Word for Word 12/28/16

Luke 2 – …to you is born this day in the city of David, a savior who is Christ the Lord…

There are no monuments to mark the place where Jesus was born. No plaques in Nazareth where Jesus was raised! By the river Jordan and on the hillside where he taught, there are no historical markers to note the events. Jesus would not even allow a marker to be placed where he was transfigured before Elijah and Moses and his close friends. There is no permanent cross that marks the hill of Golgatha, there is no tombstone anywhere.

What Jesus left behind was people… People who were touched by him…  People who have been marked by his life, called to do his work, to share his love, and carry on his way. The living monument to His birth and life is in you and me, and others like us. By breaking down the barriers which Jesus made powerless, by venturing the faith that sustained him, by announcing the hope that still lights our sky, and by living the love by which he embraced the world; this is our real Christmas gift - to celebrate our life in His name.

Pray this Christmas prayer with me: O God, hollow out a space in my busy schedule so that you may be born in me. Let me take the time to give priority to you. Free me from the tyranny of demands upon my life. Hollow out a space, O God, in my relationships with friends and family. Help me keep my good friends. Don’t let me use them nor smother them, but drink deeply from the reservoir of friendship found in each one.  Hallow out a space in the center of my being, O God. Help me make room in my spirit for your spirit. Come, live in me, Emmanuel. Amen. 

Rev. Lynn Groe
St. John’s Lutheran Church
Waukon