Wednesday, December 18, 2019 – Advent Four
“But the angel reassured them. ‘Don’t be afraid!’ he said. ‘I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.’” (Luke 2:10, New Living Translation) 

                [I am going on a brief Christmas hiatus and will return January 7^th.] 

                She’s made of carboard, burlap, yarn and a bit of cloth but I have known her for 41 years.

                “She” is the little angel which I put at the very top of our Christmas tree every year. I found her in a Zeller’s store during my first Christmas at my first church, Wainfleet Baptist Church. Susan and I were not yet married. But I bought a real Christmas tree and some lights and decorations. And my angel. For some reason, I prefer angels to stars as Christmas tree toppers. Maybe, it is just because I like angels and the wonderful stories they always seem to generate.

                This little angel is not very fancy as some Christmas angels go. But she looks happy and content resting on the very top of our tree. I am sure that she wasn’t very expensive and there may have been a host of other angels just like her at the store. But she has become our little angel, the last decoration which goes on the tree each and every year. I would miss her if she was not there. It’s funny how attached one gets to angels.

                This little angel of ours reminds us, of course, of the role that angels play in the whole Christmas narrative.  An angel or angels visit Zechariah, Mary, Joseph and the shepherds. They are the critical harbingers of what God is about to do for the sake of the world. They carry positive and important messages with promises of Good News, hope, possibility, renewal, birth and new beginnings.

Their mystical presence signals a sacred hand behind the drama which is about to unfold. Their words come straight form a holy source and therefore their presence and voice augment the deeply spiritual and dynamic power that flows throughout the whole Christmas Story.

If you get an angel or two in your church, your front parlour, your bedroom or your workplace, you just better pay close attention. God is not fooling around. This is really important. Angels are not to be ignored.

I am not sure that in this day and age we would know an angel if one came up to us wearing a T-shirt that read, “Hello; I am an angel; do not be afraid.” We tend to ignore, trivialize, dis-believe, de-mythologize, or sentimentalize these strange messengers whom our spiritual forebears seemed to take more seriously. But even they probably did not really expect to encounter angels any more than we do. But whatever the deep origins of this story historically may be, the story could not be told without mentioning that powerful words out of the ordinary were spoken to, experienced by and shared with mere mortals, making the Christmas Story a divinely driven and inspired drama full of wonderful possibilities.

We, the Sons of Adam and the Daughters of Eve, tend to keep angels busy with our messy and complicated lives. They speak up against the sinfulness of our times and our personal lives. They voice God’s concerns over our weaknesses and vulnerabilities. They draw lines against our hopelessness and despair. They remind us that God is still Creator and Sustainer of our lives and the world in which we live. In this case alone, they offer us the promise of a Saviour, someone uniquely of God’s choosing who will liberate us from the worst that may befall us or that which wants to make us fall and fail in some way.

Our little angel will have another busy Christmas watching us from her perch atop the Christmas tree. She reminds me to be alert to the possibility of God’s Voice ringing suddenly in the world to let me know that something out of the ordinary is about to make such a difference like the world has never seen.

May you all have a very blessed Christmas Day!

Dale

Wednesday, December 11, 2019 – Advent Three
“Then the angel said, ‘I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. It was he who sent me to bring you this good news! But now, since you didn’t believe what I said, you will be silent and unable to speak until the child is born. For my words will certainly be fulfilled at the proper time.’” (Luke  1: 19 – 20, New Living Translation) 

                This year, Christmas seems to be coming in a box. Or more accurately, make that plural as in many boxes. Susan has been taking full advantage of on-line shopping and the boxers are piling up. If they start singing to me like in the TV commercial, I may have to lay off the eggnog.

                Of course, plain-old, carboard  boxes hold all sorts of mysteries. Our daughter tells us that our little three-old Spencer is agog at the arrival of boxes in their household. He is dying to know what is in all those boxes. Being told that it is secret, only, I believe, intensifies his curiosity to know what wonderful things may lie therein. His little instincts sense that some of these surprises are probably for him. He can hardly wait for Christmas.

                I, myself, have been known to pinch a gift or two, although truth be told I also enjoy the anticipation and  enjoyment of opening up a gift on Christmas day and being surprised by its contents. It is a joy to share the moment with the family member who has lovingly gone out of their way to make the gift uniquely suit me.

But oh, the mystery of boxes.

Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth were getting on in years. They were a very devout and faithful couple, deeply religious it would seem, and I expect at their age it would take a lot to surprise them. One regret was that they had never had children. The timing for that had just about passed them by, so they probably settled into the ruts and routines of their lives, saddened by their barrenness, but content in their stable, steady and constant life.

Then, Gabriel shows up with a “box”!

Since Gabriel can’t keep a Christmas secret,  he tells Zechariah what’s in the box. “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John. You will have great joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great in the eyes of the Lord.” (vss. 13-15)

Sometimes we think of ourselves as too old or too smart or that we have seen everything that we are suspicious of surprise packages, especially of the sacred and incredible kind. There is a little Zechariah in many of us and our first instinct is to greet Good News with skepticism or disbelief, maybe even distrust, the too-good-to-be-true syndrome. “How will I know this is so?” (v.18)

Show us what is really in the box. It’s probably just underwear and socks. (Our family joke about the contents of Christmas presents, when asked.) Maybe some bubble gum. (Ditto.)

Zechariah is looking for assurances and proof – quite natural under the circumstances. He wants to see in the box before he accepts it.

The UPS messenger, Gabriel, is not amused by Zechariah’s suspicious nature and he ends up making Zechariah wait, literally shutting him up until the baby John is born. And then when he understood what’s in this wondrous box – Good News – you can’t shut him up. “Instantly Zechariah could speak again, and he began praising God.” (1:64)

All this drama suggests that we need to be open to the wondrous gift who is delivered to us each and every Christmas – the Good News of Jesus Christ, the unique Son of God, who, himself delivers God’s Love, Grace, Hope, Joy, and Peace to us. Let’s us anticipate with excitement and eagerness the arrival of the One who comes. Don’t settle for this Gift to seem just ordinary or mundane. Angels don’t arrive just everyday with surprise packages that portend so much positive and dynamic energy.

“Because of God’s tender mercy,  

the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,

to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, 

and to guide us to the path of peace.” (1:78 -79) 

Dale

Wednesday, December 4, 2019 – Advent Two
“Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” (Luke 2:14, New Living Translation) 

                I enjoy Christmas music as much as the next person. But if I hear one more rendition of “Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer” I am looking for a venison stew recipe on-line. One more “Frosty the Snowman” and I am making a slushy or snow-cone. No more chestnuts roasting by the fire or I am chopping down the first chestnut tree I find.

                I have been listening to the Sirius radio station, “Holly”, while I am driving. It can get quite repetitive if you drive long enough and far enough. The problem is, of course, that one particular Christmas song can be recorded by dozens and dozens of different singers and groups. They all seem to have come out with Christmas albums during their careers and all seem to record the same Christmas songs. If I hear one more “Silver Bells” I may go dingy. If one more “Blue Christmas” I may see red. If one more… well, you get the idea.

                I am also intrigued that this station “Holly” is designated as being “Christian” concerning its genre of music. Even as it mind-numbingly celebrates Santa who can’t seem ever to get to town or having a “White Christmas” which just makes Christmas travel plans a headache. Maybe, just maybe, ever once in a blue Christmas there is an actual Christian Christmas carol which directs our attention to the baby Jesus. Fa la la…

                Scrooge, move over, I need a seat.

                But as I think about it, we have heard the angels sing the Glory to God chorus how many times? Our church carols repeat the story ad infinitum. I love Aretha Franklin’s version of “Silent Night” or David Bowie and Bing Crosby sing a duet which combines “Peace on Earth” and “The Little Drummer Boy”.  Often our Christmas carols have depth of meaning and purpose about what God was doing when the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  The combination of music and words help us to remember the deep significance of the blessing of incarnation.

                Of course, there was music to celebrate Jesus’ birth. “God has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed. They will put their trust in the Lord.” (Psalm 40:3). 

There is a deafening cacophony of noise and oral clutter and distracting clamour all around us. It takes a host of an angel choir to break through those fields of racket and confusion. I don’t know how many angels make up a host but I am sure that for us to hear  the message they have for us  they need to be loud, in tune, harmonious and catch our imagination.

This is Good News – how many times do we need to be told or have it sung it to us? This is Good News about God’s favour, God’s love, God’s grace, God’s peace, God’s salvation and God’s future plans for all of God’s Creation. If that doesn’t elicit a “Hallelujah” from us then what will?

 “Sing it over again to me, wonderful words of life.” 

Dale