Category Archives: Advent

December 19, 2012

Cessna Magnificat

Advent 4 – Luke 1:46-55

“And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior…” (Luke 1:46)

(This is a revised 2009 reflection. In my new 2012 Advent reflections I’m ignoring more traditional interpretations of the Advent/Christmas scriptures. Of course, you may read this and think, “Hey Larry, this 2009 piece is also ignoring the obvious!”)

The preacher turns the page and there it is: And Mary said, my soul magnifies the Lord . . .

What can the modern bearer of Mary’s good news say that will feel different for this year, for this moment?

Advent has obligations. Christmas is habit. Here comes Mary again.

The mind wanders momentarily. Maybe the preacher reads these words in the heat of a fading summer, diligently planning the sermons she’ll proclaim four months later. Or maybe her colleague, another preacher across town or across the continent, ponders Luke 1:46-55, Mary’s magnificat we declare it, a few panicked hours before he slouches toward that pulpit. He’s procrastinated, the Advent days have been busy, the demands relentless. Next year he’ll plan better. And yet, whether in the calm of a summer’s day of long-range sermon preparation or with a bleary-eyed and desperate stare at those holy verses printed on the thinnest of pages, both share a nagging thought: What to say?

Whether you’re fresh from seminary with a burning ache to proclaim the Gospel or you’re nearing retirement and spend more time analyzing pension benefits than scriptural, it’s the same. The same. You’ve heard Mary’s words most of your young or old life. Joseph has annually dreamed and the shepherds will tremble as the angelic—ho-hum—chorus voices a perfect alleluia. By the first Sunday of Advent, when your sermon never mentions an inn without room or wandering magi, every store, elevator and radio station is already silent-nighting you into seasonal and spiritual numbness.

Preachers know they’re not alone. Those folks in the tear-stained pews, on the same hardwood their grandparents’ occupied, are experiencing similar reactions. And even if it’s not old oaken seats the derrieres spread across, but cushy chairs in a sparkly-bright contemporary sanctuary with digital bells and high-tech whistles, it’s likely still the same. The congregation has been silent-nighted also. They know the essential celebrations of this Holy Season: Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas Eve. Did I put those days in proper order? Oops, I forget the holy day of the last time for free shipping. Should we call that Postal Tuesday? Don’t worry, everyone will be reminded of the last day, hour, moment when the package you must send to Uncle Speaks Too Loud or Auntie Smells Funny will arrive in time for the festivities. Continue reading →

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December 12, 2012

Advent Cougar

Advent 3 – Luke 3:7-18

“John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?’” (Luke 3:7)

(This is a revised 2009 reflection. In my new 2012 Advent reflections I’m ignoring more traditional interpretations of the Advent/Christmas scriptures. Of course, you may read this and think, “Hey Larry, this 2009 piece is also ignoring the obvious!”)

I pedaled by the sign attached to the fence and chuckled. Really more a nervous laugh because the morning’s cold and not many people are around and I’d entered a section of Woodward Park that contained open fields and paralleled the San Joaquin River and felt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . isolated.

According to the local news, someone recently reported they might have spotted a mountain lion (or cougar as they’re sometimes called) in this park. Warnings were posted. Like this hastily printed sign in the photo.

I also chuckled because I’ve been thinking about John the Baptist. I suspect not many people on this cold lonely morning are contemplating the Baptist’s ancient words. But I was. And so, nervously chuckling at the warning signs, I’m recalling his every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Cut down. Gulp. It’s another Advent-inspired, get-ready-for-Christmas threat. I shiver a tad. It ain’t summer after all (well, at least that’s my excuse).

The Baptist challenged the crowds on the banks of the Jordan River.

Hmmm, a warning along a river?

Out here, in a regional city park on the north end of Fresno (fifth-largest city in California), I’ve seen deer, rabbit, bobcat and coyote. The park hugs the San Joaquin River. At 330 winding miles, it’s the state’s second-longest river. I’ve hiked around lake basins in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, high on the rugged crest, which mark the San Joaquin’s alpine birth. Between Fresno and the granite peaks are subdivisions, parks, dams, highways and fast food joints. Still, the river is a corridor, a pathway from wilderness to civilization. I’m not surprised when I see bobcat or coyote in these lowlands.

But a cougar, an elusive predator, is a different story. But . . . I’m on a bike! Couldn’t I outrace ‘em? Later I learn they sprint 30-35 miles per hour. Get pedaling, Larry. But . . . I won’t bump into one because Fresno’s huge, with over a hundred square miles of streets and shopping malls. However—yikes—a cougar’s territory covers thirty square miles. That narrows the safe acreage. And they’re also big cats. I’m not quite six feet tall. An average full-grown cougar, tail to head, would drop the “not quite” from that footage.

Let’s return to the safer Jordan River. Continue reading →

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December 11, 2012

I Believe…

Luke 1:39-45 – The 4^th Sunday of Advent – for December 23, 2012

“And blessed is she who believed…” (Luke 1:45)

I am “skirting” Bethlehem this year. Click here for why.

Used cleverly, words disguise our inner self. Used honestly, words reveal our inner self.

What do you believe?

What do you think?

What do you know?

Which of the above questions—and its answer—would influence you the most when seeking a deeper relationship with another?

Since you’re a clever human bean, you might hedge your response by claiming it depends on the subject of the question and the asker of the query. True enough, but in general are you more interested in what another believes or thinks or knows about . . .

Abortion. Abstinence. Allah. Birth control. Boxers or briefs. Cats or dogs. Christmas. Death penalty. Disarming a bomb. Gay rights. Global warming. God. Good guys finishing last. Heaven. Hell. Jesus. Love at first sight. Mindfulness. Opposites attract. Premarital sex. Reincarnation. Resurrection. Santa Claus. Sexual orientation. Shaken or stirred. Virgin birth. YHWH*

Of course, specifically . . . if two good guys (and let’s say I’m one of those good guys) were trapped in a room with a ticking bomb during Christmas, I’d prefer to know the other person can disarm bombs and really don’t care what he or she thinks about boxers vs. briefs or believes about abstinence.

What we believe/think/know about something, or what another person believes/thinks/knows about something, is always situational. Which is to say, are you planning to marry the other person or are you sharing an elevator ride to the tenth floor?

And yet I’m mostly a firm believer in belief.

During Advent and Christmas, I suspect many suspend knowing or thinking to enthusiastically (or reluctantly) embrace belief. What do we know about Joseph and Mary’s journey to Bethlehem? What do you think about those three wise men? Oops, sorry, we have no idea if there were three or thirty magi, though we know three gifts were mentioned in one insignificant (or magnificent) passage in a single Gospel. What do you KNOW about Jesus’ birth? I mean the real birth. The date. The place. The witnesses. What do you THINK about Jesus’ birth? Was Mary a virgin, did angels sing and how much fretting and scheming did Herod do? How much of a chasm exists between what you know/think and your BELIEFS? Is the difference a gap as modest as a manger or bigger than a barn?

What do I believe about Christmas? (And you can ask yourself the same question . . . what are your deepest, most real and revealing beliefs about this holy, peculiar season?)

Do you want to know what I believe? Continue reading →

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December 5, 2012

“Why In Such A Hurry?”

Advent 2 – Malachi 3:1-4; Luke 1:68-79; Luke 3:1-6

“. . . as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, ‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’” (Luke 3:4)

(This is a revised 2009 reflection. In my new 2012 Advent reflections I’m ignoring more traditional interpretations of the Advent/Christmas scriptures. Of course, you may read this and think, “Hey Larry, this 2009 piece is also ignoring the obvious!”)

I veered toward the man.

A few months before, on this walking route, construction had temporarily closed surrounding streets. Now the site—a new regional blood supply center—was complete and I could choose a recently added sidewalk or a lawn hugging the top curve of a cul-de-sac that linked me to my usual path.

As I approached the man, full-tilt in my morning stride, I debated what to do. The guy sat on a faded green utility box at the lawn’s edge, his head slightly bowed and a cap shadowing his face. Frankly he looked suspicious. A bum? A danger? Should I take the sidewalk and circle around or walk right by him? Before construction, I’d preferred the lawn.

So I chose the lawn. Stubbornness? A personal declaration I wouldn’t be deterred from my route? Maybe even a thimbleful of anger.

After all, I walked because I hadn’t biked.

My morning routines are important to me. Many years ago, unsettled because my practices of prayer were off-kilter, I sought help from a friend, a colleague in ministry. God felt distant, I said. Worse, I felt distant in my relationship with the Holy. My friend listened, asked questions and listened for a while longer. I shared the importance of mornings when I carved out an hour for sweating and to get the heart a’pumping, but also to escape phones and to-do lists. During that morning time, I felt open to Creator and creation. Continue reading →

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December 4, 2012

Expectations

Luke 3:7-18 – The 3rd Sunday of Advent – for Sunday, December 16, 2012

“As the people were filled with expectation…” (Luke 3:15)

I am “skirting” Bethlehem this year. Click here for why.

On my most memorable birthday . . .

. . . Let’s say I was ten, though I might’ve been younger. I’m a May birthday boy, late in the second semester, and I know this occurred during elementary school.

By 4, I’m sure I was scheming for more presents…

I so desperately wanted a party.

I’d been to the birthdays of fellow classmates and Cub Scout buddies. They all had kids galore, endless cake and ice cream and scores of presents. One brave family even handed out water pistols and told everyone to have fun: indoors, outdoors, everywhere! I couldn’t imagine my parents approving a hoard of munchkins dashing hither and yon, squirting at other children, living room furniture, the dog, the front mailbox and the backyard swing set . . . all with enough water to fill Lake Tahoe.

I made no demands for squirt guns. But, please, I wanted a mess of my friends. And truth be told, I wanted lots of presents.

Mom, the cake-maker and party-planner agreed to this.

I dimly recall her giving me a maternal reality check.

“Honey,” let’s say Mom said, “Do you really want to invite so many children to your party?”

“I want lots of kids.”

“Wouldn’t it be nicer to have a few of your best friends and–” Continue reading →

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Category Archives: Advent

Cessna Magnificat

Advent Cougar

I Believe…

“Why In Such A Hurry?”

Expectations

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