Pastor Cal Lord's Recent Sermons
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Recognizing the Scrawl on the Christmas Card
Luke 1:26-38 November 27, 2005
Opening the front door of your home can be a life-changing experience. I love to
watch those commercials for Publisher’s Clearing House. You know, the ones in
which an unsuspecting person opens the door, unprepared for what they see;
television cameras, microphones, and a man in a suit who hands the towel draped
just out of the shower homeowner a check for several million dollars. The
expression on the faces of the recipients are priceless. So are the screams of
delight. That one isolated ring of the doorbell has cast a spell of sorts. Life for these
instant millionaires will never be the same.
The all too familiar story of Mary’s encounter with the angel Gabriel is another
example of how simply answering the front door proved to be a life altering event. I
was an event that sent shockwaves through Mary’s teenage heart. The messenger
of heaven didn’t have a million dollar check in his hand. But he did hand her a
script – a script in which she unknowingly had been cast in a leading role.
Need I say more? You’ve got the picture. No TV cameras necessary. Mary was
caught totally unaware by what Gabriel declared as fact.
We know that story so well that we tend to gloss over what a disruptive event this
was for Mary. Her world was changing and she seemed to have no control over it.
Sure she was going to be a part of history and the instrument to trumpet God’s
good news to the world, but did anyone ask her how she felt about that.
IT is easy to look back and suggest that anyone would have been highly honored to
accept that gift and call. The world in which Mary lived was a difficult one. Israel
was an oppressed nation. Roman domination was the cause of constant stress and
fear. All the same, it was a rather secure world. People’s private worlds were
largely their own concern. They simply ducked their heads down and tried to stay
out of the limelight. They did everything they could to walk in the shadows and
avoid being noticed.
That is when God’s plans for Mary came upon her and cast her into the spotlight.
Her life would never be her own again and she had to come to terms with it. The
cameras of history were rolling and her future became our future.
The thing we often miss about this story is the simple fact that Mary had a choice.
When God came knocking on her door she opened it and embraced the gift he gave
her. She accepted it and in turn she blessed the world.
That is not to say she wasn’t nervous or scared. She could easily have panicked, but
she remained calm and put her trust in God and moved forward.
Eugene Peterson is a seminary professor and translator of the plain language
version of the Bible called, “the Message.” I love his version of this account.
He says, “Upon entering Gabriel greeted her: ‘Good morning! You’re beautiful with
God’s beauty. Beautiful inside and out. God be with you! She was thoroughly
shaken, wondering what was behind a greeting like that. But the angel assured her,
“Mary you have nothing to fear. God has a surprise for you.”
I remember seeing an illustration of Mary’s expression as she encountered Gabriel.
It was a haunting close up of a young woman surprised by a singing telegram that
took her breath away. As I looked at the artist’s interpretation, I remember
thinking that I’ve been there before. Every time God catches me off guard and
asks me to step out in faith, every time I get an inkling of what God is calling me
to do, I have that same look of wonder and awe mixed together. “Me, you want me
to do this? I must be confused. You must be thinking of someone else.”
I have to tell you when that happens I get a little scared. I begin to wonder if I am
up to the challenge. Just like Mary. Just like you. Yet, the longer I live, the more
convinced I am that God’s surprises and plans are not to be feared, no matter how
unexpected or unusually they come packaged. Like Mary, I can now see them as a
gracious invitation to carry God’s plans forward.
The truth is that for most of us our gifts will not be delivered by a supernatural
messenger. Most likely it will end up on our doorstep in the natural flow of our
daily lives. What is most important is that we learn to recognize God’s call and say
yes to it when it arrives.
Eugene Peterson is also a poet and he wrote a poem called “The Greeting.”
My mail carrier, driving his stubby white
Truck, trimmed in blue and red, wingless
But wheeled, commissioned by civil service
Daily delivers the Gospel every Advent.
This Gabriel, uniformed in gabardine,
Unsmiling descendant of his dazzling original,
Under the burden of greetings is stoical
But prompt, annunciations at ten each morning.
One or two or three a day at first;
By the second week momentum’s up,
My mail box is stuffed, each card stamped.
With the glory at a cost of thirty-seven cents,
(Bringing the news that God is with us!)
First class, personally hand addressed.
What a novel way to look at something as ordinary and mundane as the ritual of
sending and receiving Christmas Cards. Statistics indicate that 95% of Americans
send Christmas cards. Isn’t it amazing? Did you know the typical family receives
60 cards each Christmas? Well let me ask you if you have ever viewed those
Christmas cards as a means by which God reveals his plans for you? Well this year,
I hope you will see that God is trying to get your attention. You see, every
Christmas card you receive should tell you that you are on the heart and mind of
the person who sent it. You are more than an address to them. You are someone
special: family, a good friend, a person who touched them at work or through school
connections. The card comes as a reminder that you have made a difference in
someone else’s life.
I want to let you in on a little secret. The card comes by the way of God who stamps
and seals it with a message for you.
You all know Adele works for the post office as well as serving God as our organist.
Every once in a while we’ll get a letter at home with a note scribbled on it that says,
“Hello. Have a great day! Adele.” You see she happened to come across it and put
her mark on it.
You know God does the same thing with every Christmas card. He puts his mark
on them hoping you will begin to pray for the person on the other end. Whether
you are the sender or the receiver, you already have a door between you that can be
opened and embraced to fill the world with God’s good news.
You see, God looks at you and me and says the same thing he said to Mary. You
are beautiful and I love you. I have a wonderful surprise for you. That surprise is
that he is inviting us to carry the good news into the world. Mary’s call involved
carrying a child in her womb. Ours is carrying the good news to our friends and
neighbors.
You see, God’s blessing is not for us alone. Once we receive the gift we are to share
it. So Advent becomes a time to share not costly presents, but the love of God in
Christ. I know this season is hard for many people. We get caught up in the world
of commercialism and buy into the networks sentimentality, but Christmas is so
much more than that. It is God’s opportunity to remind the world of a saving love
that comes in the gift of a baby boy. Some of those cards that the gabardine Gabriel
deposits in your mail box are from those who are hurting, people in pain. They are
thinking of you and that means that God has put you on their minds. They sense
something about you that draws them and they recognize that you are special. You
might be just the person God wants to reach out to them and heal their broken
hearts. They aren’t even aware of it, but God is.
I know this is crazy. Usually Christmas is about us. It is our plans, our schedules,
our traditions. But just maybe, this Christmas, God’s wants you and me to make
Christmas about Him. In doing so, maybe a little bit of the joy that we’ve lost will
return. So let’s think about doing a few things differently this advent. Let’s start
with the cards.
For example:
After retrieving your daily mail and before opening it, say a prayer like this: “Dear
Lord, I know you are always at work in my life, even when I am not aware of your
presence or activity around me. Please open my eyes and my heart to what you
have to say to me through today’s mail. Help me to see the wonder of this most
holy season as I recognize you in all I do. Amen.
Take the time to sort through the letters and cards with your family, maybe each
night after dinner. Talk about who they are from and share a story about your
connections to them. Say a prayer for them.
Do something crazy like putting out a guest book at your house and asking all your
visitors to sign it. Then try to discern what God is saying to you as you look back at
those who have visited you this holiday season.
If you have younger children, experience the wonder of creating an advent wreath
at home. You can find kits at most Christian bookstores. You will be making
memorable moments for your kids.
Finally take a fresh look at the significance of sending Christmas cards. Thank God
for the opportunity to represent him with a message that speaks to the reason for
the season. Put on your favorite Christmas CD, brew a pot of coffee and begin
addressing those cards early, thinking of those people God wants you to touch base
with and share a reminder of His love.
You don’t do cards. Well don’t let that stop you. Somebody come to mind you
haven’t thought about in a while? Give them a call. (My friend Mike)
And, if in the midst of all this, there is a knock on the door, don’t expect someone
with a million dollar check. Expect something far more valuable. Expect the
childlike wonder of seeing something that those around you aren’t even aware of.
Expect to see the Lord who you adore as you open the door to the most wonder
filled Christmas ever. Amen.
Luke 1:26-38 November 27, 2005
Opening the front door of your home can be a life-changing experience. I love to
watch those commercials for Publisher’s Clearing House. You know, the ones in
which an unsuspecting person opens the door, unprepared for what they see;
television cameras, microphones, and a man in a suit who hands the towel draped
just out of the shower homeowner a check for several million dollars. The
expression on the faces of the recipients are priceless. So are the screams of
delight. That one isolated ring of the doorbell has cast a spell of sorts. Life for these
instant millionaires will never be the same.
The all too familiar story of Mary’s encounter with the angel Gabriel is another
example of how simply answering the front door proved to be a life altering event. I
was an event that sent shockwaves through Mary’s teenage heart. The messenger
of heaven didn’t have a million dollar check in his hand. But he did hand her a
script – a script in which she unknowingly had been cast in a leading role.
Need I say more? You’ve got the picture. No TV cameras necessary. Mary was
caught totally unaware by what Gabriel declared as fact.
We know that story so well that we tend to gloss over what a disruptive event this
was for Mary. Her world was changing and she seemed to have no control over it.
Sure she was going to be a part of history and the instrument to trumpet God’s
good news to the world, but did anyone ask her how she felt about that.
IT is easy to look back and suggest that anyone would have been highly honored to
accept that gift and call. The world in which Mary lived was a difficult one. Israel
was an oppressed nation. Roman domination was the cause of constant stress and
fear. All the same, it was a rather secure world. People’s private worlds were
largely their own concern. They simply ducked their heads down and tried to stay
out of the limelight. They did everything they could to walk in the shadows and
avoid being noticed.
That is when God’s plans for Mary came upon her and cast her into the spotlight.
Her life would never be her own again and she had to come to terms with it. The
cameras of history were rolling and her future became our future.
The thing we often miss about this story is the simple fact that Mary had a choice.
When God came knocking on her door she opened it and embraced the gift he gave
her. She accepted it and in turn she blessed the world.
That is not to say she wasn’t nervous or scared. She could easily have panicked, but
she remained calm and put her trust in God and moved forward.
Eugene Peterson is a seminary professor and translator of the plain language
version of the Bible called, “the Message.” I love his version of this account.
He says, “Upon entering Gabriel greeted her: ‘Good morning! You’re beautiful with
God’s beauty. Beautiful inside and out. God be with you! She was thoroughly
shaken, wondering what was behind a greeting like that. But the angel assured her,
“Mary you have nothing to fear. God has a surprise for you.”
I remember seeing an illustration of Mary’s expression as she encountered Gabriel.
It was a haunting close up of a young woman surprised by a singing telegram that
took her breath away. As I looked at the artist’s interpretation, I remember
thinking that I’ve been there before. Every time God catches me off guard and
asks me to step out in faith, every time I get an inkling of what God is calling me
to do, I have that same look of wonder and awe mixed together. “Me, you want me
to do this? I must be confused. You must be thinking of someone else.”
I have to tell you when that happens I get a little scared. I begin to wonder if I am
up to the challenge. Just like Mary. Just like you. Yet, the longer I live, the more
convinced I am that God’s surprises and plans are not to be feared, no matter how
unexpected or unusually they come packaged. Like Mary, I can now see them as a
gracious invitation to carry God’s plans forward.
The truth is that for most of us our gifts will not be delivered by a supernatural
messenger. Most likely it will end up on our doorstep in the natural flow of our
daily lives. What is most important is that we learn to recognize God’s call and say
yes to it when it arrives.
Eugene Peterson is also a poet and he wrote a poem called “The Greeting.”
My mail carrier, driving his stubby white
Truck, trimmed in blue and red, wingless
But wheeled, commissioned by civil service
Daily delivers the Gospel every Advent.
This Gabriel, uniformed in gabardine,
Unsmiling descendant of his dazzling original,
Under the burden of greetings is stoical
But prompt, annunciations at ten each morning.
One or two or three a day at first;
By the second week momentum’s up,
My mail box is stuffed, each card stamped.
With the glory at a cost of thirty-seven cents,
(Bringing the news that God is with us!)
First class, personally hand addressed.
What a novel way to look at something as ordinary and mundane as the ritual of
sending and receiving Christmas Cards. Statistics indicate that 95% of Americans
send Christmas cards. Isn’t it amazing? Did you know the typical family receives
60 cards each Christmas? Well let me ask you if you have ever viewed those
Christmas cards as a means by which God reveals his plans for you? Well this year,
I hope you will see that God is trying to get your attention. You see, every
Christmas card you receive should tell you that you are on the heart and mind of
the person who sent it. You are more than an address to them. You are someone
special: family, a good friend, a person who touched them at work or through school
connections. The card comes as a reminder that you have made a difference in
someone else’s life.
I want to let you in on a little secret. The card comes by the way of God who stamps
and seals it with a message for you.
You all know Adele works for the post office as well as serving God as our organist.
Every once in a while we’ll get a letter at home with a note scribbled on it that says,
“Hello. Have a great day! Adele.” You see she happened to come across it and put
her mark on it.
You know God does the same thing with every Christmas card. He puts his mark
on them hoping you will begin to pray for the person on the other end. Whether
you are the sender or the receiver, you already have a door between you that can be
opened and embraced to fill the world with God’s good news.
You see, God looks at you and me and says the same thing he said to Mary. You
are beautiful and I love you. I have a wonderful surprise for you. That surprise is
that he is inviting us to carry the good news into the world. Mary’s call involved
carrying a child in her womb. Ours is carrying the good news to our friends and
neighbors.
You see, God’s blessing is not for us alone. Once we receive the gift we are to share
it. So Advent becomes a time to share not costly presents, but the love of God in
Christ. I know this season is hard for many people. We get caught up in the world
of commercialism and buy into the networks sentimentality, but Christmas is so
much more than that. It is God’s opportunity to remind the world of a saving love
that comes in the gift of a baby boy. Some of those cards that the gabardine Gabriel
deposits in your mail box are from those who are hurting, people in pain. They are
thinking of you and that means that God has put you on their minds. They sense
something about you that draws them and they recognize that you are special. You
might be just the person God wants to reach out to them and heal their broken
hearts. They aren’t even aware of it, but God is.
I know this is crazy. Usually Christmas is about us. It is our plans, our schedules,
our traditions. But just maybe, this Christmas, God’s wants you and me to make
Christmas about Him. In doing so, maybe a little bit of the joy that we’ve lost will
return. So let’s think about doing a few things differently this advent. Let’s start
with the cards.
For example:
After retrieving your daily mail and before opening it, say a prayer like this: “Dear
Lord, I know you are always at work in my life, even when I am not aware of your
presence or activity around me. Please open my eyes and my heart to what you
have to say to me through today’s mail. Help me to see the wonder of this most
holy season as I recognize you in all I do. Amen.
Take the time to sort through the letters and cards with your family, maybe each
night after dinner. Talk about who they are from and share a story about your
connections to them. Say a prayer for them.
Do something crazy like putting out a guest book at your house and asking all your
visitors to sign it. Then try to discern what God is saying to you as you look back at
those who have visited you this holiday season.
If you have younger children, experience the wonder of creating an advent wreath
at home. You can find kits at most Christian bookstores. You will be making
memorable moments for your kids.
Finally take a fresh look at the significance of sending Christmas cards. Thank God
for the opportunity to represent him with a message that speaks to the reason for
the season. Put on your favorite Christmas CD, brew a pot of coffee and begin
addressing those cards early, thinking of those people God wants you to touch base
with and share a reminder of His love.
You don’t do cards. Well don’t let that stop you. Somebody come to mind you
haven’t thought about in a while? Give them a call. (My friend Mike)
And, if in the midst of all this, there is a knock on the door, don’t expect someone
with a million dollar check. Expect something far more valuable. Expect the
childlike wonder of seeing something that those around you aren’t even aware of.
Expect to see the Lord who you adore as you open the door to the most wonder
filled Christmas ever. Amen.
The First Baptist Church of Norwich
Part One of a Series -
The Wonder of Christmas
The Wonder of Christmas