More Than A Baby part 2

On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and incense and of myrrh. And having been warned  in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

- Matthew 2: 11, 12

I work at a pre-school. Just this week, the cute little ones were in a Christmas play. It was so much fun. There was a little boy who played the very important role of the  star; a little girl and little boy  took on the roles of Mary and Joseph. The wise men were accounted for. We even had sheep.

As we were preparing for this performance, I was helping one of the wise men into his costume. I was telling him how important his role was. The wise men were superheroes! They helped saved Jesus.  The whole story came out of my mouth (in preschool terms of course), but I don’t think I had realized until that moment how critical a role the wise men played.

I’m sure you are familiar with the story. On their way to find the king of kings, the wise men encountered king Herod. When this jealous king  heard that he going to be replaced, Herod wasn’t exactly excited about it. But he cooly requested that they let him know when the little guy had been located.  He wanted to ‘worship’  him, too.

In a dream the wise men were warned that Herod’s intentions were anything but pure. So they took another route home.

Wow. Had these wise men ignored the warning they received in a dream, the Christ child could have been killed!

But when they saw the essence of God in human form, they could do nothing less than bow down and worship. I imagine, in that moment, the gifts they had brought didn’t seem adequate. And yet they presented him with gold and fine fragrances.

What if we were to see Christ in the same way that the wise men did on that day so many years ago?

I read in Romans today: “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed are those whose sin the Lord will never count against them.” (Romans 4: 7,8)

That’s why this baby came.  I imagine the wise men couldn’t have possibly fully comprehended the purpose of the birth of Christ, yet they sensed there was something so wonderful and mighty and everlasting about this child.

I know the other side of the story and I still can’t grasp it all. This baby grew up to die for me.

Heavenly Father,

This Christmas season is so different to me. I am beginning to see you as more than a babe in a manger, more than a child presented with gifts. May I come into your presence with my heart bowed to offer you the gift of my worship and adoration.

 

Hospitals, Pre-K and Chiro’s… Oh My

Well it has been a while and a lot has taken place.  For starters my dad was in the hospital due to renal failure. His kidneys just stopped working. Two weeks later he’s doing a bit better and we now know that the culprit was TUMS. He had been dealing with some very unbearable heartburn and was taking TUMS and consuming milk products in an effort to ease the pain and developed Milk Akali Syndrome. Although this mystery has been solved we still don’t know what is causing the chronic heartburn. Fortunately my dad has a really great doctor who won’t stop administering tests and drawing blood until he’s figured out what is going on. There are a few possibilities that are a bit scary, however, our hope is in the healing power of God.

While all this was happening, I started a job at a preschool. Twice a week I work with a fantastic co-teacher, Melanie Hill, working with 4 year olds. We have nine beautiful and bright children and I am convinced I have the best teaching partner available. Tomorrow will complete our second week. Although I never saw myself working with little ones in a preschool setting, I know this experience will be a great one. I have a feeling that I will get more from the children and my teaching partner  than I will give to them. That’s how it seems to be.

Fond moment: a 4 year old student says to me: Miss Patty, your ear rings are quite lovely.

See what I mean. This job will give more than it receives.

Well I am still going to the chiropractor. I am noticing a difference in my posture and in the way I walk but I think I still have a long healing journey ahead of me. I say this because after half a dozen adjustments I still am experiencing pain. As a result, my half marathon has been put on pause. I will get back to it but as for now I am restricted to only walking.

Life is beautiful!

 

The Life You’ve Always Wanted part 2

I was reminded while reading in John’s book that I need a spiritual strategy. I’ve had lots of these through the years. They have ranged from:

• ‘dates with God’
• mentoring programs with a weekly focus on a spiritual discipline
• random Bible readings/studies
• quick prayers offered up to start my day

Each of these have played a critical role in my relationship with God.

John writes, “In a sense each of us chooses a ’spiritual strategy’ whether or not we are intentional about it. We can choose it by default. How much and when we pray, how we handle money, how and when we worship- these are all elements in the process of transformation.”

Years ago, I established a mission statement.

It simply read: To embrace the journey by encountering God, encouraging others and enjoying life.

In this season, I choose to return to this mission statement. In every day, may I embrace the journey by encountering the presence of the living God, encourage others on their journey and simply enjoy this beautiful life with which God has blessed me.