Let's Have a Conversation

 

The following is a devotion I wrote for our church's Advent Devotional ministry.  It's a little different than usual.

Let’s have a conversation.

Please read Luke 2:8-20

As I write this, I wonder where you are as you are reading it.  Are you sitting near your Christmas tree amid the discarded paper from gifts? Or is it quiet at your house, and you sit in your living room, a little bit lonely? Or maybe you are reading this on your phone, late on Christmas Eve (because the devotionals arrive in people’s mailboxes at 10:00 p.m. the night before).  Are you one of those people who read the devotion before looking at the “signature” and you are trying to guess who I am? Did you skip the scripture reading because you decided you’ve read it before and don’t need to read it again? I do that sometimes; don’t tell anyone.  

Whoever you are, wherever you are, whenever it is, let’s have a conversation.  You grab the beverage of your choice, and I’ll get mine, and we’ll talk. Ready?

First, go back and read the scripture.  I’ll wait.  

What did you notice about it?  For me, the verse that spoke the loudest today was verse 20: “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”  First, the shepherds left their fields, followed the angel’s instructions, saw the child, and then – then they went and told everybody.  Tis was not the quiet pondering of Mary.  This is glory and praise!

Have you had your heart “strangely warmed?” Was there a moment that felt like the fire of God in your life? Or the quiet presence of the holy? Have you had an experience of the presence of God that was real and important to you?  Why do you believe?  

Sometimes those experiences are gigantic and overwhelming, like seeing the savior in a manger.  Sometimes they are the quiet certainty that God exists and loves you.  They can be dramatic like trumpets or subtle like feathers landing on your heart.  What has your experience been like?

Have you had a conversation with someone about it? Have you gathered your favorite beverage and taken a moment to share the light of God with someone else?  We celebrate the birth of Christ today, and we remember that Christ came into the world.  Christ has come into the world, but also into your life.  Will you glorify and praise God? Will you share the grace of God with a friend?  Will you have a conversation and bring light into this dark world?

Kim Matthews
(Did you guess it was me?)