Following The Son

עִמָּנוּאֵל Immanuel God With Us That's God's name. Think about this for a moment. Being with you isn't something God does. Being with you is who God is. One night Joseph had a dream, but this was no ordinary dream. A young man grappling with how to call off his marriage to Mary without publicly disgracing her was visited by an angel in his dream. An angel with a message. " Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).” Matthew   1:20-23 I love the many names of God. They speak of provision, healing, power, and authority. I love the way God has revealed him...

The reactions of children on Christmas morning can be priceless. The way their faces light up in response to the gifts, decorations, and lights communicates such wonder and awe. I have a grandson who is closing in on two. Sometimes when he sees things he literally gasps. So much of the world is still new to him. Just as I love a child's reaction, I love the reactions in the Christmas story to those who encountered the Christ child. The Bible uses specific words to describe many of the responses to seeing a baby unlike one they'd ever seen before, and the events surrounding his birth. Consider a few with me. Mary, " treasured ." (Luke 2:19) Mary so valued what was taking place that she "kept it in her heart." She would never forget these moments, and no doubt would draw strength from them later. Joseph, " marveled ." (Luke 2:33) From the beginning it had been too much to take in. He couldn't really wrap his brain around the m...

I never heard of Advent until I was already a pastor. It's not always a part of Protestant church celebrations, but particularly in the northeast it's one of those church traditions that has begun to grow across denominational lines. Advent by definition is the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event. The four Sundays that lead up to Christmas are weeks of anticipation of the celebration of the birth of  Christ for the church. We're approaching the third Sunday  of Advent on a traditional church calendar, and this is  definitely a season of anticipation. Last night I loaded my 3 nephews and grandson into my vehicle and we went driving around looking at Christmas lights. My role on a night like this is multi-faceted. 1. Drive said vehicle to locate festive light displays. 2. Conduct random seat belt confirmation checks. (This is important because, in spite of years of research by top automotive industry engineers, seat belts mysteriously loosen themselv...

I'm about to celebrate my 50th Christmas.  That's right. I'm over 35 years old.  I remember rotary phones, holding the automatic choke open on my carburetor in the Winter, recording songs on  cassette off the radio, and the national anthem being played as the TV station went off for the night.   Christmas is different for me now than it was years ago. Oh, I still enjoy the season, but the gift giving has less meaning to me every year. As I reflect over the years I have little memory of any of the gifts I've ever given or received. The only ones I'm able to recall are those attached to a memory. When I'm asked these days what I want for Christmas I usually can't think of anything. I'm told this makes me difficult to shop for. My son tells me, "your own kids don't know what to give you." To which I reply, "I don't want anything." As I give it some thought though I realize that memories are what I really want...

Many years ago a young couple was a part of a dramatic story in history that intercepted time itself. Until then almost no one on earth had ever heard of them, but all of Heaven was watching as they made their journey to the tiny town of Bethlehem. Babies are born every day. Even in unusual locations. One of my aunts gave birth to a baby in her driveway. It wasn't the plan, but sometimes the baby decides the wait is over. For Joseph and Mary it would take place with no room available, so Mary's firstborn son would be wrapped in cloths and laid in a manger...just an animal feeding bin. That was a pretty unusual set of circumstances, but it was all a part of God's plan. Jesus hadn't come simply for those in palaces. He had come for all. Those with and without means; those in good health, and those who were sick; those who loved God, and those who were far away from Him. In this season most of us will do some giving. We will give gifts to loved ones and friend...

"Oh, bring us some figgy pudding, oh, bring us some figgy pudding, oh...?" Hold on. What in the world is figgy pudding? The verse from the carol, "We wish you a Merry Christmas," is a puzzling one for many of us. I've never had figgy pudding. At least, I don't think I have. In fact, I had to look it up just to find out what it was. It's a traditional Christmas British dessert that is neither pudding, nor does it generally contain figs. Those Brits are always driving on the wrong side of the road, putting their hot water tap on either side of the sink to mix us up, and now confusing us with dessert names. We sure do love Downton Abbey and their royal babies though, which reminds me that I still need to pick up a gift for Princess Charlotte. I wonder if she likes Peppa Pig? Anyway, back to figgy pudding. What does it have to do with Christmas? Well the classic dish had 13 ingredients representing Christ and 12 apostles, a sprig of ho...

In 1823 Clement Moore wrote his most famous poem, A Visit From St Nicholas. It would become better known in our day as. 'Twas The Night Before Christmas. In his poem we find the words, "Mama in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap, Had just settled our brains for a long winter's nap." Long before Moore's 1823 poem another man laid down to sleep on an actual night before Christmas. No one was by his side, he was alone and afraid. It wasn't visions of sugar plums dancing in his head. It was visions of scandal, public humiliation, embarrassment, and shame. His name was Joseph. A few weeks ago everything had seemed so sure, but in a moment everything had changed. Nights when you're afraid are nights you can't sleep until you're totally exhausted. Eventually Joseph would drift off, and a man whose mind was so clouded he probably couldn't hear from God any other way was visited in a dream. “ But after he had considered this, an angel...