Advent 2 C Luke 3:1-6 Malachi 3:1-4 Psalm 126 Prepare!

I am not prepared for this Christmas season. In times past I have had all shopping done by Thanksgiving. The tree doesn't go up in our house until the first of December. But here it sits. Assembled, but empty. The house is not clean enough to decorate. The family has worked on it but it't still not 'prepared'. And somewhere in the basement is the advent calendar that should have been unearthed by tonight to read the appropriate scriptures tonight before bed.

Why? Because here I sit with bronchitis. Not the first time. I get it every fall/winter. Last year it hit on Christmas Eve. Nice ER visit. Allergy testing showed a pine allergy. So the tree is artificial this year. But still I cough. Preparations are at a halt. Because I am the Mom. The dad put up the tree, he will even string lights. But the mom leads the decorating. The dad will put up the outside lights but they sit in a container under the tree ornaments.

The mom does most of the shopping and social planning too. The mom must get better quick because she is also a professor and it is the last week before finals.

But when my children came home from church with plans to visit a sick friend next Sunday and asked me to help make gifts I thought.... They ARE prepared. They are prepared to be and giving and compassionate. Decorations and shopping may delay but Generosity will not. Because the One who Is to Come Brings A Heart changed that know no delays.

I welcome comments. I do moderate them, but please feel free to converse about the text.

The Righteous Branch Advent 1 C Jeremiah 33:14-16a continued

The connection between Wall-e, Eve(a) and the Righteous Branch continues in my thoughts.

The plant changes everything.
As soon as Eve sees the plant, she hides it, but only to protect it. She is concerned only with the 'directive.'

Wall-e protects Eve because he loves her as she protects the plant...but he does not know why she does it. He only knows that he loves her.

And when she leaves, he must follow.

The plant motivates everyone to get out of their chairs and live again.

See how many parallels to Advent you can find in this story.

The Righteous Branch Advent 1 C Jeremiah 33:14-16

I will be posting comments on the Advent passages at least weekly, sometimes more. Check back often for updates.

(All Scripture from NRSV) 14 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
16. In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called, "The Lord is our righteousness."

Jeremiah is confined in the court of the guard when he receives this message. God certainly uses those who are jailed for his purpose. The chapter and vision begin quite negatively. The Chaldeans (Babylonians) are coming to fight. God has hidden his face in anger and will allow this tragedy to happen. But in verse 6 he says he will 'Bring it to recovery and healing; I will heal them..." The focus suddenly moves from doom and destruction to hope and healing.

The metaphor for healing in this passage is the righteous Branch.
What do we know about this righteous Branch?
Simply from the passage itself.

1. It will spring up.
2. It will spring up for David.
3. It is a he.
4. He shall execute justice in the land.
5. He shall execute righteousness in the land.
6. Because of this Branch, Judah will be saved.
7. Because of this Branch, Jerusalem will live in safety.

Multiple green lights flash to the listeners.

To spring up, a plant must be ALIVE.


The Disney movie, Wall-E, the main character is post-apocalyptic story about a robot left on the planet earth for clean up after humans leave the earth because they destroy it with trash. Wall-E's only companion is a cockroach until ship lands and a sleek robot named Eve emerges. Wall-E immediately falls in love. He shares everything with Eve; until Eve finds a living plant, opens a compartment, houses the plant and shuts down. Wall-E sits by her for what seems like forever until a the ship returns to collect Eve. He attaches himself to her ship and travels to her mother ship where he finds humans who have lived for generations. There the captain discovers that Eve has brought a sign of life on earth and that is safe to return.

Wall-E was not marketed as a Christmas movie. But it is.

The Branch grew out of a dead land and brought life to the people. The Branch (plant) changed every person's (and robot's) life.

This is what the Righteous Branch will do. He will bring light and life to a dry, dead, parched land.

And with Life he will bring Justice. Hebrew: Mishpat. 
This is a great Word study on Mishpat.

To be continued....

Advent 4B Luke 1:39-56 The Magnificat

I once read, "What if God had sent  Gabriel  to many women before he came to Mary many times and they had all refused?"  Was he giving Mary a choice? She seems to voice consent. What if she had said no?

Mary said, "Let it be to me according to your word." Wow. What faith it took to say that. She had no idea what she was getting into. None of us who sign up for parenthood, or have it thrust upon us "surprisingly," really know what we are getting into until we experience it. But Mary has more ahead of her than just parenthood. She has the potential disgrace of being unmarried and pregnant. She has the prediction of Simeon, "A sword shall pierce your heart." She has the pain of watching her son leave for ministry; and then the unspeakable horror of watching him die a tortured death.

Confederates Hugging Yankees and Other Impossibilities our Church Promotes - Nazarene Grace and Peace Magazine

Confederates Hugging Yankees and Other Impossibilities our Church Promotes - Nazarene Grace and Peace Magazine

This is an article I wrote, just published in Grace and Peace Magazine.

advent week two 2B Mark 1:1-8

John the Baptist seems to have a lot of humility. Sure, he is screaming in the wilderness that there is one coming. It seems that is not very humble, to call attention to one's self in such a way. But he is not yelling about his own fame, but he simply prepares the way for another.

Is humility something we think about just before Christmas? It doesn't seem that our culture speaks to humility in any way shape or form. Two days before the beginning of Advent, we see people knocking each other down to get a good deal on toys. I don't think that has anything to do with humility.

If you find yourself on the floor of Wal-mart sometime in December, think humility.

advent week one 1B

"It all started with a mouse and a dream" Walt Disney
How big that dream became.

But what about God's dream for his son? What about God's dream for us? What is God dreaming for you this advent? Ask him. He will show you.

Where will that dream take you? God's imagination??? It is limitless...