Sacredness in the Mundane

"Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace to men on whom 

His favor rests."

Luke 2:14

If there was somewhere to be, a moment to witness in history,  it was in the fields with the shepherds when the angels showed up to tell them about the baby lying in the manger. The Baby, their Savior, Christ the Lord. And then as if that wasn't enough, they heard a multitude of angels singing, praising God. They saw them, a host of angels filling the sky. The glory of the Lord shone all around them. THE GLORY OF THE LORD, the melody of angels! Imagine that!

These men, minding their business, doing the mundane job of tending sheep, day in and day out, were chosen to hear heavenly choirs in joyful worship. Those men, sheep tenders were some of the first to know our Great Shepherd, the Prince of Peace, had come. He had been born into this world. His arrival, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords landed Him in a barn. Everything was about to change.

These were not theological scholars. Not the best and brightest. They were common every day people. Like you and like me. Living out their lives. Putting in their time, doing life. And then every thing changed. God burst in. Oh the juxtaposition of high and low. Glory and the mundane. Human and divine. 

Joyous news displayed, proclaimed across the night sky. The stars twinkling in creation harmony. It was the beginning of a L-O-N-G awaited time. It was the first heralding of the Good News. The Kingdom of heaven had come. And those those shepherds were witness to it. 

God, Who created the universe, self existent, eternal, self sustaining, majestic, almighty, came as a babe. He came in the most humble, most mundane way possible. Completely dependent on a young man and woman to care for Him. This sacred, holy Life entered our world through the portal of a manger scene. He became one of us. 

How often does God do that? Burst in when we least expect Him. Isaiah speaks of his vision of heaven and says, "And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; THE WHOLE EARTH IS FULL OF HIS GLORY.”     Isaiah 6:3

I read that passage not too long ago and I have been pondering what it means. I think it means the whole earth is FULL of God's glory! We most likely won't have an experience like the shepherds did but I am convinced that we can learn to be more attentive to His glory as we realize it is all around us. We can look for Him and His fingerprints as we go about our days, in the mundane, things we tend to take for granted. 

Our breath. Clouds dancing across the sky. A flower pushing through a crack in the side walk. A kind word. An inspiring word. Hope that defies circumstances. The privilege and ability to pray. A child's laugh. A Savior, named Jesus who came to rescue us, Who is Love, Who came down to set our hearts free. 
Make your own list!

God, give me eyes to see the wonder of your creation, your holiness everywhere. Forgive me for fixating on what is not right, what is not good. Those things are there but I want to focus on Your goodness. I want to recognize Your favor, Your beauty, Your good gifts wherever I am. Help me see these good things in others, even when they aren't at their best. Help me see others as you see me, Lord, through eyes of grace and of love. Thank You for coming, for resting Your favor upon us, bringing us Your peace. Thank You Lord for filling this earth with Your shining glory.

The Advent of Light

Because of and through the heart of tender mercy 

and loving kindness of our God, 

a light from on high will dawn upon us and visit us.

To shine  upon and give light to those who sit in darkness 

and in the shadow of death, 

to direct and guide our feet in a straight line 

into the way of peace.

Luke 1:78-79 amp

Advent begins today. We begin the countdown to Christmas. The celebration of the coming of Love. Love incarnate, Jesus, Who came and lived among us. 

This is a season of craziness, of consumer frenzy, of over the top busyness. I don't want to get sucked into all of that. I want to ponder about what this month can be about. If I am intentional.  And to start with I am drawn to the idea of light. 

The passage above speaks of Jesus coming from on high, from heaven, to bring a glorious dawn to a world tainted with darkness. Light came to us, born from the heart of a merciful and loving God. Indeed the world seems so very dark right now as horrific things are happening across the globe.  Evil seems to be unleashed in ways that are not unfamiliar if we look at the track record of mankind, but it seems to be more blatant, more widespread. World powers are flexing their muscles and it seems we are on a dangerous precipice. 

The good news about light is it always wins. Dark can not overcome light. When light is shined, even a tiny spark, it always dispels darkness. Light is powerful, hopeful. It is penetrating. It is also revealing. What darkness tries to hide is exposed in light. Light eliminates darkness. It can never be the other way around.

The promise of a light coming (see Isaiah 9:2) was something generations of God's people looked forward to. They yearned for it as they toiled in struggle filled lives. They waited for generations for this promise to be fulfilled. And then Jesus was born. 

Heavenly light came in such a humble, unobtrusive, and vulnerable way. The way the Light of the world came was unexpected. Many missed it. A tiny child. One of us. But this was God's plan from the beginning of time. This child's coming was the dawning yearned for by the hearts of so many. John 8:12 confirms Jesus is the Light. "When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 

We begin this season of Advent in anticipation tinged with joy as we celebrate Love that has come to us. We can share this love, this light with others, our hope, with those who walk in purposelessness, pain and confusion. 

We don't have all the answers. There is still much darkness all around. But Jesus promised to come again to usher in a time when light will be everywhere. No more darkness.

This time is spoken of in Revelation 21:23-25. "The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates be shut, for there will be no night there."

All of these verses are filled with hope. They talk about following Jesus now, about walking "in a straight line into the way of peace."  Since the birth of Jesus, people have been able to live in His light until the fullness of light comes, when all things will be put right for good, as we see in the Revelation passage. 

We can live in gratitude for the Light that has broken through. We can follow Jesus, Who illuminates our way, day by day, through the ups and downs of our lives. We can look to Him to direct and guide our feet through this often dark, yes, but also hope-filled world.

May we all be blessed in this Advent season as we ponder the wonder of Love, the Light of the World that came and lived among us.