The Light of the World

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 

~John 8.12

The light of Christ is in all those who choose to belong to him and be a witness in a dark world. One small candle can cast quite a bit of light, yet imagine the amount of light produced when joined with a community of believers. Our own singular light will produce enough to 

see the path directly in front of our feet but no further. When we come together, joining our light with fellow worshipers, we see much further than we can alone.

We are meant to be in community. It's one thing to love God and serve him, but not alone. Throughout history, God called his people to be in community, he calls for gatherings: from the Israelites who paused in their wilderness journeys to worship, all the way to the home churches of the early believers. The desire of God is for us to be in relationship with him and with each other.

For some, their relationship is outside the community of believers, or 'church', if you will. They have given up on the church for one reason or another. Be it from religious abuse, hurt feelings, boredom, bad encounters... etc. I will be among the first to admit that 'the church' is not perfect. It is a mass of broken people who need healing, who need God, and who need each other. The people outside of the community called church say that the concept of church needs to change. Perhaps in the changing of the church, our attitudes about church need to change as well. It is not one or the other, it is both.

Our relationship with God, and with others, is not something that is an 'all about me' relationship, it is about us... us together in community. This light of Christ that we carry inside is within all of those who choose to be his. The brokenness of life tries to blow out the flame of Christ within. By trying to protect the light on our own without the worship of God in community, we can easily slip into a self-centered spirituality. But when we take our candles inside, to a place of worship, we are able to fan the flame of the Spirit within us. Then and only then, do we have light enough to carry into the darkness outside. 

Maybe this Advent we could stop trying to light our own candles, but could light one another's in community. Come and worship, come to Christ, because he is the Light of the World.

Grace and peace,

Diane

The With-ness of Christ

In the dead of winter, the barrenness of it all creates a stark beauty. Black against white, the green of conifers against the bare deciduous trees and shrubs. Life and death, it comes to all, whether we are prepared or not. 

We brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out.

1 Timothy 6.7

In the past week I have lost my mother-in-law to a long illness and have heard from 5 other people who have also lost a parent very recently. We have all prepared or are preparing to say goodbye in a very formal way. Some have already attended the funeral or memorial, for others it is today. Ours for mum is on Monday.

Dealing with a death in the family at Christmas time can put a damper on all the festivities. In the midst of Advent, waiting and soul-searching, I want to throw up my hands and question, "Really Lord? You wanted this to happen now?" Some days I want nothing more than to climb in my car and drive as far away as possible. 

I don't want to deal with the mess, the tears, the memories. And then I read a devotional today and was asked to consider something. "Consider Emmanuel, the with-ness of God, right where we are, not where we wish we were instead."

The point of Advent, or any day of the year for that matter, is that Christ can and will meet us right where we are at. In the mess of life. The memories that it holds and the spilling of tears as we remember. So let Christ meet you, as I open the door for him to meet me and my family right where we are. In the mess-ness of life and the with-ness of Christ, I am reminded through Scripture: 

The Lord gives and the Lord takes away; blessed be the name of the Lord.

Job 1.21

Yes, through these days I will continue to look towards heaven and thank the Lord for all I have been given and for all which has been taken away. I will say, 

Blessed be his name! Amen!

Deep peace and blessings,

Diane

Darkness, Stillness and Silence

John answered all of them by saying, "I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 

~John 3.16 

As the days before Christmas draw closer, getting busier and busier with families arriving, baking, present wrapping, light hanging and tree decorating, remember what it is we

 truly celebrate. Advent, the coming birth of Christ; a time of darkness, stillness, and silence all representing the deep places of our lives, our souls. And it is here, deep within as we search, that Advent happens. Christ comes not to the noise and busyness of the world because there's no room. There wasn't any room at the inn, but there is room in the dark, the still and silent place deep within our soul. Christ can meet me there... he can meet you.

Don't be afraid to ask yourself, where is that place in my awareness where I can be without seeing, without knowing or understanding, and be at peace? Where or what are the empty places in my life? I might feel uncomfortable about emptiness, but an empty place is one where the Christ child can come when there is "no room in the inn" elsewhere. Possibly even the painfully empty places―the places of loss, bereavement, poverty or fruitlessness: maybe these are places where even now angels are gathering. The good news is, you can go there and wait. God will meet you, he'll meet me, in the silence and darkness as you and I sit in stillness.

Thank you God of Light, who casts out all darkness, who delivers and sets free, who comforts the grieving and brokenhearted. You bring hope and peace. May we wait with an openness of mind, heart and soul for you to fill the emptiness with your presence. May the comfort and peace of heaven inhabit our lives this season. Amen.

Deep blessings and peace,

Diane

Saying Goodbye

"My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12.9

I dedicate this post to my beloved mother-in-law, Velda Meryl Scott. December 4th was a sad day for the family; it was the day she passed away, her body no longer withstanding all the ailments which afflicted it. She fought a good long battle with illness and yet her spirit of grace and determination never faltered. I shall miss you dearly.

Mom was a woman of strong faith and many questions. I was often asked why there was so much pain in the world, why was she born here in a country of affluence, having so much, while there were people starving in  3rd world countries. "Where was God in the midst of wars?" she would ask. So many questions about the mysteries of God, good and evil, questions I had very little answers to, aside from 'one day we will know.' I am sure the night Christ took her home that all of her questions were answered in a blink of an eye. 

My respect and love for mom knew no bounds, for she was a woman who lived her life seeing others through the lens of grace, with full knowledge of all the ways people fall short. I knew her as a vessel of hope and encouragement to many, accepting people without judgement or condemnation, regardless of their pasts. Though mom spent many years bound to a wheelchair, she never lived as a defeated person. She was a witness to all of what courage looks like. She gave flesh to the scripture: 

"My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12.9

Her ailments and afflictions never once stopped her from living life to the fullest. I know that my life has been enriched and blessed because of who she was and how she lived with love, grace, and mercy administered to all. Mom is no longer bond to a chair, she is free. I believe from the moment she breathed her last, at that specific moment she danced with jubilation, and peace for the first time in many years. Mom may not be with us in the flesh anymore, but her spirit and our memories of life spent with her will always be with us. They will form the stories carried down through generations.

Grace to all,

Diane

Meditating on the Mystery

I am confident that the one who began a good work in you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. 

~Philippians 1.6

No matter how I feel about myself, good or bad, I have a promise from the Word of God that the Lord of All will complete what he started in me. Even in the midst of my wavering belief at times in the face of impossibilities his seed is still in me and it is growing. He continues to water, feed and nourish. It is a mystery, his love and care. I cannot fathom the depths of all it entails. It is far to magnificent for even my imagination, yet I know it is there; his love for me. As I meditate on this mystery, may I be reminded that God is delighted to bless all his children. How awesome! 

Have you every contemplated the story of Mary and Joseph? I mean, really contemplated? Can you imagine an angel of the Lord appearing before you and telling you that you are about to receive the most amazing gift? 

“Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you. Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”  

I cannot even fathom in my widest imaginings something like this happening. To be honest, I think I would drop dead on the spot. Yet Mary, in her curiosity just wondered how it would all happen since she was a virgin, and once told she was completely accepting. 

May it be done to me according to your word.

~Luke 1.38

Just as Mary uttered her words of acceptance, I too say the same,

May it be done to me according to your word.

You see, I want all of God's promises for my life fulfilled without my hindering things. Yet I know how fallible I am in my thinking. I so often want proof first. Forgive me Lord! Advent isn't about wanting proof, it is about expectant waiting for the mystery of the blessing; the Christ Child. May I walk in this season with an open mind, open heart, and believe the impossible, because with God all things are possible.

Bless this day O Lord, all those who call upon your name; the saved, the lost, the seeking. May today be a day of acceptance without wanting proof and validation first. Open the eyes of our heart to truly see truth. Open the doorway of our heart and fill us with hope. Amen.

Peace be yours,

Diane

Something Good is Coming

May God our Father himself and our Master Jesus clear the road to you! And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you. 

~1 Thessalonians 3.11-12, The Message

Have you ever awakened to witness a sunrise with the sky turning a beautiful golden-red color and you just knew, in the deep places of your soul, that something good was coming? I don't think there is anything more hope inspiring than a beautiful sunrise. It's hope rising, the anticipatory coming of Christ.  

Christ clearing the road to us; to be so filled with the Father's love it overflows into the lives around us. A beautiful thought, one which is achievable. We wait with growing anticipation and excitement, soul searching, with wonder and awe filling our hearts as the days of Advent advance. Christ calls to us, can you hear his whisper? We must respond, we must answer. Don't let Christmas find you spiritually unprepared to receive the impact of joy at his birth. 

Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.”   ~John 17.24

The first candle of advent was lit today; the candle of prophecy signifying hope is coming. We can either choose to keep the light in us shining brightly as a witness in the world, or we can choose to let it fade and die. My prayer is that through this season we all see the glory of God at work in and through us.

Blessed Lord, search our hearts and see if there is any offensive way in us. Reveal the sins which separate us from you, help us to release them into your hands. May the love and light of your Spirit in our heart and soul be the witness of grace and glory in the pain and darkness of the world. Amen

Peace be yours,

Diane

A Light in the Darkness

"Through him (Jesus) all things were made; without him nothing was made that had been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world." John 1.3-9

Tomorrow welcomes the first day of Advent. The word Advent derives from the Latin word 'adventus' which means arrival or coming. It is a time when we remember that Christ came into the world as a baby over 2000 years ago and that he promised to return one day in glory. I can hardly wait ... what about you?