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Christmas is one of the busiest times of year for our culture.
There are so many things to do and places to be, spending time
reflecting upon the miracle of Jesus is often pushed down the list
of gifts to enjoy. "Encountering the Holy" creates this holy
space by bringing out special moments to reflect on and thoughts to
ponder every day of the Advent season. With devotions on such
topics as seeing God in nature, others, and ourselves, explorations
of each fruit of the spirit such as love, joy, patience, and
kindness, and time spent with the nativity story including the
shepherds, the manger, and Simeon, Sarah brings forth a fresh look
at the Christmas season and through personal stories of her own,
helps the reader see how their own story is given new light when it
encounters the Holy One of Israel.
For ordering information, click here.
Devotional Selections
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Christmas Aromas
And They Followed a Star...
Why the Manger?
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Christmas Aromas
“But
thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in
Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the
knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among
those who are being saved and
those who are perishing.”
2 Corinthians 2:14-15
One of my favorite things about the
Christmas season is the smell of baking. You know, when you walk
into a house with the aroma of gingerbread cookies and hot apple
cider laced with nutmeg, and a good dose of evergreen tree on
the side. There is nothing in the world like it. It feels like
coming home, all warm and cozy. Once you’re in a house like
that, it never seems to matter much what is going on outside,
you are home.
I think that is how God wants us to
feel with Him in prayer, warm and safe within Him. I think He
enjoys inviting us in when we make the time to stop by. We might
sit on the couch by the fire with a cup of hot eggnog in our
hand and a cookie in the other. He asks us how we’re doing, what
is on our mind? We talk and He listens as we sit there and share
with each other what is most precious to our hearts. We hear Him
tell of how He sees things and what He thinks of us. However,
even when at last we leave and go into other homes, His aroma
stays with us. That scent of love and warmth is like the cloak
He wrapped us in before we left, an aroma that clings to our
beings as we interact with the world around us. Our presence
will bring that same sense of peace and love. God with us will
help people to remember God with them as the aroma travels from
one home to another.
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And
They Followed a Star...
“After they had heard the king, they
went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east
went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the
child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On
coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother
Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.”
Matthew 2:9-11
Can you imagine the conversation between
the magi on the way to see Jesus? I imagine it went
something like this: “Hey Ralph, did you remember to bring
the frankincense? Yes, I see the star. No, we don’t need to
stop and ask for directions. I know exactly where we’re
going. This is just the scenic route.” When they arrived,
(Jesus was probably close to two years old by this time),
they gave Jesus and His parents the gifts they had brought
from afar. I wonder how long they stayed? If you had
traveled for years to see someone, how long would you stay?
Though the account in Matthew doesn’t say, I would venture a
guess they stayed at least several days. What was it like
for them to see the King of the Jews toddle around? Was He
what they expected or did He take them by surprise?
How often in our own lives do we follow the
star toward who we think Jesus may be then are surprised
when we get there? How often do we think we know what Jesus
will look like but when we see Him, have a hard time
recognizing who He really is? We follow the star, we bring
our gifts, we may have even gotten lost on the way, but what
do we do when we get there? The wise men trusted the star
and so bowed down and worshiped Him. Let us do the same.
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Why
the Manger?
“She gave birth to her firstborn, a son.
She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a
manger,
because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Luke 2:7
These last two weeks I
have been in charge of feeding fifteen llamas every day. Every
morning hay goes into their bins and every morning I have to
step through what they leave behind. Though it is fun to see
them and feed them in the early morning dawn, it strikes me anew
what a dirty place Jesus must have been born in. I wonder if
Joseph felt bad about not being able to provide anything better?
I wonder why God did not.
Of all the places Jesus could have been born in, why was it
destined to be where animals were kept? Why not a nice clean
room with at least a midwife present who could help Mary through
the ordeal? What point did that make? Nothing is done without
reason, why would God choose to place two people who said yes to
His will in such circumstances? Why does God place us in such
circumstances? Why, when we say yes to His will, does He place
us in places filled with difficulty and even pain? I think it is
the experience of difficulty that He values. He knows if we
experience difficulty, we will be more approachable in the eyes
of those around us. If Jesus had been born in a palace, the
shepherds would never have been let in. If Jesus had been born
“with a silver spoon in His mouth”, those with wood would never
have known Him. What experiences in your life have made you more
approachable in the eyes of others? What mangers have you been
laid in lately? Perhaps it is time to see our mangers
differently.
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