How? #adventbookclub – Day 18

•December 18, 2013 • Leave a Comment

Luke 1:5-20 (CEV)

An Angel Tells about the Birth of John

5 When Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest by the name of Zechariah from the priestly group of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was from the family of Aaron. 6 Both of them were good people and pleased the Lord God by obeying all that he had commanded. 7 But they did not have children. Elizabeth could not have any, and both Zechariah and Elizabeth were already old.

8 One day Zechariah’s group of priests were on duty, and he was serving God as a priest. 9 According to the custom of the priests, he had been chosen to go into the Lord’s temple that day and to burn incense, 10 while the people stood outside praying.

11 All at once an angel from the Lord appeared to Zechariah at the right side of the altar. 12 Zechariah was confused and afraid when he saw the angel. 13 But the angel told him:

Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayers. Your wife Elizabeth will have a son, and you must name him John. 14 His birth will make you very happy, and many people will be glad. 15 Your son will be a great servant of the Lord. He must never drink wine or beer, and the power of the Holy Spirit will be with him from the time he is born.

16 John will lead many people in Israel to turn back to the Lord their God. 17 He will go ahead of the Lord with the same power and spirit that Elijah had. And because of John, parents will be more thoughtful of their children. And people who now disobey God will begin to think as they ought to. That is how John will get people ready for the Lord.

18 Zechariah said to the angel, “How will I know this is going to happen? My wife and I are both very old.”

19 The angel answered, “I am Gabriel, God’s servant, and I was sent to tell you this good news. 20 You have not believed what I have said. So you will not be able to say a thing until all this happens. But everything will take place when it is supposed to.”

Have you ever wanted anything so much, longed for it, yearned for it – and yet it has never happened?

Can you imagine if one day God came and told you that it would happen.  I love this bottom picture, where the angel is tapping Zechariah on the shoulder 🙂

Not surprisingly, when he is told, Zechariah is incredulous – he can’t believe it.  He wants to know how it can happen – a perfectly reasonable question.  He knows it is humanly impossible.  Zechariah wanted some proof, some tangible evidence – I guess he got it in losing his voice!  Perhaps to hear, he needed to be silent?

Has God ever tapped you on the shoulder and told you something?

What was your reaction?

How?  I know I have!  Seriously Lord, you’re going to do what?  With me?  How on earth…?

Yet God does.  He takes his people, ordinary human beings, and he makes things happen in and through us.

How Lord?
You say this is what is going to happen
and yet I can’t see how.
Surely it’s not possible,
there are too many problems,
did I hear you right?

Lord,
help me to listen
to truly hear
to believe
and respond.

Lord,
do what you need to do
in my life

Speak Lord

This year, several of us are reading Beginnings and Endings by Maggi Dawn and joining together to comment on it.  Do join us at the Adventbookclub Facebook page, follow #adventbookclub on Twitter or comment below.  If you are also reading and blogging on this book, let me know and I will link to your blog.

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I’ll Go #adventbookclub – Day 17

•December 17, 2013 • Leave a Comment

Isaiah 6:1-8 (CEV)

A Vision of the Lord in the Temple

6 In the year that King Uzziah died, I had a vision of the Lord. He was on his throne high above, and his robe filled the temple. 2 Flaming creatures with six wings each were flying over him. They covered their faces with two of their wings and their bodies with two more. They used the other two wings for flying, 3 as they shouted,

“Holy, holy, holy,
    Lord All-Powerful!
The earth is filled
    with your glory.”

4 As they shouted, the doorposts of the temple shook, and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 Then I cried out, “I’m doomed! Everything I say is sinful, and so are the words of everyone around me. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord All-Powerful.”

6 One of the flaming creatures flew over to me with a burning coal that it had taken from the altar with a pair of metal tongs. 7 It touched my lips with the hot coal and said, “This has touched your lips. Your sins are forgiven, and you are no longer guilty.”

8 After this, I heard the Lord ask, “Is there anyone I can send? Will someone go for us?”

“I’ll go,” I answered. “Send me!”

By Jojojoe (Own work)

Something needs doing.  Someone’s got to do it.

I’ll go

Willingly or grudgingly someone steps up, takes it on, makes sure it is done.

God calls. Will someone go and do this?

I’ll go

I hadn’t realised I could.  I thought it was beyond me, that I wasn’t good enough.

But God had other ideas.  He met me, showed me, forgives me, calls me.

I’ll go

Lord,
I am small,
unholy,
unclean.

I get things wrong
and fail to get things right.

I stand in awe and wonder
of all you are,
and all I can never be.

And yet,
I hear your voice calling,
you need someone,
someone to go
and be
and do
for you.

I am not worthy.

Yet if you call me,
touch my life,
forgive me,
transform me

perhaps,

in your strength

I’ll go

This year, several of us are reading Beginnings and Endings by Maggi Dawn and joining together to comment on it.  Do join us at the Adventbookclub Facebook page, follow #adventbookclub on Twitter or comment below.  If you are also reading and blogging on this book, let me know and I will link to your blog.

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I’m Not the Messiah #adventbookclub – Day 16

•December 16, 2013 • 1 Comment

John 1:6-8, 19-28 (CEV)

6 God sent a man named John,
7     who came to tell
    about the light
and to lead all people
    to have faith.
8 John wasn’t that light.
He came only to tell
    about the light.

John the Baptist Tells about Jesus

19-20 The Jewish leaders in Jerusalem sent priests and temple helpers to ask John who he was. He told them plainly, “I am not the Messiah.” 21 Then when they asked him if he were Elijah, he said, “No, I am not!” And when they asked if he were the Prophet, he also said “No!”

22 Finally, they said, “Who are you then? We have to give an answer to the ones who sent us. Tell us who you are!”

23 John answered in the words of the prophet Isaiah, “I am only someone shouting in the desert, ‘Get the road ready for the Lord!’”

24 Some Pharisees had also been sent to John. 25 They asked him, “Why are you baptizing people, if you are not the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet?”

26 John told them, “I use water to baptize people. But here with you is someone you don’t know. 27 Even though I came first, I am not good enough to untie his sandals.” 28 John said this as he was baptizing east of the Jordan River in Bethany.

A case of mistaken identity.  The leaders want to know who John is.  The Messiah?  Elijah?  The Prophet?  They wanted to know who this man was.

John was clear on who he was and what his role was – and more importantly wasn’t.  He knew he wasn’t the Messiah – but was the one to prepare the way for the Messiah, to get things ready.

When the Olympic Torch Relay came to our town, before the actual relay arrived a police convoy came through,

IMAG0072

checking the route was clear, preparing the way.  When they appeared, we knew the torch was not far away.  This is kind of John the Baptists role.  He is not the main show, he is preparing for the one who is.

John is announcing the Lord, he is not the Lord.  He knows it.

It is good for us all to be aware we are not the Messiah…

I am in admiration, and maybe a little envious, of John knowing so clearly who he was and exactly what he was called to do.

Maggi moves on to the question of Jesus calling and his understanding of it (p77), and then ours.

How do we know our calling?  How can we be sure?

This passage made me think of this clip:

and how easy it is for people to believe what they want to see, about people, about Messiahship, about calling – and how wrong they can be.  No matter what others want us to be, or think we are, we are called by God to be the person he has called us to be.

What we can be sure of is that each of us is called to something.  Our responsibility is to fulfil our calling and not someone else’s, what we wish ours was, or what other people would try and fit us into.  And we all have a role to play in helping each other identify and live out whatever our calling may be.

Thank you Lord
for calling me
to be me,
to fulfil the task you have called me to.

Thank you that you call each of us,
with our own unique task
for you.

Forgive me
when I try to squeeze myself
into a calling that isn’t mine,
or avoid the one that is.
I pray for the clarity
to know who I am
and what you are asking me to do.

May I also allow others
to be what you have called them to be,
to do what you have asked of them,
and not necessarily
what seems obvious.

Lord work in me,
call me,
use me
as you need to

I Want to Serve

This year, several of us are reading Beginnings and Endings by Maggi Dawn and joining together to comment on it.  Do join us at the Adventbookclub Facebook page, follow #adventbookclub on Twitter or comment below.  If you are also reading and blogging on this book, let me know and I will link to your blog.

Posted in Advent, Advent Book Club, bible, faith, God, life, Religion, theology
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