Archives: Biblical Reflection

Heart Full of Joy

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Readings: Luke 1:46b-55, Micah 4:6-8, 2 Peter 1:16-21

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. Luke 1:46b-49

None of us can imagine all of the private thoughts and questions of Mary, but I think of Mary’s expression of what she feels in her heart – namely, joy.

She spends most of the time describing the way God is in general. Her spiritual beauty reaches its emotional peak in the first part of her song where she responds from the heart to all God did for her: My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. Mary mentions what God has done specifically for her as an individual (verses 48 and 49).

I am moved by Mary’s other-centeredness. She doesn’t look at her situation through the lens of her own personal situation. She displays a sense that she is the most privileged and most blessed person for her God given role, even though it would come at a great personal cost. Would there be disgrace? Would she be an outcast? Would she be stoned? Would she be divorced? This is astounding coming from a teenage girl!

I can’t help but ask: What and how did Mary at such a young age acquire such faith and trust? I am reminded and convicted of how important it is to a young person’s life to hear scripture read and to teach and live God’s word around them. Allow God’s word to soak into their hearts. I am so challenged by Mary’s level of complete other-centeredness.

I consider the parallel between Mary and every Christian. Do you and I share in Mary’s joy?

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Offered by Donna Eby, worker for the needy, student of scripture, child of God.

Tipping the Scales

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Readings: Luke 1:46b-55, Micah 4:1-5, Ephesians 2:11-22

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He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;

he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy. Luke 1:52-54

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Offered by Colin Fredrickson, artist, high school senior, child of God.

Through and For

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Readings: Psalm 113, Genesis 25:19-28, Colossians 1:15-20

He is the image of the Invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers – all things have been created through him and for him. Colossians 1:15-16

All things have been created through him and for him? The one who was with God from the beginning, who is God, is the one I’m walking to Bethlehem to see? Nothing is disconnected from him, and nothing is lost to him. Billions of stars and uncountable sub-atomic particles are joined together in him. All the creatures who ever were, all who are, and all who shall some day come to be, are related in him.

No one is lost, abandoned, or forgotten. Everything is held by God, created for God’s delight. Perhaps God came to us as a baby so we might have the gift of holding him.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Insignificant

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Readings: Micah 5:2-5a; Luke 1:46b-55; Hebrews 10:5-10a

But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel… Micah 5:2a

For he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant... Luke 1:48 a

Ever feel insignificant? By whose definition? Well, we know it’s not God’s if we even casually read the scriptures. Bethlehem is called one of the little clans of Judah, insignificant by most standards. In The Message, Eugene Peterson calls it “the runt of the litter.”

And what about Mary – a lowly servant who sings of how the proud are scattered and the powerful are dethroned and the lowly lifted up? The Bible is replete with so-called insignificant places and people being exalted by God. It seems God’s standards of significance are quite different.

When God emerges from the womb of an “insignificant” young woman to walk among us, heal us, feed us, save us, whom does this Jesus choose as his closest companions? Pretty much a bunch of insignificant people. As we celebrate the coming of our Lord this week, let us be reminded of True Significance, of what really matters (one definition of significant is the extent to which something matters).

Born of a lowly servant in a one-horse town, in a stable with that horse and other insignificant animals, and worshipped by a group of lowly shepherds, we find the One who matters the most in our lives as Christians. The One who changed the world.

Maybe we should reconsider our definition of insignificance as we welcome him into our hearts. And may we know our true significance in the heart of God this Christmas.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Offered by Bill Albritton, prayer team leader, faith educator, child of God.

 

Console

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Readings: Psalm 80:1-7, Isaiah 66:7-11, Luke 13:31-35
How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! Luke 13:34b

There are few things more compelling than a baby’s tears. We adults are hard-wired to respond to them, so we get up in the middle of the night to nurse a hungry infant or change a wet diaper. We pace the floor with a colicky child on our shoulder, and we hold them when their crying has no obvious cause. We sing to them, even those of us who don’t sing. We do our best to console them, even when they will not be consoled.

I’ve wondered lately if God came as an infant to show us that it’s okay to be loved, rocked to sleep, and held when afraid or sad. If Almighty God was okay with such nurturing, perhaps we can be, too.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Leading the Blind

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Readings: Psalm 80:1-7, Isaiah 42: 10-18, Hebrews 10: 32-39

I will lead the blind by a road they do not know, by paths they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These things I will do, and I will not forsake them. Isaiah 42:16

There’s a difference between being lost and exploring a new place without a clear idea of my current position. I’ve been both in Boston. If I stray off the ever popular Freedom Trail, with its line of bricks to guide me, I end up who knows where. With a bit of faith and luck, I’ve ended up eating a delicious meal in the North End, finding the Museum of Fine Arts by way of the Fens, and standing in Cambridge and Boston at the same time in the Museum of Science. I’ve also ended up on dead end streets lined with dumpsters, the Charles River Esplanade in plain sight and no way to get to it. Lost or exploring new territory? For me, the difference is mainly emotional. Lost feels anxious and not quite safe; exploring feels exciting and confident.

But what if I walk in blindness? How would I know where I stood? How could I tell someone else how to find me? If my eyes cannot see, an unknown pathway means I am lost. Would I have the courage to walk such a path in the dark? Staying put or walking, I am afraid if I am alone.

The same could be said for this journey that is my life. In times of blindness, I am afraid to walk and afraid to say put if I am alone. But I am not alone. I have a guide who loves me and brings me home. Not only that, this guide turns my blindness into light. No longer blind, held fast, brought home.

Guide me, Lord, in life and in life beyond death. Amen.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Rules and Hearts

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Readings: Psalm 80:1-7; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 10:10-18

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord’, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more. Jeremiah 31:31-34

The temptation is to think that Christians have it made on this one. That somehow we’ve moved beyond the law to a relational faith based in Jesus. Because it is relational, we reason, it’s not about rules and regulations, but truly is a covenant written in our hearts.

Not so fast!

People are by their very nature, it seems, rule makers. So we good Christians who have been offered the gift of relationship with Jesus Christ have just as many rules, regulations and laws about faith as anyone else. Depending upon your theological orientation these “laws” are about prayers that need to be said, practices that need to be engaged, good deeds that need to be done, or beliefs that need to be held. These are what provide entre into the relationship or prove that the relationship is genuine. It’s all rational, cerebral and in almost all cases can be quantified. Even churches do it, keeping detailed accounts of the number of programs offered, pastoral visits made, baptisms perform, attendees in worship, and the size and growth of the budget. This, we assume, is a sign of faithfulness and provides assurance of God’s blessing. But it’s not about the heart.

Faith based in the heart is relational in the truest sense. It is fostered in love and shows itself in love. It dismisses rules and quantifiable criteria and lets go of the need to prove anything to anyone. This is the relational love we celebrate in the Incarnation. And the truth is it is so foreign to the way the world operates, we need to take significant time to prepare ourselves to receive it. That’s what Advent is about. It is a time to let go of the law that governs our existing and embrace the love that give full, abundant and eternal living possible. This is the covenant that is within, the gift that is offered to us at Christmas.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Offered by Jeff Jones, writer, teacher, pastor, child of God.

The Stump

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Readings: Isaiah 11:1-9, Micah 4:8-13, Luke 7:31-35

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. Isaiah 11:1

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This image uses twigs from the artist’s family home; she is living in Virginia, attending college.

Offered by Riley Anderson, artist, seeker of wisdom, child of God.

Seeing Jesus and John

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Readings: Isaiah 11:1-9, Micah 4:8-13, Luke 7:31-35

“To what will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’

For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

Do I see only what I want to see? Without wisdom, certainly.

When I seek the face of God, there’s nothing that can’t reveal it.

When I seek my own reflection and call it God, everything and everyone disappoint.

If I try hard enough to avoid the holiness around me, I’ll turn even John and Jesus into a hippie and a low life.

Gracious God, Open my eyes.

Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

Advent Hope

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Readings: Isaiah 11:1-9, Numbers 16:20-35, Acts 28:23-31

The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your ancestors when he said
through Isaiah the prophet:

“’Go to this people and say,
‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.’
For this people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.”
Acts 28:25-27

As I read these passages, I cannot help but think of the state of our world today. It is easy to lose faith, let fear take over and give up hope. It is easy to close our eyes and our hearts. Yet Advent asks us to remain full of hope, and hope is what these passages are all about to me.

As Isaiah tells of the glory of the future of Christ’s kingdom on earth, where peace shall cover the earth and where the wolf will live with the lamb, Paul works to break down the barriers between Jew and Gentile, between slave and free. He speaks to everyone. Some do not listen. Some do not understand. But he continues as an apostle for Jesus completely trusting in God regardless of his circumstances.

We are the ordinary people filled with the Holy Spirit that Paul called upon to spread the Word. Over the past three years I have traveled to Africa, Honduras and New Orleans to use my hands and my feet, my eyes and my ears to serve. I have spent time at schools, churches, villages and homes. I have sat with both young and old, and have worked alongside strangers. And even though I do not speak Swahili or Spanish (nor did many speak English!) I have felt what it is like to understand with my heart.

May the words of Isaiah and the actions of Paul give us hope this advent. May we see each day with new eyes, hear each word with new ears and open our hearts to God and one another.

Offered by Heidi Marcotte, living in hope, working in this world.