Advent Dawn

I woke yesterday, the first Sunday of Advent, to a rose sky from east to west. The color in the east, oddly, was not so strong as this northwest view.
As I have grown more and more aware through the years of the reality of Christ's constant presence within me and surrounding me, I find myself wondering what to make of Christ's Advent and of that prayer the ends the Bible, "Come, Lord Jesus."
It does not help me to pretend that I'm back with Isaiah preparing the way for the birth of Jesus 2,000 years ago. I suppose I could think of Christ's "present coming" as a constant, but ever fresh, advent. His "future coming" could be a kind of eternal "now" drawing me into a deeper and deeper relationship with him. Creation, Incarnation, and Resurrection are eternally "now" from God's point of view.
This season might help me see that, even though Jesus is entirely present within and around me, there is still plenty of room for me to grow in my awareness of that constant presence and in my loving surrender to his eternal warm embrace.

Thanksgiving (picture)

 

Thanksgiving

 

I thank God for views like this in our templed mountains.
Here are some other reasons that I thank God:
For coming to name God "Spirit of Love" and for a deepening relationship.
For being part of Christ's 2,000 year old community.
For the freedom and beauty and plenty with which God has blessed America.
For families and friends and all whom I love.
For for novels and poetry, for movies and music and all that re-creates me.
For our hills and trees and wind and clouds, for the tranquil nights and stars and silence.
For all those dead who lives have enriched mine.
For being able to take part in another Thanksgiving.
As is well known the Pilgrims were close to starving the first winter they were here. What is not well known is that one of them was the daughter of a Dublin merchant who sent a ship, The Lyon, with a cargo of the much needed food which saved the tiny colony. The day after the ship's arrival, February 21, 1621, was designated a Day of Thanksgiving. So, if it hadn't been for an Irishman, there would not have been any Pilgrims left nine months later to celebrate the Day of Thanksgiving that is much better known.

Hall of Judgment

 

This picture was supposed to go with the judgment scenes a few days ago.

Christmas? cactus

 

Future Coming

 

Maybe this is a Thanksgiving cactus or a Veterans' Day cactus or an Advent cactus. It set buds as soon as I brought it in from outside in early October and took its time opening up.
Advent starts with a meditation on the future coming of Jesus into our world. Many of the early Christians expected this to happen in their lifetime and it didn't. It does no good to continue speculating on when this is going to happen. I'm left wondering 2000 years later how to integrate this expectation into my relationship with God.
I share the early Christians' faith in God's victory in Jesus. With the help of Jesus I still have some skirmishes to fight but the final outcome is settled. Advent hope. I find it helpful, then, to think of my own death as the "future coming of Jesus."
I like the thought of the Risen Jesus as a kind of horizon that draws me to him, a kind of magnet attracting me to grow into him.

My Brother's Keeper

 

Some years ago a man, wishing to justify his being concerned only for himself and his family, told me that the Bible says that he is not his brother's keeper.
I said, "That phrase is in the Bible, but it's on the lips of Cain who has just killed his brother Abel. When God comes looking for Abel, he asks Cain where he is. Cain rudely replies, 'Am I my brother's keeper!'"
I wonder how often, by what I do or don't do, I'm telling God that I am not my brother's keeper. It's easier to see it in others. There's certainly a lot of people in our country right now who think that they are not their brother's keeper.
In Matthew 25:31-46, that I've been praying about all week, Jesus says, "Oh yes! you are your brother's keeper." The poor, the sick, the stranger, need me. I'll be judged on whether or not I meet their needs. I think I have an obligation to do this not only on an individual level but on a national and international level.
There are people without food and water and clothing and medical care, strangers here from other countries, people in prison and on death row. There are things I can do to help them, actions I can take, movements I can support. I need faith-filled eyes to recognize Jesus in the needy and a loving heart to meet his needs by meeting theirs.