Flannel-graph Jesus...

           

      So, we showed this video on Christmas Sunday as part of our worship. The video was produced by Muddy River Media and uses the song The Glory of it All by David Crowder Band. What struck me about the video was that it shows Jesus in scenes that are full to the brim and spilling over with joy. Joy in childbirth, joy in healing, joy in friendship, joy in celebration, joy in the resurrection, joy in life.

            It made me wonder at what point I had decided unfettered joy was not part of my worship. Maybe I spend too much time worrying about propriety or looking silly. Maybe my tie is too tight, figuratively speaking since I rarely wear a tie. Maybe I am too afraid, or too proud. Maybe I have let flannel graph Jesus, with all of his seriousness and one-dimensional flatness, skew my understanding of who Jesus really is and the joy that He brings. 

Strap In and Hang On...

Photo by David Fulmer

            So, you know that feeling you have when you are sitting in the seat of a roller coaster right as it leaves the loading dock? Up until that point, even though you are all strapped in and locked down, you can still bail out. You can still raise your hands and kick and scream and cry like a baby (a hungry angry baby) and they will let you off. But once the brake is released and the coaster begins to roll down the tracks, you are committed. You are going to be in that seat until the ride comes to a complete and safe stop at the loading dock.

            That is the feeling I had this past week when I was thinking about Kitijah and Indijah. They were showing me their city on Google Earth. They showed me their school and where they had art classes. They showed me where they lived before going to the “child house” and then they showed me the “child house”. It was just a brown square among other squares, but they knew the address. I was looking at a bird’s eye view of their “home”. Their orphanage was a real place in a real city full of real children.

            I was struck with the realization that we are committed to these girls, no matter what happens. Our lives are intertwined now. There are hopes and dreams now. There is responsibility and accountability. There is shared pain, shared fear, and shared joy. There is love.

            I cannot say if they can or will be adopted. There are a lot of things that need to be resolved for that to happen. I cannot say if they will be allowed to come back next summer. There is so much that is unknown in their future and ours. I just hope they know that we will be with them no matter what comes and no matter where they are. I hope they know we love them. 

"Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." 1 john 4:11

The Faithless Friend of Job...

Kitijah and Endijah

So, we are having a pretty good time hosting our girls from Latvia. Kitijah and Endijah (pronounced Kitia & Endia) are sweet as can be, fun to be around, and very typical tweeners who love to listen to music, try on clothes, and giggle.

 On the other hand, our good friends who are also hosting children from Latvia are having a different experience. They are hosting a brother and sister who are 6 and 7. Alex and Karolina are also sweet kids, and they are also typical 6 and 7 year olds for the most part. What that means for our friends is that Alex is a strong willed active boy who has challenged all of us to a battle of wills at some point or another.

Karolina and Alexanders

 Jeannie and I were discussing this very issue at the table this morning. I was throwing out my opinions and possible options in typical guy manner. Is he really behaving like a typical 6-year-old orphan who has been flown half-way around the world and dropped into a place where he doesn’t know the language? Will things settle out once his clock gets adjusted? Does he need to go back or to another host family? Should he even be in the program? Who would take on such a challenge? Maybe the organization needs to come get him on their dime? Did the orphanage director sugar coat his issues so they could get a break from him?

 “Dave, God put Alexanders here for a reason. God allowed him to be here for this time. God knows how he is and God knows what he needs.” 

 What a “faithless friend of Job” I can be at times, thinking I know so much when I really don’t know anything at all. It is a good thing God has given me Jeannie to remind me.

 “But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you; and the birds of the heavens, and let them tell you. Or speak to the earth, and let it teach you; and let the fish of the sea declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, in whose hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind?                              Job 12:7-10

Finding Joy...

So, next week is the second week of Advent. I have never really done anything for Advent or even though about it until a couple weeks ago when Dan King of bibledude.net asked for volunteers to write a little for one week of Advent.  Divine providence gave me "Joy", literally, metaphorically, and figuratively. Here it is:

Read:

Psalms 16

Psalms 30

Isaiah 35:1-10

Luke 1:39-56

Romans 15:13

1 Peter 1:3-9

Pray:

           Joy comes from hope. Without hope, there can be no joy. With hope, there is rejoicing, and the greater the hope, the greater rejoicing.

            In the presence of God we find our “fullness of joy” (Ps 16:11). Is it any wonder why the coming of Immanuel – “God with Us” –causes such rejoicing? Should we not leap for joy as John did when he first came into the presence of Jesus? Absolutely! Certainly! Believers should be the most joy-filled people on the planet. We should be rejoicing with every breath we take.

             Joy comes from the overwhelming hope that comes from being redeemed, rescued, and adopted as a child of the Living God. Joy comes from the realization that we have been given not what we deserve, but what we don’t deserve, an “inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven”. Our rejoicing is with “joy is inexpressible and filled with glory” because we believe. (1 Peter 1:3-9)

            The glory filled inexpressible joy is there, but I wonder what is keeping it from coming out? Circumstances? Stuff? Fear? Pride? Anger? Bitterness? Loneliness? Hunger? Thirst? Sickness? Sorrow?

            Oh please Lord:

Remind me that my hope is in only You, and I will rejoice!

Remind me that nothing can separate me from You (Romans 8:38), and I will rejoice!

Serve:

            Someone once told me that when I felt low, I should do something for someone. Guess what? It works. In the simple economy of God, God is our hope, we rejoice in our hope, and we find even more joy in sharing that hope with others. Joy is multiplied and magnified in serving others. Serving others is like pushing your joy through a giant Back to the Future sized amplifier. Even the littlest amount going in will result in an overwhelming, knock you off your feet and across the room amount of joy coming out. Don’t be scared, it is just joy. Revel in it, rejoice in your joy, maybe dance a little, sing a little louder, give glory to God, and then serve again. 

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalms 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalms 16:11 NASB

 See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us”. Matt 1:23 HCSB