Christmas - We Are Light

Christmas Meditation given at Central Congregational Church, Christmas Eve, 2014


It is said that
Francis of Assisi
Gave this prayer
Over and over
All through the
Darkness of the night:
“Who are you, God?
and who am I?”
Who are you, God?
And who am I?
We could pray this
Every night
For the rest of our lives
And not even begin
To fully answer these questions.
But in the Christmas story
We catch a glimpse,
As we peak around the stable door,
And eavesdrop on shepherds and angels.

Because this is the story
Of how the mysterious,
Transcendent
Awesomeness of the Divine
Is revealed in human scale,
In a very real,
very flesh and blood,
Baby,
A baby who leaves
the warm friendly darkness
Of the womb
And enters
the cold unfamiliar darkness
Of the world,
crying
as all babies do.
Taking in big gulps air,
Needing to be cared for,
As all babies do,
In a moment,
Like all births,
Full of fears and dreams and hope.

It doesn’t get more real and concrete
Than a dusty, smelly stable
In a crowded town
and a people living under
The yoke of oppression.
Yet, we are told,
Here is our God.

So,
who are you, God?
You, the story says, are the one
who comes
to be
with us;
who comes
Right into the unfamiliar darkness
With us;
Who breathes
With us
And cries
With us.
Emmanuel – God with us.

Who are you, God?
You, we are told, are a child,
Born for us,
Given to us.
Into our care,
As much as we
Are born and given
Into yours.

Who are you, God?
You are, we are shown,
Light.
Not just light,
a “great light”
Light
Present at the dawn of creation
Light
that can be
a blaze of glory
but also dialed down
to a candle flame
So human eyes can
Look,
And not go blind.
A great light
Present in the
Gentle glow
Of a small human face.

You are light
that illuminates our way.
Wonderful Counselor.
You are light
that lifts the burden
and breaks the rod
Of oppression.
Mighty God.
You are light
That holds and comforts
In times of need,
For as long as it takes.
Everlasting Father.
You are light
that offers hope
To a world
That knows
Violence and heartbreak,
Despair and injustice,
All too well.
Prince of Peace.

Who are you, God?
And who am I?
Because you chose
A human form,
This is my story too.
And I wonder
Can all of us,
See ourselves
In it too?

Who am I?
Am I one who took a chance
On an unfamiliar angel
And took a difficult road?
Am I one who journeys
Far from home
Looking for welcome,
And for too long,
Finding none?
Am I one who has walked
In darkness
Friendly and unfriendly
Needing a light?

Who am I?
Am I one who has known
The hope, the pain,
The fear, and joy,
Of bringing new life
Into the world?
Am I one who has sat
On the cold ground
Watching, waiting
For wolves, for a sign
For too long?
Am I one who
Traveled to find the holy
And saw the light of God,
Shining in a baby’s face,
And myself
Reflected in his eyes?
Am I one who
Treasured and pondered
These things in my heart,
And found the light
Was already there?

Who am I?
I am one who
Shares what I have seen,
And felt, and heard,
Never believing it would
Fall to me to
Be the one
Praising God,
Who is good,
All the time.

Who are you, God?
And who am I?
We – are light.
The holy born that holy night,
Born also in me.
The holy light that shone
That night
Shining also in me
This night.
As it is in you.

Because the child
Whose birth we celebrate
This holy night
Became a man
Who calls us
To the light,
Who calls us
To pay attention
And realize
That light is within each of us,
Reflected
in the faces
of every child,
Deep in the heart
Of all people.
One who calls us
To share that light with others.

Who are you, God?
And who are we?
We are people
Who walk,
Who have walked,
In darkness, for too long,
But we are also the ones
To whom you come,
Always,
Out of love;
The people
On whom light has shined
We just need to open our eyes,
To learn to see
with the light
you have given us,
See that same light
Shining in those around us.
What a difference
That makes,
What a difference
That can make
To look at each other,
To look at every other,
Expecting to see light.
It can change the world,
But at the very least,
It can change us,
Which is where it begins,
Where it must begin,
As it began
That long ago night,
When to us a child was born.

 “High from God’s heaven,
a star’s light did fall”
and falls again
tonight.
On us.
In us.
Shine on.
Amen.

Advent 25 -- For unto us

"For to us a child is born ..." (Isaiah 7:6)

Today we welcomed the newest member of our church family, a beautiful Christmas present. Look into her face, and see the light of God reflected there. May her birth remind us, this Christmas Eve, to see the light of God reflected in the faces of all God's children.

Advent 24 -- Watch, O Watch

Christmas approaches, for your Advent meditation. "Watch, O Watch" with Fran McKendree, John Philip Newell, and David E. Poole.

Advent 23 - Christmas Pageants

It seems to me that all of the stories of our faith are just that, stories, unless we can see them as our stories. One way to do that is to retell the story, in our own words or in our own way. Christmas pageants are like that, and we had a wonderful one at church yesterday, with people of all ages. A teenage Mary and Joseph; baby angels kissing other angels on the cheek; small sheep and a variety of shepherds; innkeepers directing the holy family to the Motel 6; tall wise men striding majestically around on their journey accompanied by a mobility scooter camel using Google maps, and not reaching the baby Jesus yet, because that is a story for another day; and the whole congregation providing the soundtrack.

            Can you see yourself in the Christmas story? What’s your part? Are you scared but excited about the new thing coming to life within you? Are you taking care of your flock? Are you looking for a sign for which way to go?

            If you were to retell the story, would you tell it differently?

Advent 22 - Little Brown Baby

Our Theme this week is "God in the House: For All Generations." 

Paul Laurence Dunbar, born in 1872 in Dayton, Ohio to former slaves, was one of the first African Americans to receive national recognition as a poet. He penned this poem in 1892. Entitled “Lil’ Brown Baby,” it is an expression of a father’s playful affection to his son. When I read it, I imagine Joseph’s love for Jesus. Hear these words as we welcome the Christ child!

 

Little brown baby with sparklin' eyes,

Come to your papa and sit on his knee.

What you been doin', sir — makin' sand pies?

Look at that bib — you’re as dirty as me!

Look at that mouth — that’s molasses, I bet;

Come here, Maria, and wipe off his hands.

Bees gonna catch you and eat you up yet!

   Being so sticky and sweet — goodness lan's!

 

Little brown baby with sparklin' eyes,

   Who's papa’s darlin' and who's papa’s child?

Who is that who never once tries to

   Fuss, be cross, or once lose that smile?

Where did you get them teeth? My, you’re a scamp!

   Where did that dimple come from in your chin?

Papa doesn’t know you — I believe you're a tramp;

   Mama, this here is some ol' straggler that got in!

 

Let's throw him out, We don’t want stragglers layin’  'round here;

Let's give him away to the big bugger man;

   I know he's hiding around here.

Bugger man, bugger man, come in the door!

   Here’s a bad boy you can have to eat.

Mama and papa don’t want him no more,

   Swallow him up from his head to his feet!

 

Awww, now  I thought that would make you hug me up close.

   Go back, ol' bugger man, you can’t have this boy.

He ain't no tramp, nor no straggler, of course;

   He's papa’s partner and playmate and joy.

Come to your pallet now — go to your rest;

   Wish you could always know ease and clear skies;

Wish you could stay just a child on my breast.

   Little brown baby with sparkling eyes!

 

--- Rev. Ray Jordan

Advent 21 - Christmas Joy

      We had our annual Blue Christmas worship service last night. This is a service where we recognize that for many Christmas is anything but merry. The holiday season can be difficult for those who are grieving a loss, those who struggle with illness, injury, depression, or financial stress or those who are burdened too much by other cares of this world. So we gather as a community to express and acknowledge these emotions, and remember that it was into such a world as this, to ordinary people in difficult circumstances, that God's love took on flesh in Jesus.
     As we lit candles and shared our losses and burdens, I was really moved by how each represented relationship or connection. We lit candles for those we had died, and grieved the loss not only of that person's life but of our continued relationship with them. We also lit candles for friends who lad lost loved ones, an act of caring and an affirmation of connection and relationship with them.
      And isn't our cry of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" a cry for relationship with the holy, with whom we have felt separated, estranged perhaps. It's a cry of need, and of vulnerability. Come to us again this Christmas, Lord. Come again this Christmas.
     And the joy of Christmas is that God responds to our cry, coming to us vulnerable as well, in the form of a newborn baby, trusting our love to care for him as we want to trust God to care for us.
      It is with this background that I heard the song "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" by Darlene Love very differently this year. A cry for relationship, for reconnection, without which "it's not like Christmas at all." But in the hands of the (now 73 year old) Darlene Love, it's less the poignant cry of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" but an anthem of need and trust that her "baby" will come home, will  come to her, and it will be Christmas. It's a song of faith, and a song of joy. Amen and Amen. Enjoy.

This video is from Darlene Love singing on David Letterman for the last time, because Dave is retiring. So which the song is joyful, the circumstances are poignant as well. Blue Christmas indeed.

-- Rev. Christine Ng

Advent 20 - Sweet Hymns

During Music Sunday at Central I was moved to tears, for many reasons. One being, the music reminded me of my beloved grandmother who raised me. I often sat with her, singing the sweet hymns of the church, either at her knee in our home or next to her in our little Methodist Church. One of her favorite Christmas tunes was actually a gospel hymn, “Jesus, What a Wonderful Child.” I hope you enjoy it even as half as much as I do when I hear it!

 -- Rev. Ray Jordan

Advent 19 - Wait and Watch and Pray and Work

As is my usual weekday morning routine, this morning I began the day with a daily devotional reading and meditation and, of course, the morning news (CBS This Morning is my morning show of choice). Today’s lead stories struck me as particularly hard to watch. They included three shooting tragedies that took me aback.

 

-A religious militant opened fire on a school in Pakistan, leaving 141 (many of whom were children) dead and many others wounded.

-Three people dead after an Australian hostage situation.

-An Iraqi War veteran kills his ex-wife and five of her family members.

 

Lord have mercy! These events (though they are by no means the only elements of bad news in the world) seemed to take my breath away! However hard to hear, they immediately made think of Advent. This period of waiting, waiting for the Christ, and waiting for the promise represents exactly how I felt this morning. Yes, I am a man in waiting. I’m waiting for peace! I’m waiting for justice! I’m ready for love!

 

So….I wait. I wait for God. I wait for the manifestation of God’s promise. I wait and watch and pray and work! For this is Advent.

-- Rev. Ray Jordan

Advent 18 - Leaning into Joy

We lit the candle of joy this past Sunday. But joy is hard. It's scary stuff. It's what parents feel as they anticipate the birth of a child. That feeling of joy and yet foreboding -- what if something goes wrong? One of the lessons of Advent and Christmas is that we are all parents -- waiting to give birth to the holy. But can we let ourselves feel the joy in that?

If you haven't discovered the work of Dr. Brene Brown, here is a little joy for your Advent meditation. Brene Brown and Oprah talk about joy, and how to cultivate it in your life. If you are familiar with Brene Brown's work, it will come as no surprise that it's all about vulnerability and gratitude. Just click on the link below:

Brene Brown on Joy

-- Rev. Christine Ng

Advent 17 - Here is Our God

This Sunday we lit the candle of joy on the Advent Wreath. Having my home filled with warm people and wonderful food is one of the great joys of my life. It takes a lot of work to get the house ready for a party. But it is my way of preparing the way, making space – and the holy, it always shows up.

You can see it in the faces of children as they help decorate our Christmas tree (and if a lot of ornaments end up on the lower branches because that’s as high as they can reach so we need to do a little rearranging later – what of it?). It shows up as the kids decorate and eat Christmas cookies. A small boy made one for me – it had a heart on it, and made my heart fill to bursting. You can feel it in the atmosphere as almost inevitably some people end up eating and talking with people they do not know well, so new connections are made. The ties of community are made stronger. You can hear it as a young girl plays flute and we sing Christmas carols.

In the giving and the sharing and the creating and the connecting and the laughing and the singing – here is our God.  

Advent 16 - Good Gifts

I grew celebrating Advent but it wasn’t until I was in seminary that I actually gave real thought to its meaning. Of course, it is the beginning of the Christian calendar, a time that leads us to the recognition of the birth of Jesus. It represents for us a time of waiting, expecting, and finally celebrating God’s good gift. One of my favorite scriptures is found in James 1:17:

 

“Every good and perfect gift comes from above, our Father, the God of light in whom there is not shadow of turning.”

 

Let’s make one thing clear; God gives all things GOOD. God is good. In God there is no changing. Meaning, God is Light but light without a shadow of turning or shifting shadows throughout the day. The Message Translation says it this way: “There is nothing deceitful in God, nothing two-faced, nothing fickle.”So, if God was in the business of giving good gifts 2,000 years ago, God is not “fickle” and is, thereby, still in the business of giving good gifts today.

God’s gifts are to us and through us, but rarely exclusively for us. We are blessed to be a blessing.  We called to extravagant love and generosity. What God gives to us, we called to offer back in worship of God and service to the world.

This offering includes all of our resources…including our time, talent, and treasure. However, during this time of year I am most reminded of this spiritual principle when considering the gift of our children.  Yes, they are God’s good gift to us (I certainly know my own children have been an incredible blessing in my life), but just as any gift given by God, they are not ours to keep, but to give back to God and the world.

In this thought, I’ll end with a poem/philosophy I try to live by (though I often fail miserably). It is by poet Kahil Gibran. In his poem “On Children,” he writes:

“Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
 

You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth."

 

Yes, yes! Praise God from whom all blessings flow! ….But remember, they flow, they’re not stagnant. Thank God for God’s good gift, especially our babies.  

 

-- Rev. Ray Jordan

Advent 15 -- God in the Lowly

Our theme for this week is “God in the Lowly: Looked upon with Favor.” Today in worship we listened to the scriptures about Mary, an unmarried teenage girl from a small town in a patriarchal culture. She describes herself as lowly, and in that time and place, she was. Yet, we are told, she had found favor with God, who saw her not as insignificant or lowly, but as worthy to bear God’s son. Because ours is a God who lifts up the lowly.

            The lowly, the vulnerable. Our God favors these. But do we? Today is the two-year anniversary of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary, where 20 first-graders and six teachers lost their lives. It doesn’t get more vulnerable than young school children. How have we honored their lives? Or the lives of the children killed – intentionally or unintentionally – by guns every day (based on CDC data compiled by the Brady Campaign, an average of 8 every day)? Those teachers gave up their lives for the children in their care. What have we given up?

            For change to happen, we don’t have to begin by agreeing on a solution. But we do need to agree that there is a problem.

            God wept on December 14, 2012. God’s weeping still. 

            But this Advent, may we sing with the teenage girl who agreed to give birth to the holy in her world: “our souls magnify the Lord” and let the seeds of change grow within us.

-- Rev. Christine Ng

Advent 14 - Celtic Prayer

Celtic-style prayers are particularly good for meditating on God in the world. They invoke a sense of being surrounded by God, and an awareness of God in the ordinary, everyday aspects of life. For the Celts, God wasn’t somewhere “up there,” or not only; and the birth of Christ wasn’t something that happened millennia ago, or not only.

            Because the Celts believe that God is with them in every aspect of their lives and their world, their prayer was often spontaneous or easy to craft or learn, because it simply named that truth. A famous Celtic prayer is St. Patrick’s Breastplate, the last portion of which goes:

Christ behind and before me,

Christ beneath and above me,

Christ with me and in me,

Christ around and about me,

Christ on my left and my right,

Christ when I rise in the morning,

Christ when I lie down at night,

Christ in each heart that thinks of me,

Christ in each eye that sees me,

Christ in each ear that hears me.

Good to think about in Advent, as we wait for the Christ to be born again in us and in our world. That miraculous birth can happen anywhere and everywhere.

             I invite you to write a Celtic-style prayer of your own. Below is a sample you can use for inspiration – or just rewrite this prayer substituting everyday, ordinary things and actions in your own life (like dressing and walking) you want to see God in. Be creative and go in your own direction.

God to enfold me,                              Christ in my life,                   God this morning,

God to surround me,                          Christ in my lips,                   God this noon,

God in my speaking,                          Christ in my hands,               God the evening,

God in my thinking.                           Christ in my heart.                 God this night.

God in my sleeping,                           God in my working,              Be thou before me,

God in my waking,                            God in my playing,                Be thou beside me

God in my watching,                         God in my living,                   Be thou beneath me,

God in my hoping.                             God in my dying.                   Be though behind me.

-- Rev. Christine Ng