Category: Devo180

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Then Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I haven’t had sexual relations with a man?” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come over you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the one who is to be born will be holy. He will be called God’s Son.” (Luke 1:34-35; context)

…Filling Up…

In all of the wondrous things the angel tells Mary about her son, Mary hangs on to the one thing that is most immediate – the process of becoming pregnant. I can see her mind’s eye filling with images of her son sitting on a throne in Jerusalem; influencing the movers and shakers in the empire; battling Israel’s oppressors; perhaps being killed in the line of duty. I know that my own mother didn’t let me play football because she was afraid I would get hurt. Imagine Mary looking into Jesus’ future, based on Gabriel’s message, and seeing the kinds of danger that come from having the power that Jesus would have.

It’s no wonder, then, that Mary latches onto the immediate problem of becoming pregnant. Holding onto to this keeps her, I think, from becoming overwhelmed with the life that the angel describes to her. Of course, Gabriel’s answer to her question about pregnancy reveals even more wonders. Apparently, it’s that kind of day for Mary.

But notice again what Luke is doing with the way he constructs his dialogue. Mary’s question reaches for normality after hearing an overwhelming proclamation about her son. Then, after her attempt to steady herself, Gabriel launches back into his speech about the wondrous manner, in which she will become pregnant.

The pregnancy is the key here. Mary’s pregnancy is miraculous, yes, because the child is conceived from the Holy Spirit. But at the same time, the act of being pregnant is one of the most normal things a woman can do. Indeed, women’s bodies are designed to carry children. In the birth of Jesus, the miraculous and ordinary interweave.

And this reminds us that in our lives, we really shouldn’t attempt to separate the mundanity from the majesty as readily as we do.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you weave through every moment of my life, both the momentous and the monotonous. Help me to train my eyes to see that movement and to open my heart to receive your presence. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. He will rule over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom.” (Luke 1:30-33; context)

…Filling Up…

The past-present-future nature of the narrative, which we discussed yesterday, carries through Gabriel’s message today. Once again, the mention of David links to the past. Gabriel’s assertion that God is honoring Mary happens in the present. And the speech about the eternity of Jesus’ kingdom point to the future. Within this framework, Gabriel tells Mary what God is asking her to do: conceive and bear a son, who will be called the Son of the Most High.

But notice what Gabriel says before the message about Mary’s impending pregnancy and about Jesus’ life. First, the angel says the standard line used by all of God’s messengers: “Don’t be afraid.” Gabriel said this to Zechariah as well, and an angel will say it the shepherds in the next chapter. In these other two encounters, the angels lead with “Don’t be afraid.” But in Mary’s encounter, it is the second thing Gabriel says, as if he forgot the order of his speech. Perhaps, Gabriel was so excited about the content of his message that he forgot to allay Mary’s fear at the outset. Or maybe the idea of rejoicing in God’s favor trumps the idea of fear.

Indeed, the sentence about fear falls in between “The Lord is with you” and “God is honoring you.” Taken in this order, Gabriel’s message surrounds the idea of fear with the idea of God being in relationship with Mary. Mary has no need to fear because the Lord is with her and God is honoring her. And if this isn’t enough to show that God’s relationship with Mary trumps fear, the angel does something that is always powerful in the Gospel. Gabriel says Mary’s name: “Don’t be afraid, Mary.”

In this opening message Gabriel establishes God’s intimate relationship with Mary, a connection that drives out fear. So I invite you today to listen for the words of God that speak each day into our hearts: “The Lord is with you. Don’t be afraid even if God gives you a daunting task because God honors you with such work, and God will see you through.”

…Praying For…

Dear God, you take my fear and triumph over it with your love. Help me to listen for and accept the call you speak in my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee, to a virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary. When the angel came to her, he said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. (Luke 1:26-29; context)

…Filling Up…

Alright. Over a week into our slow walk through Luke’s birth narrative, we finally meet one of the major players. Notice all the things we learn about Mary in these few short verses. We know she has some connection to Elizabeth, or else why would Luke mention Elizabeth’s pregnancy. Mary lives in Nazareth. She’s engaged to be married. She’s never been married before, nor done a certain activity that married people do. She is going to marry into the house of David, which is pretty cool because he was king a long time ago. And we know from Gabriel’s greeting that she’s a favorite of God’s and that the Lord is with her. These are the pertinent details that Luke decides we need to know.

Notice also that within these details, Luke provides us with a moment in time that captures the past, the present, and the future. Joseph is descended from the house of David; in this lineage, we link to the past. Elizabeth is six months pregnant and soon she will give birth to John; in this progeny, we link to the future. When Gabriel tells Mary that the “Lord is with you,” the angel brings us to the present.

It’s as if Luke chooses these details to show that, in the decision that Mary makes a few verses later, the long stretch history, the moment of the present, and the possibility of the future all converge in her womb. And, of course, that’s exactly what happens when she becomes pregnant with the Son of God. Pretty cool, huh?

One last thing: I’ve been wondering about Mary’s “confusion” concerning Gabriel’s greeting. When Gabriel met Zechariah, the first words out of the angel’s mouth were: “Don’t be afraid.” Gabriel will say the same to Mary in the next verse, but that’s not the angel’s opening greeting. No, I think that Mary was a humble soul and was confused because she would never have considered herself “favored.” And that’s probably what made her so.

…Praying For…

Dear God, from your hand all of time and space spring. Help me to discern your movement in my past, to hope for a closer walk with you in my future, and to find you in the present. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Speech of an angel shines in the waters of her thought like diamonds,
Rides like a sunburst on the hillsides of her heart.
And is brought home like harvests,
Hid in her house, and stored
Like the sweet summer’s riches in our peaceful barns. (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered why he was in the sanctuary for such a long time. When he came out, he was unable to speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he gestured to them and couldn’t speak. When he completed the days of his priestly service, he returned home. Afterward, his wife Elizabeth became pregnant. She kept to herself for five months, saying, “This is the Lord’s doing. He has shown his favor to me by removing my disgrace among other people.” (Luke 1:21-25; context)

…Filling Up…

The verses above close this portion of Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s story, but their story intertwines with Mary’s for the rest of Chapter One so, we’re not quite through with them yet. According to Luke, Zechariah was in the sanctuary longer than normal, considering the folks outside seem to be getting antsy. When he comes out unable to speak, their suspicions are confirmed: something has detained him. Something powerful enough to strike him dumb.

The power of God that takes Zechariah’s words away gives he and his wife something so much more wonderful. Elizabeth becomes pregnant. Until now she has been unable to bear children, and she has felt disgraced because of this inability. In her society, her barrenness meant being shunned. Indeed, I can hear other women whispering behind her back in the marketplace. When she becomes pregnant, her ignominy vanishes.

All of this happens on a personal level. Elizabeth feels vindicated, heard by God. On a larger, thematic level, Elizabeth’s statement speaks to the thesis of Luke’s entire account of the Gospel. “The Lord is working,” she says. “I can see the evidence in my own life.” The Lord works by removing her disgrace among other people. To turn this negative statement into a positive one, God shows her grace, which is another way of saying that God makes God’s presence known in her life. Isn’t that what the Gospel is about? And aren’t our lives about this same thing: being present to God even as God is present to us through grace.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you showed your power in the lives of Zechariah and Elizabeth. Send your grace upon me so that I may help to reveal your grace in the lives of those around me. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that I, too, am a player in the continued narrative of the Good News of your Son Jesus Christ.

…Opening To…

Hills, stars,
White stars that stand above the eastern stable.
Look down and offer Him.
The dim adoring light of your belief.
Whose small Heart bleeds with infinite fire.
Shall not this Child
(When we shall hear the bells of His amazing voice)
Conquer the winter of our hateful century? (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? My wife and I are very old.” The angel replied, “I am Gabriel. I stand in God’s presence. I was sent to speak to you and to bring this good news to you. Know this: What I have spoken will come true at the proper time. But because you didn’t believe, you will remain silent, unable to speak until the day when these things happen.” (Luke 1:18-20; context)

…Filling Up…

With Gabriel’s speech done, Zechariah now has a chance to respond. And his response is so utterly human and familiar that I can be sure that I would have said the exact same thing. Basically, Zechariah says: “Oh, yeah? Prove it.”

This skepticism is so natural. But it is a skepticism born out of a tendency that I think we all have, a tendency to equate God’s trustworthiness with our own. The creation story in the book of Genesis tells us that God made us in God’s image. But when we submit to this tendency, we remake God in our own image. We know our own limitations, our own inability to keep promises or maintain healthy relationships for long, and we subconsciously decide that God must follow the same pattern. We bring God down to our level rather than allowing God to bring us up to God’s (or at least, a tiny bit closer).

I imagine that Gabriel has received this behavior before. Indeed, the angel doesn’t miss a beat: “I am Gabriel. I stand in God’s presence.” With these words, Gabriel provides a response to Zechariah’s skepticism. Rather than show him proof, Gabriel tries to bring Zechariah to the angel’s level so that Zechariah relinquishes the tendency to remake God in his own image. Gabriel stands in God’s presence. Zechariah stands in Gabriel’s presence. Therefore, by the transitive property (or one of those basic math operations) Zechariah stands in God’s presence. And that’s all the proof he is going to get.

We, too, stand in God’s presence, whether or not we have an angel reminding us of this fact. So let’s make a pact to try to remember this the next time we grow skeptical about God’s promises. Deal?

…Praying For…

Dear God, your trustworthiness is above and beyond anything I can conceive or imagine. Help me always to trust you, so that I can grow in faith and reliance on you. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, keeping awake and alert for the revelation of your love for this world.

…Opening To…

Hills, stars,
White stars that stand above the eastern stable.
Look down and offer Him.
The dim adoring light of your belief.
Whose small Heart bleeds with infinite fire.
Shall not this Child
(When we shall hear the bells of His amazing voice)
Conquer the winter of our hateful century? (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

“He will be a joy and delight to you, and many people will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the Lord’s eyes. He must not drink wine and liquor. He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before his birth. He will bring many Israelites back to the Lord their God. He will go forth before the Lord, equipped with the spirit and power of Elijah. He will turn the hearts of fathers back to their children, and he will turn the disobedient to righteous patterns of thinking. He will make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (Luke 1:14-17; context)

…Filling Up…

Today’s passage continues Gabriel’s speech to Zechariah begun in yesterday’s reading. Again, we could compare what Gabriel says about John with what the angel says about Jesus to Mary, but I think I will resist today. (But you could go for it yourself, you overachiever! Just read ahead a few verses in Luke 1.)

With these words, Gabriel describes John’s role as the story unfolds. While we might be tempted to skip John’s part in the story to get to the “real” story about Jesus, we do so to our detriment. It would be like skipping the opening act of a concert only to find out later that the opening band was really good. But John is more than Jesus’ opening act. Get ready for a flurry of metaphors. Ready? Okay, here goes:

John is the arrow that points to Jesus. John is the moon to Jesus’ sun, reflecting the light of the one to come. John gets the soil ready to be planted with Jesus’ words. John is the harbinger of the coming messiah. John is the advance scout, the voice, the witness.

While Jesus teaches us how to be more like him, the person we, as followers of Christ, really end up being more like is John. We are witness to Christ’s presence in the world. We are advance scouts for the in-breaking of God’s kingdom. We are arrows pointing to God. I’m not saying that we should put on hairy shirts and eat locusts. But we could all take a page from John’s book and do as Gabriel predicts: “Be filled with the Holy Spirit…go forth before the Lord…make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

…Praying For…

Dear God, you shine with all the brilliance of your glory. Help me to reflect some of your light, that others may see you shining in me. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, keeping awake and alert for the revelation of your love for this world.

…Opening To…

Hills, stars,
White stars that stand above the eastern stable.
Look down and offer Him.
The dim adoring light of your belief.
Whose small Heart bleeds with infinite fire.
Shall not this Child
(When we shall hear the bells of His amazing voice)
Conquer the winter of our hateful century? (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

One day Zechariah was serving as a priest before God because his priestly division was on duty. Following the customs of priestly service, he was chosen by lottery to go into the Lord’s sanctuary and burn incense. All the people who gathered to worship were praying outside during this hour of incense offering. An angel from the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw the angel, he was startled and overcome with fear. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah. Your prayers have been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will give birth to your son and you must name him John.” (Luke 1:8-13; context)

…Filling Up…

In yesterday’s passage, Luke set up the idea that God was about to fulfill a promise. In today’s passage, Luke gives us the details of Zechariah’s encounter with an angel from the Lord. The angel is Gabriel, the same angel that visits Mary, so I’m having trouble resisting comparing the two encounters. ::resists a bit::  ::gives up::  Okay, so let’s compare them. (Note that we’ll go more in depth into Mary’s encounter next week).

First, notice Zechariah’s position. He is a priest actively serving in the house of God. The angel actually comes to him in the midst of worship. When Gabriel appears to Mary, we assume she is alone in her house. (Luke doesn’t give us those details.) Besides being an amazingly faithful, brave, and courageous woman, we know next to nothing about her. Over the course of Christian history, a picture of Mary as a teen-aged maiden still living with her parents has become the norm. And that’s probably not too far off.

When you put these two encounter stories in conversation with each other, two things jump out immediately. First, God encounters both pious religious professionals and everyone else, as well. Second, God encounters us in the midst of worship and in our everyday lives, while we are doing things too mundane to be remembered in the story. Thus, the possibility for encounter expands to include every moment of our lives.

The angel comes to Zechariah and to Mary and begins with the same salutation: “Don’t be afraid!” We can infer that the angel’s appearance wouldn’t be good for those who are a bit dodgy in the heart. But taken at a deeper level, isn’t this one of God’s most fundamental messages to each and every one of us? You have nothing to fear because you are with me. I absolutely love the fact that the very first line of dialogue in Luke’s Gospel brings this message.

…Praying For…

Dear God, I have nothing to fear because you are with me at all times in my life. Help me be aware of your presence so that I can be with you, even as you are here with me. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, keeping awake and alert for the revelation of your love for this world.

…Opening To…

Hills, stars,
White stars that stand above the eastern stable.
Look down and offer Him.
The dim adoring light of your belief.
Whose small Heart bleeds with infinite fire.
Shall not this Child
(When we shall hear the bells of His amazing voice)
Conquer the winter of our hateful century? (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

During the rule of King Herod of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was a descendant of Aaron. They were both righteous before God, blameless in their observance of all the Lord’s commandments and regulations. They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to become pregnant and they both were very old. (Luke 1:5-7; context)

…Filling Up…

Yesterday, I said that this Advent (and this pre-Advent week), we’d be looking in depth at Jesus’ birth narrative as found in the Gospel according to Luke. Each day, we’d take a few more verses and by Christmas, we’d have finished the whole thing. Now, you probably know the story pretty well: there’s a star and shepherds and angels and magi and Mary and Joseph and no room in the inn. Oh, yes, and the baby Jesus. (At least, that’s one way to tell the story, and we’ll discover in a few weeks that some of those elements aren’t in Luke’s story.)

But first, we’ll begin with a few people who are in Luke’s story, people you may have never heard of. In fact, you just might be wondering who the heck these Zechariah and Elizabeth people are. Why does Luke start with them? They certainly aren’t main characters, so why are they the first we meet?

Luke is doing here what might nowadays be called “deep background” on his main subject, Jesus. Before we meet Jesus, we meet his mother, Mary, and his earthly father, Joseph. Before we meet them, we meet Mary’s cousin Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah, the parents of John the baptizer. Luke knows that later in the story, John will be an integral character in pointing toward Jesus’ messiah-ship. So, being the good scholar he is, Luke digs into John’s past and finds a story nearly as miraculous as Jesus’ own.

You know right away that the story is miraculous by the way Luke sets it up: “They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to become pregnant and they both were very old.” Sound familiar? It should because it’s almost exactly what Genesis says about Abraham and Sarah before they become pregnant with Isaac. The birth of Isaac was the beginning of the fulfillment of God’s sweeping promise to Abraham. By putting the birth of John in line with this tradition, Luke is signalling to us that God is getting ready to make good on another promise – the coming of the messiah.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you always fulfill your promises. Help me to put my whole trust in you so that you can use me to continue carrying out those promises. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, keeping awake and alert for the revelation of your love for this world.

…Opening To…

Hills, stars,
White stars that stand above the eastern stable.
Look down and offer Him.
The dim adoring light of your belief.
Whose small Heart bleeds with infinite fire.
Shall not this Child
(When we shall hear the bells of His amazing voice)
Conquer the winter of our hateful century? (Thomas Merton)

…Listening In…

Many people have already applied themselves to the task of compiling an account of the events that have been fulfilled among us. They used what the original eyewitnesses and servants of the word handed down to us. Now, after having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, I have also decided to write a carefully ordered account for you, most honorable Theophilus. I want you to have confidence in the soundness of the instruction you have received. (Luke 1:1-4: context)

…Filling Up…

Because of the way the calendar falls this year, Advent doesn’t start until next Sunday, which is weird because it usually starts the Sunday after Thanksgiving. That means there are only 15 weekdays during the season, which is not enough to do what I plan to do. So I hope that you’ll forgive me for starting an Advent series a week early. Remember that Advent is the season of the church year during which we prepare for the coming of Christ – both as the infant in the manger and as the one coming once again in great power and glory.

This Advent, we are going to work slowly – very slowly – through Jesus’ birth narrative as found in the Gospel according to Luke. During church, we read the scriptures that will appear in the “Listening In” section over the course of just two or three Sundays. Here during devo180, we are going to cover the same material over 20 days – the entirety of Advent plus this week! We will look at just two to four verses a day, and who knows, perhaps you will find pieces of the story that you’ve never heard before or that strike you in a new way. That is my hope and prayer for myself and for you.

For today I have chosen the very beginning of Luke’s account of the Gospel. While not strictly part of the birth narrative, the opening lines of the Gospel give us a clue as to what Luke is attempting to do. Luke is a scholar. He tells us that he has tried as best he could to present an accurate account of the life and message of Jesus Christ. While first century scholarship differs a great deal from today’s, we can be assured that Luke has put his whole self into his endeavor. Writing this Gospel was his passion. Reading it can be ours.

Notice that he addresses his Gospel to “Theophilus.” While this might have been a real person, it is more likely that Luke is addressing this to all of God’s people, for “Theophilus” means “beloved of God.” And that means Luke’s Gospel is addressed to you.

…Praying For…

Dear God, because you love your creation, you sent your son to us in great humility. Help me to live my life with the passion you have instilled in me, following the example of your son. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, keeping awake and alert for the revelation of your love for this world.