Photo by Michal Marcol

The journey begins.  The week that changed the world as we know it starts today.  It is the journey to the cross. 

Palm Sunday is a celebration.   We look from our perspective today, and 2000 years ago Jesus rode into Jerusalem.   People laid down their cloaks, and palm branches and celebrated the spirit of God made known to us.  We sing songs.  We rejoice.

There was great excitement as Jesus entered the city.  People crowded around and watched and cried out “Hosanna”.  Some understood the Messiah had come without a doubt.  Some had heard rumors, some were curious, some were skeptics.  No one knew that day what would happen in a week. 

It is a different perspective for us today, as we know what is in store. We know there will be trials, betrayal, suffering, pain, and death.  There will be a resurrection.

My friend and teacher Rev. Randy Jessen asks, “Would you lay down your cloak?  What would you lay down?  Would you go back later and retrieve what you had laid down?”   

With joy we come before the most Holy God.  Let us lay down our pain and suffering.  Let us release our anger and heavy burdens.  Let us keep moving forward with you Father God, so that we do not return to retrieve those things we laid down and need to leave behind.  Let us know the spirit of God.  Let us sing new songs to you and celebrate.  The celebration of our blessing of redemption is a week away.  Help us find comfort, truth and grace.  Amen.

Photo by Chrissy Oldham

Heavenly Father, As we gather together this year to celebrate the holidays, we ask your blessings on the relationships we have with others.  Help us let go of the stress and hold onto the joy of being with our friends and our families. 

We may not all think alike, or believe the same things.  We may hold different values.  We may have old resentments and anger in relationships.  Help us let go of our anger.  Help us find love and acceptance for those we will spend time with.  Let us find common ground.  Let us bring out the best in each other during this holy and sacred time. 

Let there be peace and glad tidings across the entire world.  Thank your for hearing this prayer.  Thank your for sending your son.  Amen

from freedigitalphotos.com

It is the traditions and time spent together that make the holidays special.  As our lives transition and change, so do some of the Christmas activities. 

We try to make Christmas magical for children.  Those Christmas expectations stay with us for a long time.  Some of the memories of childhood stay with us forever. 

I remember driving 500 or 600 miles to my grandparents house.  My brother and I were small (I was 7 and he was 2). We were cuddled up in a blanket in the back of an early 1950’s model car driving through the heartland of America after my dad got off work on Christmas eve. 

It was so cold in the back seat and we tried to sleep.  We would slow down going through small towns and the gas stations would be having “Gas wars”. I remember seeing a sign that said 23 cents per gallon.

We would arrive at Grandma’s house probably around 1:00 in the morning.  There was a soft glow of the Christmas lights on the tree and a plastic Santa that had a light bulb in it stood guard on the front step.  We got hugs and were shuffled off to bed.  My grandmother played the piano, so there was much singing of Christmas songs for 2 days. We would eat turkey or beef brisket and potatoes and chocolate stars and peanut clusters until my brother threw up. We would sing some more. Then we would return home.  Christmas was a wonderful memory for me.

Then you grow up and it changes.  Maybe you live far away or start a family of your own.

It continues to change.  Your children grow up and begin traditions of their own.  They celebrate Christmas with one family Christmas eve and Christmas day with the other.  Sometimes they can’t make it home for Christmas at all.

We hold onto certain expectations and I think that is why so many people suffer from depression during the holidays.  It is never quite the same as we remember.  Or it should be something else.  Where is the magic?  Where is the peace on earth, or in our souls?  Where is the money we need for cool and trendy gifts?

I want to share the thought that however we spend our time on Christmas as far as family and friends go, it is simply a bonus.  The real deal is God sent his only son to reconcile us to him.  The gift of salvation is the big idea.  Cookies, Christmas songs, holiday lights, green bean casserole, and wrapping paper are just bling and add-ons.

Keep the joy in your heart regardless of what transition your Christmas celebration brings this year.  You are loved.  The meaning remains the same.

By Michael David S. Severson

 Reconciliation – A much-needed work of healing for today

Jesus declared that it was impossible for offenses not to come. Jesus experienced this in the course of His ministry, and most painfully in the final hours of His life. His ultimate example of how we should respond to offenses can be found among the final words He spoke as His battered, bleeding and abused body hung nailed to a cruel cross:

“Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing!”

Frame in your mind the worst thing you can imagine happening to you, and in the midst of the act, you speak words of forgiveness to your oppressor or attacker. In our own humanity, that is not possible. But with the grace of God that transcends even our own frailty, we can do just that.

I could cite endless examples of fellow believers giving up their lives as a testimony to their uncompromising faithfulness to the Lord to the point of torturous deaths. Fox’s Book of Martyrs catalogs numerous stores about such events. They prayed, even sang hymns of praise as they entered into eternity. You may ask yourself, “What good could come of something so horrible as that?”

The answer is a powerful one- those who oppressed and persecuted those believers ceased from their unrighteous deeds, and the Gospel took root where hostility once forbid it! Those who stood unwavering for this message of Hope in each circumstance, because they were messengers and ambassadors of reconciliation.

We often speak of ministry gifts, spiritual gifts, and what is known in Ephesians 4 as the “5-fold Ministry” of the Apostle, Prophet, Pastor, Teacher and Evangelist. However, there is another specific and vital ministry mentioned by the Apostle Paul in II Corinthians 5:17-21.

Here is the key to that ministry from the New International Version:

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:

19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.

21 God made him who had no sin to be sin[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Now let us look at this even closer with the Amplified Bible:

17 Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come!

18 But all things are from God, Who through Jesus Christ reconciled us to Himself [received us into favor, brought us into harmony with Himself] and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation [that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him].

19 It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up and holding against [men] their trespasses [but canceling them], and committing to us the message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor).

20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us. We [as Christ's personal representatives] beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favor [now offered you] and be reconciled to God.

21 For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become [endued with, viewed as being in, and examples of] the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].

Many people today, including myself when I was a young man, are scared when it comes to considering an encounter with the Living God. That is a needless and tragic travesty that misrepresents the heart of God our Father.

Jesus repeatedly used this term of “Father”, something foreign to the ears of the people in Israel. The passage of Scripture above demonstrates what the Lord’s true motive is towards us.

All throughout the New Testament following the Gospels, we read of numerous Scriptures which reinforce this truth. Paul was the most outspoken and eloquent spokesman on this account, as he was indeed an oppressor and persecutor of God’s people.

He was a part of Stephen’s death, and later on when he dragged men and women to prison as his zealous hatred of Christianity manifested with relent less energy.

Jesus personally appeared to him in a direct act of reconciliation that not only stopped Paul’s murderous actions, but turned his heart to the Lord with a fervent Love that outshined his former hatred!

I have found that reconciliation has 3 focuses that come from Scripture:

1) Between the Lord and you, 2) Within yourself, and 3) From you to others. This is a progressive work in the order I listed it. God is our Source and means to finding peace from offense against Him, and His righteous and holy nature. We all sin and fall short of Him.

The next part is most vital- we reach a place of reconciliation within ourselves! Paul knew he had sinned, and committed all the acts we have read about. But when the Lord took hold of Paul’s life, all that was terrible, cruel, and destructive passed away.

Paul embraced the new creation he became (as we see testimony of that in II Corinthians 5:17), and he settled in his heart that he was indeed a new creation that operated by the Love of God, not the cruel and oppressive “old man” he once was. And let me emphasize this: It was the LOVE of God that gave Paul that ability!

Finally, the fire of that Love consumed the heart and life of Paul, that with greater zeal he taught, preached, and walked out great journeys to other cities and countries to share what has taken place inside of himself. Paul became, as he would tell us in Romans 2, a “Living Epistle” or as I like to say, Paul became God the Father’s Love-Letter to those he reached with the Gospel, just as Jesus had done not too many years prior to him!

I would like to interject something before I close. The Scripture states that we were given this ministry of reconciliation. At the end of I Corinthians 12, Paul instructs to pray for certain spiritual gifts that are “the best,” however we have a distinction here worth noting.

When something is uniformly given, no one needs to pray to receive this ministry gift. It has already been given to all of us. We are to characterize the Love of God by actively using this ministry gift when we cross the path of people every day. These can be friends, family, or total strangers. The standard is still the same. We give freely what we have freely received!

Our Lord is a generous and Loving God. We then, are to imitate Christ, and to imitate His Love and reconciliation to everyone in this world. This is not something for extreme moments of pain and hardship between you and someone else. It is a lifestyle that we live in the most minute elements of our daily existence, and expand it to whatever heights of glory the Lord will determine to take you!

If we will live out this example before others, we can transform a world, a nation, a people, a race or color, or even our own family members who have experienced offense. There are no borders or walls that can stand against God’s Love. Today is our day to start demolishing them, and building up a Kingdom that exemplifies that Love for everyone. I pray it will start with you.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for tearing down the wall of offense between You and I, and giving me Your great Love that floods my heart. Thank You for transforming me from living in darkness to the Light of Your glorious Love through Christ Jesus, and empowering me to turn to my family, my neighbor, or anyone else and bring them Your message of reconciliation that offers peace and joy beyond what we can even imagine. Thank You Lord for using me as Your servant to bring transformation to this world, and reclaiming everyone to yourself by Jesus’ finished work on the cross.

In His Name I pray and thank You, Amen.

Photo by Chrissy Oldham

We are in the time of expectant waiting, for the Christian church.  Yesterday was the first Sunday of Advent.  It is a time of preparation as we wait to celebrate the birth of the Messiah.

I love the advent season.  Probably it is the purple candles.  It is a dark time of year with the winter solstice at hand.  But the light of the world is on the way.

“Father God, we are grateful for the rich and wonderful blessings in all our lives.  We are grateful you sent your son to save the world.  Let us prepare to celebrate with generosity toward our fellow man.  Help us keep love and joy in our hearts this season and be a blessing to everyone we know and see.  Thank you for sending the light to the world.  Amen”

We make salad and grill something over an open fire. We will drink beer, ice tea and lemonade.  Mostly we enjoy family and friends.  In Colorado, many of us head for the mountains to join tens of thousands of our best friends in an attempt to escape civilization and experience the peacefulness of nature.

For what ever activity you choose for the weekend, my prayer is this:

Father God, I pray travel mercies for those who plan an adventure.  Let there be enjoyment, grace and beautiful memories shared with family and friends for all over the next few days.  Let us practice moderation in all things and find ourselves refreshed and renewed at the conclusion of this long weekend.  Amen

When people share their most special memories of Christmas, it is not about the expensive gifts, pressed linen tablecloths, glitter, chocolate, or shopping.

I hear about the childhood memory of visiting the family farm. Laying on the floor in front of a roaring fire with a couple of hound dogs.  Falling asleep in front of the fire and waking up in a feather bed in a very cold room of the house.

I hear about the Christmas stocking with an orange, a pack of chewing gum, some English walnuts.

I hear about a grandpa telling late night stories, and early morning squirrel or pheasant hunts (with the same dogs).  It is milking the cows, because they don’t take Christmas off.  It is the smell of homemade bread or a pie coming out of the oven. It is singing, and candle light.

Our best memories are the simple ones.  They are not cluttered and remain clear and comforting.  All is calm, all is bright.  Let us rejoice and take comfort in family time and the simple things that bring joy during this season.

Jesus’ birthplace was a simple manger.  There were no inflatable snowmen, wire cage reindeer or LED lights.  He brought the light, the one we need most.

The wise men and the presents didn’t show up until later.  There was a lot of political stuff going on between birth and gifts.  But, I would like to believe the night and the next day were simple, peaceful, calm. No one knew how important the event was. There was not press release. It was a night and a day without cell phones, oven timers, meal production schedules, wrapping paper, and credit card bills.  We have come to believe it has to be complex and each detail well planned.

Redemption is a simple idea.  In my mind it is the most important thing about Christianity. It is the most important reason for celebrating Christmas.  Our redeemer has come.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas.