Good Morning Friends,
There were lots of important people just a few miles from where Jesus was born. There was the Roman governor and Herod the Great and Jewish priests, the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Scribes all who lived in and around Jerusalem. And close by the Levites too. But the ones God chose to receive the birth announcement of the Messiah were a group that would have surprised most Jews. We often think of them in the modern sense as ranchers, but 2000 years ago those that tended sheep were an extension of the flock, for the sheep in that environment needed constant attention. These caretakers lived in the fields and smelled like the sheep they tended. It is interesting that God, in coming into the world, chose a group of ordinary people, humble sorts who knew about sacrifice, to get the first announcement. Shepherds were the ones to first visit the child born in a manger known as Jesus. Still, we ask this Christmas Day, and I do hope you have a merry one, Why Is The Ordinary So Important?
Scripture: In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Luke 2:1-7 (NRSV)
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
Luke 2:15-20 (NRSV)
The Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to daughter Zion, “See, your salvation comes; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him.” They shall be called, “The Holy People, The Redeemed of the Lord”; and you shall be called, “Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.”
Isaiah 62:11-12 (NRSV)
But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
Titus 3:4-7 (NRSV)
Message: String and choir music and organ music that pulled out the stops set the tone for a Candlelight Christmas Eve service last night at church in our sanctuary at Moorings. It was interesting in many regards. First it was on a Sunday, so we had already had a morning service where I served as liturgist with the focus on the 4th Sunday of Advent… Love. Amy and I prepared the candles. Then there was a 5 o’clock P.M. family service that was very well attended followed by more traditional lessons and carols at 8. They were not ordinary services. The ordinary is kind of like the stinky shepherds doing their tedious routines of caring for the flock. To be called ordinary is like getting a satisfactory grade in school. It really implies that we are really unsatisfactory. We want something bigger, better, and not ordinary and I think we got just that. And yet there is a problem for this level of attention is not sustainable. We think the ordinary is really not very good and therein is the core of the problem. We want something special like an amazing Christmas Eve Service. But let me tell you, ordinariness is something worthy of our attention for the ordinary bits of life give us purpose. A glorious Christmas Day is wonderful, but the ordinary stuff in preparation and clean-up is really important too. In the liturgical year we rush from celebration to celebration often not realizing the power in the ordinary. The thing is that this is the time God is springing forth in our lives and helping us to become people who recognize the amazing in the commonplace. So, turn aside for a moment and notice the act of God in this moment regardless of whether it at first seems special. Expect the presence of God. Be curious. Friends, what if Moses had not turned aside when he saw a burning bush. Turning aside helps us to see what God wants us to see. Yes, today is special. Last night was special. But the liturgical year has a season of ordinariness for a reason. And it can seem boring and dull, but really it is not for it measures time as it goes past and teaches us to savor time as it passes. Friends, our own spiritual lives have a rhythm, and we each need to discover it, but I cannot help you much in this regard. Pray, study the Bible for sure. But know that how you feel close to God and how I feel close to God may differ. The goal is to take the experience of the special into the everyday so that we can discover God at work and become closer to God. So, do not assume that the ordinary things that you do that bring you closer to God, are not good enough. Reflect on the ordinary activities in the rhythm of life that brings you closer to God. Work out the issue of letting the Stream of the Holy Spirit carry you. Be intentional and honest and authentic. Know that our ordinary spirituality is good enough for God because God loves the ordinary. We want to make things wonderful for God in worship but do not forget that the ordinary is what God likes too and it is ok to be ordinary. In fact, the inspiring actions of ordinary people is one of the greatest joys of life. So, do what you can and leave the rest to God. Reflect on your own ordinariness. Turn aside and see this Christmas, the amazing that can be carried over into our daily lives. Friends, we are to wonder about the Lord for this is the beginning of Wisdom. Slow down and look through the plain glass window of life to better appreciate the extraordinary stained glass of worship. The ordinary needs the extraordinary and the ordinary needs the extraordinary. Learn to see life as an amazing miracle. In the grind, spectacular or not, God is always there. Attune to God in the spectacular but nevertheless recognize, attend and discover God in the ordinary. Everything does not have to be brilliant. That is not life. God loves us just as we are. Do not fear.
And So, we are to hold dear and cherish in our hearts not just the amazing events of our life but also the mundane. The ordinary may seem uninteresting, but if the lectionary is any guide in this matter, more than half the liturgical year is spent measuring what is happening. We would like to have Christmas every day, but we cannot. But what we can discover is Christ in us revealing something special about what we might consider boring. You see, we have been liberated by grace because of the changing of our mindset internalized in the formation of our life to not only enjoy the special events in life but to also make something special out of each and every moment. Here we are guided by a wisdom that comes from God in the form of the Holy Spirit of Jesus. For ultimately following Jesus is the only way to not go astray. Friends, God chooses ordinary people and reveals the glory of the divine to the humble. That is why the shepherds in the fields received the gift of sharing in the gift of the birth of the Good Shepherd.
Pray we do not fight against God but follow the Good Shepherd. Pray that the peace of the Lord is with us. Pray the Holy Spirit works in our everyday lives to reveal the character of God to us.
Pray for the peace found in the harmony of truth. Pray for the sound of the good news to rise above all the other noise. Pray we rejoice in the Word that became flesh. Pray we too are moved by the Holy Spirit and are willing to take action that glorifies God and magnifies God in us. Pray we celebrate because there is a lot to celebrate.
Pray we allow the Holy Spirit within us to convince us that we are heirs to an infinite treasure because of God’s presence everywhere. Pray we overcome the world’s message of despair and realize that Jesus came to bring us life. Pray that because of the hope and joy and peace and love in the resurrection in us we have a reason for living. Pray we therefore have a Merry Christmas. Pray for the peace found in the harmony of truth. Pray for the sound of the good news to rise above all the other noise. Pray we realize that God will not be defined and limited to our boundaries, or parameters. Pray we discover God in both the spectacular and the ordinary.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 