Peace vs. Hatred

Advent wreath at Susanna Wesley UMC - Photo from their Facebook page

I sent this text to my family Sunday morning (December 8) after the girls and I arrived for worship at their Topeka church:

Irony of the morning: Peace candle is lit for Advent at church. Protestors from Westboro Baptist Church stand across the street as we arrive. Part of Advent litany talked about the hatred in the world. Thankful that Kinley didn't see them on the way into the church.

Jill says the protestors have been there before, though their presence is sporadic and had never coincided with one of my Sundays in Topeka.

Frankly, I wish my record of not seeing them had stayed intact. However, I've continued to think about the juxtaposition of hate vs. love and peace. So maybe it was an Advent message I was meant to ponder.

The Advent candle litany said, in part:

Because hatred is still so strong, because so many swords have not yet been beaten into plowshares, we light a candle of peace. May the light from this candle overwhelm the world. May the light from this candle say to all that God's peace is coming on earth as it already is in heaven! 

In his sermon that morning, Pastor Andrew talked about the preparations they, as a young family, made to get their home ready for Christmas. He talked about shuffling furniture to make room for the tree and then unwrapping the ornaments.

When I think about the tree, I also think about our lives - reflecting back on the things past or looking forward to the things to come ahead. What will be unexpectedly beautiful? What will break by accident? What events will occur in which we need to find our place?

His reference to shattered ornaments took me back to our own Hanging of the Greens at Stafford UMC in late November. As I made my way through the church foyer that day, a dad was sweeping up the remnants of a glass ornament. I smiled and asked him how many had succumbed this year. Only the one, he told me.

Children's tree at Stafford UMC - Children made the nativity ornaments this year in Sunday School

One broken bulb (or even two or three) is a small price to pay for involving young children in the Advent preparations - whether that's at home or at church.

Jon and Bryson shared their love of Christmas bulbs during our Hanging of the Greens event.

 Besides, sometimes, we need to be broken for Christ's light to shine through:

Blessed are the broken and cracked 
for they allow God's light 
to shine through them.

Unattributed

Yes, we are broken. The world is broken. Even if there aren't protestors standing on a street corner, there are plenty of disagreements and differences in opinion. Just take a stroll through Facebook or Twitter and the hatred isn't hard to find.

 

On that Sunday, the Advent choir anthem said, in part:

Soon a tiny child will come

A gift from God above

To teach us all to live in peace

And fill our lives with love.

He will teach us how to love.

May that be more than just a sentiment in a Christmas anthem or a saying hung from the Christmas tree.


Advent is when we name and remember our longing for and need of forgiveness, restoration and redemption in the present day, while we wait for Christ to come again in final victory. While we wait, Jesus calls us into the world to participate in acts of compassion, preparing the way for God’s love to be known by all who need to hear the good news, having their sight restored and experiencing freedom. During this season, we prepare our own lives for one of the most transformative understandings of Jesus’ coming - his mission to set us free.

From Susanna Wesley UMC's Facebook page

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I will take a short hiatus from blogging as Christmas approaches. Adding to an already-packed schedule as CEO of Christmas preparations around here, we are selling feeder calves this week. That adds cattle sorting and loading to the holiday mix this week.Wish us luck!

Wishing you and yours PEACE on earth and tidings of great JOY!

Hope, Peace, Joy and Love: My Wish for All of Us

 

Hope, Peace, Joy and Love: It's what the Advent season should be about. So often, I get distracted by my to-do lists and the "must-do" requirements I place upon myself in order to have the perfect Christmas celebration for everyone.

But, a couple of weeks ago, our church choir sang a song called "Hope, Peace, Joy and Love," with words and music by Joseph M. Martin. Those words have been swirling around my stuffed-up head this Advent season. And it's my wish for all of us during this special time. Here are the words. Many of the photos are from our church, Stafford United Methodist. Others are from my Christmas decorations at home:

Hope is like a candle burning in the night

Hope paints every shadow with its gentle light.

Glowing like a promise till our faith is sight,

Hope is like a candle in the night.

Peace is like sweet music sounding pure and strong

Singing songs of comfort when the night is long.

Turning drums of hatred into heaven's song,

Peace is like sweet music pure and strong.

Joy is like a flower blooming in the soul,

Sending forth its fragrance to heal and make us whole

And when bitter winds are blowing

When birds refuse to sing.

Joy can turn our winter into spring.

Love is like a diamond wrapped in purest gold.

Nothing is more precious, nothing bought or sold.

Pearl of heaven's glory wondrous to behold,

Love is like a diamond wrapped in gold.

Joy is like a flower.

Peace is like sweet music.

Hope is like a candle in the night.

I'm looking forward to having my kids and granddaughters arrive today. We'll be with my family on Christmas Eve to celebrate my Mom's birthday and Christmas together. (My folks have gone from 5 great-grands last year to 8 this year. The family is growing!)

So ...

If you'd like to listen to the song I illustrated, this church's YouTube version had a large choir and full orchestra. We may not have sounded exactly like that. But we did have Kristen Knight on flute!

Peek Into the Manger

Great Bend First United Methodist Church

The light  makes the scene glow like sapphires, emeralds and rubies. The scene is perfection in that light: Each little piece of glass comes together perfectly to make a beautiful picture.

It would be easy to think that's what the Nativity is all about ... beauty, perfection, peace.  It's Advent. At our church, we pull out the perfectly-white porcelain Nativity scene and light the candles.

Nativity made by Dorothy Newell, Stafford UMC

In another church, the glow of stained glass catches the light of gold threads which run through the elaborate clothing garbing Mary, Joseph and the angel. 

Trinity UMC, Great Bend

In sanctuaries across the world, the winter light streams through stained glass windows, showing an idyllic, pristine scene. Mary glows. Joseph beams. Baby Jesus is bathed in the star's light. 

Holy Cross Catholic Church, Hutchinson, KS

But then I remember. Mary was likely 13 years old (or so). Maybe she wasn't so different from the girls in middle school choir, the ones I witness from the piano bench. Yes, the same ones who are nice as pie one day and then moody and withdrawn the next. (Who am I kidding? You don't have to be 13 to be like that.)

Mary was a young, unwed mother. She had just had her first baby - not in a well-appointed delivery room - but in a stable with animals all around. She laid Him in a manger filled with straw, not a crib with sheets that match a nursery theme. It wasn't all that pretty.

Jesus was born to a family that possessed little and worked hard to make ends meet.

How can we, in the midst of our culture's conspicuous consumption and demand for perfection, turn our focus on the Child who was born into poverty as a sign of hope and salvation for a broken world? While it may seem the world demands perfection, the Gospel message demands nothing from us. Rather, God invites us to gather around the manger just as we are: unfinished lists, burnt pies and all. No matter our imperfections, great or small, God invites us to peek into the manger and gaze at the real Christmas message: That Christ came for us all to be a beacon of hope for the hopeless and to bring peace.

Rev. Amy Slater, Stafford UMC newsletter, Christmas 2012

So, when the list seems overwhelming ... and the oven timer is ringing at the same time the dryer bell is sounding ... and there's too much to do in too little time: Remember it's not about perfection. It's about grace. And, like teenage Mary, listening for God's voice in our lives, then obeying.

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Gifts don't have to cost a lot of money to be meaningful. I enjoy giving gifts from the kitchen to family, friends, the mailman, the choir director ... the list goes on!

Snack mixes don't take much time to make, but they can be something that your gift recipient can use for unexpected guests or their own family gatherings. And, kind of like stained glass windows, the bits and pieces come together to make a delicious whole! Here are a few tried-and-true recipes that we enjoy at our house and I've given as gifts. Click on the links for the recipes and ENJOY!

Banana Cinnamon Snack Mix

Chocolate Coffee Toffee Snack Mix

Pumpkin Pie Crunch Mix

Immeasurable Snack Mix

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This is my December post from Lovely Branches Ministries. Click on this link to read my friend, Suzanne's, ideas for simplifying Christmas.

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I'm linked today to Michelle DeRusha's Hear It On Sunday, Use It On Monday. Check out what other bloggers of faith are saying today by clicking on the link.

Peace: A Photo Essay

The 23rd Psalm is only around 118 words, depending upon the translation. For me, it paints a word picture of peace.

I love seeing "messages" from God as I go throughout my day. He's in the sunrises and the sunsets. He's in the touch of a loved one's hand. He's in the phone call from a friend. He's in the cool breeze as I walk. He's in a table filled with food and a house that shelters me. He's in the big moments and in the small little blessings, too. I just need to keep my eyes - and my heart - open to Him.

To see my photo essay illustrating the 23rd Psalm, just head over to my Lovely Branches Ministries Food for Thought September blog post.

Here's just a teaser ...

He leads me beside the still waters.
³ He restores my soul.

Hoping you find peace today even in life's storms ...