Peace of Mind

 

[Jesus said] “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe.” (John 14:25-29 ESV).

 

If you are a believer, you may still struggle with finding the peace of mind and soul that is so often absent in times of struggle. We talk a lot about peace on earth and good will toward men at this time of the year, though it often seems conspicuously absent. First, we should recognize that this peace is a state of rest for the entire soul that comes from trusting in God. It's more than just relieving stress or anxiety, and it's a peace that's reliable in any situation. This is the peace that seems like a distant ideal in a world marked by turmoil, uncertainty, and conflict. Yet, Advent reminds us that true peace is rooted in the coming of Christ. This peace is a constant source of assurance, even when external circumstances challenge us.

 

God gives us the gift of peace as we draw close and rely on him. The Apostle Paul wrote: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7).

 

Here we are a day that ought to be filled with such peace. However, your day may have just started and your thoughts are already beginning to race with anxiety; or, perhaps it's the middle of the night and you're struggling to find rest, whatever season of difficulty you're facing, the enemy is attacking your peace of mind. In those overwhelming moments, as your mind fills with fear, the best place to turn for comfort is an intimate relationship with God through prayer. We are not meant to try to control and fix everything that worries us. We were created to rest in God's love! We cannot always control the things that rob us of peace of mind, but we can control how we respond. This Advent season, consider placing particular emphasis on praying, meditating, and reflecting on Scripture to embrace God’s peace. We can also cultivate this Advent peace throughout the year as we worship God in our daily lives, acknowledging our total reliance on God for our needs.

 

Hope

 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials. (1 Peter 1:3-6 ESV).

 

During Advent, many Christians anticipate the celebration of Christmas, the first coming of Jesus Christ, and his anticipated return. Some churches begin the fourth Sunday before Christmas by reflecting on a central theme for each of the four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve: hope, peace, joy, and love. Many churches light a candle on a wreath each Sunday of Advent, symbolizing one of these themes. In the next four days, we’ll explore the four themes of Advent and discuss their significance and meaning in our lives, offering ways to embrace them as we await the coming of Christmas. Today we are looking at “Hope”.

 

I understand hope can feel elusive for many this time of the year. When we find ourselves immersed in the challenges of difficulty, it is difficult to be hopeful. But for Christians, hope is not merely a fervent wish that things will get better; instead, it is a profound assurance rooted in faith: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1). This Advent hope is anchored in the promise of Christ's coming—not only for Christmas, the celebration of Jesus’ first coming but for us who wait in anticipation of his second coming.

 

Hope rooted in faith inspires believers to look beyond our immediate circumstances and trust God's faithfulness to his promises. During this time of the year, we may embrace this hope by recognizing what God has accomplished through the gift of Jesus. Through this miraculous birth we were given the grace of God bringing us redemption and eternal life. Death has no power over us as it has been forever defeated. The curse of the ages has been lifted to give us the hope of life!

 

55th Anniversary!

 

Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:8-13 ESV).

 

It is our 55^th Anniversary today! I’m not quite sure how that happened so quickly, but the day has arrived. I was a bit perplexed as to what picture I would attach to today’s devotional; and, I may have a bit of explaining to do when Mary sees the one I chose! However, this is the Mary I have known and cherished for over half a century. I do not remember what was so funny at the time. Perhaps it was the fact that it was so out of character for her to have a garter on, much less have me take it off her leg! In any case, this is one of those moments that her joy burst through in such a visible way. That is the Mary that so many people do not get to see. That is the lady I fell in love with so many years ago.

 

Of course, there are many other things about her personality and character that convinced me beyond any doubt that she was the one for me that first moment I met her. And, perhaps it is this complex mixture of all these things that made it so easy to understand the will and purpose of God in our lives then. That certainly is true today.

 

It is that truth that brings me to our reading today. The Apostle Paul defines love in such a clear and complete way in these verses. The most impactful of these descriptions is the enduring nature of love. Even when we compare faith and hope to love, love is the clear greatest of the three. That has been the sustaining fact in our relationship. It has always been the north star that guided us through the many experiences of life. I am so thankful for these years and look forward to many more.

 

Our prayer is always that you will find that same relationship in your life. God bless you all… thank you, Mary for saying yes!

 

O Come All Ye Faithful

 

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. (Psalm 95:1-5 ESV).

 

There are often various celebrations when we invite others to join us. Whether they are birthdays, anniversaries, or other special occasions the guest list is determined, and the invitations are sent out. Those who receive the invitation then have a choice, will they attend? Are they able?

 

I was thinking about this dynamic as I looked over the lyrics of the last of the carols we will use this year for our devotionals. It is a beloved favorite of many, “O Come All Ye Faithful.” This song recounts the birthday of Jesus Christ. At His birth, a “party” broke out near the manger. Of course, Mary and Joseph were there, but soon others began to make their way to the gathering. God the Father went out of His way to invite a two very different and unlikely groups to attend the party - shepherds and Magi (cf. Luke 2:8-20, and Matthew 2:1-12). The shepherds represented common Jewish people - a class of citizens that would normally never have been invited to a religious ceremony or royal birth. The Magi were Gentiles from a faraway land who would have had no expectation of inclusion in the plans of the God of Israel. Yet, at Jesus’ birth, God sends an angelic invite to the shepherds and a starry message to the Magi inviting them to come.

 

When the invitation is issued, the shepherds and Magi have a choice. Both groups move toward the manger. Both groups decide that they cannot miss the opportunity to be included in this special moment. As a result, both are incredibly blessed. They were not able on their own, but by God’s grace, they find their stories find meaning in Christ. Now, I want you to think about your own life for a moment. By virtue of you reading this devotional, knowing these songs, reading the Christmas story, you have received an invitation from your Heavenly Father. An invite to come to Jesus and find your hope in Him.

 

This invitation from God is not based on our performance but on His grace. It is sinful

people like you and me, like the shepherds and wise men, who get the invite to come to Jesus and find our hope and forgiveness and life in Him. God desires that we open this invitation by faith and trust in Jesus as the Son of God who takes away the penalty of our sins through His death on the cross. Have you placed your faith in Jesus? If not, hear the words of today’s song as an invite from God to come and adore Him and place your faith in Jesus.

 

Mary Did You Know?

 

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and go shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:26-33 ESV).

 

One of my favorite modern Christmas songs was written in 1991 by Buddy Greene and Mark Lowry. It has become a contemporary “classic.” In its short history, this song has been recorded by many contemporary artists, and sung in many church services. My favorite cover of it is done by Pentatonix. You can find it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifCWN5pJGIE.

 

The song asks a simple rhetorical question: Mary, did you know who your Son was? The question is expanded throughout the song citing both the salvation Jesus would bring and the miracles He would work. Did Mary know while holding Him in Bethlehem’s barn who Jesus really was? This song is musically beautiful, but it also shines a spotlight on the paradox of the Sovereign God becoming a dependent baby.

 

It is a valid question. Did Mary know? If so, what did Mary know? From the very beginning, Mary certainly knew that Jesus was not a normal baby. Our reading today indicates that much. She finds out she is pregnant through a conversation with the angel Gabriel. In this conversation she would come to know: she had found favor with God (1:28-30); She was pregnant with a Son, even though she was a virgin (1:31); her Son would be the Son of God (1:32a, 35); her Son would be the promised Messiah (1:32b); and, her Son’s Kingdom would know no end (1:33).

 

For nine months Mary carried Jesus with the words of the Angel reverberating in her ears and echoing through her heart. Then, when Jesus was born, angels and shepherds, and Magi show up and remind her of the supernatural nature of her Son. As He grows up, she continued to know that Jesus was unique. So, based on these verses, did Mary know? Yes. I think she knew. However, let’s not make Mary into more than she was. She was certainly favored by God, but she was still human. At one point, she (and Jesus’ half brothers) openly questioned His methods (Matthew 12:46-50). After Jesus’ crucifixion, Mary was not sitting outside the tomb on the morning of the third day expecting to see the stone rolled away. She (like the other disciples) thought the dream died on the cross. So, in one sense Mary knew, but in another sense she didn’t.

 

So, the question asked in this song reminds us that at times we can KNOW a truth about God, but still have questions about how it looks in our lives. Allow this tension to encourage you today in the areas of your life where you know, but in another sense don’t know. Trust in what you know. Reject the temptation to base your hope on the things you don’t know!

 

Come Thou Log Expectred Jesus

 

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. (Isaiah 9:6-7 ESV).

 

Today’s carol may be a bit unfamiliar to you. It is typically sung in the more liturgical churches. It is rooted in the rich heritage of the Methodist Church. John and Charles Wesley are responsible for this wonderful herald of the birth of Jesus. Though the Wesley’s never set out to start “Methodism” God used them to reform the Church of England and call it to both passion and application. If Luther’s reform in Germany was about orthodoxy, the Wesley’s reform in England 200 years later was about orthopraxy, or, “as much about what we do as what we believe.

 

While John Wesley was the preacher, Charles Wesley is best known for the hymns he wrote. One of the 18 Christmas carols Wesley wrote was “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.” This song not only laid out sound theology and Scriptural references, but called followers of Jesus to act in certain ways. The first verse points out Jesus has released us from our “fears and sins” (Romans 6:5-11). This is a theological truth, but the application of this truth is that we would find “our rest in Thee.”

 

In the second verse, Jesus is described as “a child, and yet a King (Isaiah 9:6-7).” Charles takes the next line, though, and drives it home, saying that Jesus was “Born to reign in us forever … Rule in all our hearts alone.” The application is not just to say that Jesus is the “King of Kings,” but to have Him be our King, the ultimate authority in our lives. This Christmas, as you hear this wonderful carol I hope you have a reformation of your practice. I encourage you to find your rest in Jesus, the ultimate authority in your life!

 

 

I Heard the Bells on Chreistmas Day!

 

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ ethe Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:8-14 ESV).

 

Our Christmas Carol for today is “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day.” It has a wonderful history. It begins in the middle of the Civil War, in March of 1863, when 18-year-old Charles Appleton Longfellow of Cambridge, Massachusetts quietly left his family’s home, a colonial mansion that had served as General Washington’s headquarters from 1775 to 1776. Unbeknownst to his family, he boarded a train bound for Washington, D.C., traveling over 400 miles down the eastern seaboard to join President Lincoln’s Union army. He was the oldest of six children born to Fanny Elizabeth Appleton and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the celebrated literary critic and poet. Less than two years earlier, Charles’s mother Fanny had tragically died after her dress caught on fire. Her husband, Henry, awakened from a nap, tried to extinguish the flames as best he could, first with a rug and then his own body, but she had already suffered severe burns. She died the next morning, and Henry Longfellow’s own burns were severe enough that he was unable even to attend his own wife’s funeral. He stopped shaving on account of the burns, growing a beard that would become associated with his image. At times he feared that he would be sent to an asylum on account of his grief.

 

When Charley (as he was called) arrived in Washington D.C., he sought to enlist as a private with the 1st Massachusetts Artillery. Captain W. H. McCartney, commander of Battery A, wrote to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow for written permission for Charley to become a soldier. HWL (as his son referred to him) granted the permission. Longfellow later wrote to his friends Charles Sumner (senator from Massachusetts), John Andrew (governor of Massachusetts), and Edward Dalton (medical inspector of the Sixth Army Corps) to lobby for his son to become an officer. But Charley had already impressed his fellow soldiers and superiors with his skills, and on March 27, 1863, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry, assigned to Company “G.”

 

At the Battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia (April 30–May 6, 1863) he saw no combat duty but spent his time guarding wagons. There Charley fell ill with “camp fever” and was sent home to recover for several months with his family. That summer, having missed the Battle of Gettysburg, he rejoined his unit on August 15, 1863. On the first day of that December, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was dining alone at his home when a telegram arrived with the news that his son had been severely wounded four days earlier. He had been shot through the left shoulder, with the bullet exiting under his right shoulder blade. It had traveled across his back and nicked his spine. Charley avoided being paralyzed by less than an inch.

 

He was carried into New Hope Church in Orange County, Virginia and then transported to the Rapidan River. Charley’s father and younger brother, Ernest, immediately set out for Washington, D.C., arriving on December 3. Charley arrived by train on December 5. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was alarmed when informed by the army surgeon that his son’s wound “was very serious” and that “paralysis might ensue.” Three surgeons gave a more favorable report that evening, suggesting a recovery that would require him to be “long in healing,” at least six months.

 

On Friday, December 25, 1863, Longfellow, as a 57-year-old widowed father of six children, the oldest of which had been nearly paralyzed as his country fought a war against itself, wrote a poem seeking to capture the dissonance in his own heart and the world he observes around him that Christmas Day. He heard the Christmas bells ringing in Cambridge and the singing of “peace on earth, good-will to men”, but he observed the world of injustice and violence that seemed to mock the truthfulness of this optimistic outlook. The theme of confident hope even during bleak despair is apparent throughout the poem.

 

What a contrast to the issue of time Magazine on April 8, 1966 as the cover asked, “Is God Dead?” In a world where we have a telescope in space looking to the far reaches of the universe and using the Hadron Collider to try to find the “God particle”, many people wonder if there is a need for God to explain the creation of the universe and our existence. They see God only as an uneducated person’s explanation of the universe instead of a divine person involved in our lives.

 

When we reduce God to just an explanation of creation, we allow Him to be seen as of no use and dead to society. When bad things happen in our culture, people always ask, “Where is God? Why did He allow that to happen?” But when we fail to put logs on a fire, we don’t ask, “Where is the heat? Why are we being allowed to freeze?” We can’t kick God out of our culture, schools, and government then ask where He is when bad things happen. He sent His Son into the world to bring life and light into our darkness. God is not dead, nor is He simply an explanation for our very being. He is a loving God who is involved in our daily lives. We were created with purpose and our lives have meaning. To think there is no God and that we are simply here by random chance is to say there is no right or wrong and that life has no meaning. God sent His Son to us to show us that we matter. He sent Him to show He cares about our struggles mentally, physically, and spiritually. He came to right the wrongs, to bring peace on earth, and goodwill to men.