Thirty years ago I journeyed to the Holy Land with a group from my church.  I was on the church staff at the time with not a thought of entering the ministry.  But that trip in the summer along with a mission trip to Haiti in the fall changed my life forever.

Some day I will write a series here on the blog about moments in the Holy Land.  One thing was a certainty…you could never predict where or when a special “God moment” might pop up!  All you could do was expect that to happen and expect to be surprised.  One of those moments happened in Bethlehem.

This illustration is by Elisa Klenen from the book “B Is for Bethlehem” by Isabel  Wilner.  I love the colors, patterns, rhythm and overall feeling of the village of Bethlehem.  I do have to smile at how prim and proper Mary appears on the donkey.  And side saddle to boot!  And she is not even holding on!  She has that balance thing going really well by now!  Joseph might even be sleep walking.

When I visited Bethlehem, there was a town square, and a church built over the spot that is thought to be the birthplace of baby Jesus. You had to stoop low, I remember. And I found myself kneeling there.  It was certainly a moment, but there was a long line single file, so we were pretty much herded through and it felt a little “programmed” to me.  As I have said before, you could never predict when a moment would be meaningful.  But then the moment came…

Upon leaving the church we crossed the square which was packed with people.  All of a sudden a man who lived in Bethlehem was beside me.  He had worked his way through the crowd to hand me this gift

He put the cross in my hand and said, ” My wife saw you from a distance and wanted me to give you this cross.”  I thanked him and stood there stunned, looking at the cross in my hand.  How did I get this?….why ME? I then realized that I am quite tall and the truth is I almost always stand out in any crowd.  Plus I am blond amidst mostly dark haired people in Israel.  But still, out of all this crowd in the middle of Bethlehem square, why ME?

I have saved and treasured this cross all these years because of its message to me.  We can go to Bethlehem, visit the place of Jesus’ birth, kneel at the manger, but unless we leave with the essence of the cross, did we really get it?  Do we truly understand who this baby is?….Savior of the world!

We hear the song again….”Come thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free.”

Questions to ponder…

Is there a cross that stands out in your mind as being special?  Or perhaps more than one.  What is it about them? Recall the memory, and experience God’s grace again.

nk

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those who traveled from the East to find baby Jesus have been called Wise Men, Magi, Kings.  They were watching the heavens, saw the star and followed it as it led the way to Jesus.  We are not certain how many there were, but the assumption has been three since three gifts are mentioned.

This painting entitled “Adoration of the Magi” is by Gentile da Fabriano (1420) and is located in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.  At first glance it resembles a page out of “Where’s Waldo?”.  Can you find the dove, a spur, monkey, sword, the donkey?  (Tap on photo to enlarge).

Yet, even in the midst of all this incredible detail, the focus of the painting is clearly on Jesus and one of the Kings bowing before him.  The Wise Man appears to be kissing the baby’s foot.  Jesus has his hand stretched out and placed upon the head of the Wise Man, blessing him.  It is a poignant moment.  It is clear who is truly King! The next Wise Man is removing his crown in anticipation of his turn next.  He too can’t wait to bow down and receive his blessing.  The third Wise Man apparently just hopped off his horse as the servant is removing his spurs. The three Kings who have an entourage of servants accompanying them, become servants themselves suddenly and dramatically in their act of worship.  It would be a shocking statement.  The true power comes from the unexpected place.  The entire painting zeros in on that tiny touch of power and grace!

Here is another illustration by Stephen Lambert.  It shows a different perspective.  Here the Wise Men are deeply committed to a long and arduous search for the fulfillment of a long awaited prophecy.  Their journey is not easy, but they are on a mission.  The picture accompanies this poem…

And now a photo of three other “Wise Ones”….

My three little nieces!  If you were to listen closely to them you would find that they are very wise.  Children just seem to have a deeper “knowing”.

Questions to ponder…

Who do you consider to be a wise person and why?

Is there a time for you that seemed to be a long journey of searching?

Which picture of three Wise Ones do you like best and why?

nk

I grew up in West Texas where there is lots of sky.  I love the skies and am always led to the beauty that is there.  It touches my soul.  I remember insisting that my Mom take a break from fixing dinner and come see the beautiful sunset right NOW!  “You can’t miss it!” I remember going to sleep each night with the curtains open to my bedroom window because I loved looking out at the night sky.  I still love the sky and it is what makes me feel the closest to God.  Many memories come to mind of treasuring the beauty of the sky with friends.  For me, “the heavens are telling the glory of God”!

This is a drawing I did with colored pencils.  I was participating in an Advent study and was asked to explore my relationship to ocean and the vast night sky in color and shape.  I drew this as an expression of a memory of being on the beach at night.  A bright light came from the sky across the water as if a pathway was lit from Heaven to earth.

This is a photograph taken by the Hubble telescope of a massive star in the Milky Way which is 40 times larger than our sun.  WOW! I wonder what the star of Bethlehem looked like the night God came to earth as a baby?  That great light which could not be contained, exploded into every human heart!  Dante says it well…

Christmas is coming and we sing again, “O star of wonder, star of light, star with royal beauty bright, westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light.”

Questions to think about..

Remember a special night under the stars.  Where?  When?  With whom?

Find time to look at the night sky and remember the Bethlehem star.  There will be a full moon at Christmas.

nk

 

Yesterday I visited the George W. Bush Library on the SMU campus in Dallas, Texas.  To be honest I expected to be informed, perhaps to be bored, but certainly I did not expect this to be an Advent Moment for me!  But then, we remember that we must expect to be surprised during Advent.  Just pay attention!  I hope you will set aside your political orientation now and think about the place at which we all stand before the manger of the Christ Child who said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.  Not as the world gives do I give it to you.  Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27).

The horrific tragedy of 9/11 was one of the events that was prominent in the library.  I had seen it happening live on TV years ago, and now I watched it again as if it were the first time.

What a horrific moment in the life of our country and the entire world.  We are all effected by such violence wherever it happens in our world. I found myself suddenly alone in a rotunda shaped room and this is what stood before me…

These are actual steel beams that came from the World Trade Center Twin Towers in New York City.  They had been burned, deformed in the flames. This is now a sculpture which rises about 18 feet high.  I stood before it….stunned, frozen in the moment of then and now, melted together.  Then the docent came up to me and said, “You may touch it if you want.  We encourage people to touch.”  I had not realized until then that I wanted to touch.  But my heart was drawn closer.

I touched it, and tears filled my eyes.  I didn’t want to stop.  It was cold steel, yet it was warm, hot from the heat of the fire. My fingers searched for a rough edge to rub….I wanted to feel a bit of their pain and share in it somehow.  In this moment I felt united, as ONE with the victims, all of them, and I felt they are alive.  I did not feel hate, or anger, or revenge.  I felt love.  I felt compassion. I felt mercy.  I certainly did not understand it.  It is all way bigger than me!  But this love that I felt was a great love that transcended boundaries of time and place, and I felt connected.

I am on an Advent Journey with you, and this was a powerful moment for me.  Through death I felt the touch of life eternal and a peace Jesus brought into the world which is deeper than the peace the world can give.  In that touch I felt God’s holy presence.  The baby Jesus came to save the world.

This huge inflated balloon, lit from within, is an image of the world which I saw in the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum in Denver, Colorado during Thanksgiving this year.

What does all this have to do with Advent?  I don’t fully understand it all, but the Messiah has come, and in the words of the prophet Isaiah, “His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”.

Questions to think about…

What do you think “PEACE” looks like?

How do you think the Prince of Peace is present today?

nk

In his book “Prayer, Finding the Heart’s True Home”, Richard Foster says, “Prayer is the human response to the perpetual outpouring of love by which God lays siege to every soul.  When our reply to God is most direct of all, it is called adoration.  We bow at the presence of God in endless wonder and ceaseless praise.”

In the book “The Nativity” illustrator Julie Vivas portrays the shepherds down on their knees peeking into the manger and encountering the living God.  In the face of baby Jesus, the Christ Child, they have come face to face with God.  They are filled with wonder and their response to this great love is adoration.  Their faces reveal what their hearts feel.  “O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord”!

Here is a similar sight.  The expressions on the faces of my granddaughters were captured at their peeking into the infant crib and seeing their newborn baby brother for the very first time.

They can hardly contain their joy!  And then we see their response of adoration at the wonder of this child who has just arrived straight from Heaven.

Below you see a small wondrous work of art I found tucked in a small corner of a small shop in a small town in Italy. Fashioned out of clay is young Mary adoring her baby Jesus. Her hand with long fingers is placed upon her heart, and her gaze is filled with loving adoration.  “Mary treasured up all these thing, pondering them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19)

In the prayer of adoration we love God for God’s very being.  God is God and our heart has found its home.

Questions to think about…

When have you experienced within your heart an adoration for God?  Where were you?  How did that happen?

How might you anticipate encountering the face of God this Christmas?

nk

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another,”Let’s go over to Bethlehem and see what has happened, what the Lord has made known to us”…and they went with haste…(Luke 2:15-16).  I wonder what that looked like…..

This is my grandson Travis when he was one year old.  He is holding his sheep close, climbing in the basket, ready to go.  I wonder which of the shepherds was the first to say “Let’s go!” ?  Who led the way?  Would some of them have rather hung around and dreamed about that magnificent display by the angels?  Yet something, or SOMEONE, dramatically compelled them to drop everything, grab their sheep, and take off running to Bethlehem to SEE!

This portrait of the shepherds is a portion of the Portinari Altarpiece by Hugo van der Goes (1476). The altarpiece is huge, about 8 feet high and 14 1/2 feet wide and is rich with precise realistic details.  The shepherds are only a small portion of the entire painting.  However, if you were standing before this altarpiece the figures would be life size and you would be looking straight into their faces.

There is a sense that the shepherds have just frantically run all the way here.  In fact, you can see others running in the background.  They look more real to me than most shepherds I have seen in nativity scenes.  These guys are truly sheep herders.  Look at their “rough and ready” hands.  And look at their faces.  They truly wanted to SEE!  They are strong and rugged men who suddenly are captured in Love by a baby.  It was all worth running to see, and somehow they knew it would be.  Their faces say it all.  It is a dramatic moment in which they are changed forever.

One day my grandchildren wanted to hear more stories about my childhood.  I told them that I was a cheerleader in 6th grade.  I taught them a couple of cheers from back then and one of them has stuck in their minds as cheers tend to do.  It surfaces now and then as the children shout joyfully, “Let’s GO, let’s GO, let’s REALLY GO!”.  I think about that in relation to the shepherds and smile.  They heard the message from God and they immediately took off running…risk takers, out of the box, adventurous, daring, bold, convicted!  I love those shepherds!  I hope whenever I get the word from God, I too would be the one to say without reservation, “LET’S GO!”.

Questions to think about…

Are you more apt to be bold or precautionary?  What about when it comes to your faith?

When in your life did you take a step to go see Jesus for yourself?

nk

This is the view outside the window of my room in the monastery high up on a mountain overlooking the town of Rapallo, Italy.  I was up above the clouds, in the heavens for sure!  Within this monastery was an exquisite small chapel with paintings on the walls, called frescoes.  The angels in these frescoes were among the most beautiful I had seen, and it seemed quite appropriate that I would encounter them up above the clouds like this.

There was a church up on that same mountain close to the monastery.  This stained glass window is in that church.

The colors and details are amazing.  Look closely at the feathers in the angel’s wings, the intricate design within her halo and her jewelry, even the shadows within her face and hands.  How could eyes speak like that through stained glass? Incredible!

Angels are messengers from God.  They came to the shepherds out in the fields that night, bringing with them the glory of the Lord that shone around the shepherds by their very presence.  They came to bring the news of the birth of a Savior, Christ the Lord.  Suddenly there was a multitude of heavenly host praising God, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace.”

I wonder if it looked something like this…

This painting is called “Concert of the Angels” (1672), by Giovanni Battista Gaulli. It makes me feel the essence of what happened that night as the shepherds encountered a multitude of the heavenly host. Every face has its own unique personality and presence.  And within the multitude of those in the background I can faintly discern the faces of those saints who have gone before me, now a part of the heavenly host.  They are all shining with that same glorious light.  They are all truly alive!

I am reminded of the liturgy which is part of our Sacrament of Holy Communion….”with your people on earth, and all the company of heaven, we praise your holy name and join their unending hymn:  Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory…”( UM Hymnal)

And I know that the ” communion of the saints” is mysteriously real, and something quite glorious! We are connected with those who have gone before us…the saints who are now part of the heavenly host.

Questions to ponder….

How have you experienced the heavenly host?

Picture for a moment the faces of persons you love who are in Heaven.

nk

 

When the Angels came to the shepherds in the fields near Bethlehem they were “keeping watch”.  They were awake, attentive, aware, alert to the current surroundings and anticipating anything that might come.  That is actually a great description of Advent, the time during which we look toward Christmas with wide-eyed wonder and expectation.  We don’t want to miss anything that God is bringing our way.

This art is a print from a wood cut, or a wood block which is engraved in relief.  Although the image below is not the wood cut of the shepherd, I want to show you what a wood cut from a wood block looks like so you can fully appreciate this work of art.

The artist of the shepherd wood cut is Fannie Parker who is a friend of mine.  I love the expression of the shepherd.  He stands in awe of what he sees.  His entire being is captivated and awe struck.  It is as if his heart and soul have just been melted into the vastness of all the universe in which he is suddenly enveloped.  Heaven and earth are one, and he is being held in that embrace.  I want to see what he sees, feel what he feels.  It is amazing to me that anyone might capture this expression in a drawing or painting, but incredible that Fannie has done this through a carving on a piece of wood!  It is just beautiful.

What does it mean to “keep watch”?

Perhaps keeping watch might mean living life as a prayer with open hands in expectation, receiving life as a gift and anticipating the coming of something new that God will bring. It is an expression of HOPE.  We sing the carol, “Come thou  long-expected Jesus, born to set thy people free….hope of all the earth thou art”.

That holy night the Angels came and said “Behold…(Pay Attention!)…I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people!”

And the shepherds were keeping watch.

 

Questions to think about…

How do you “keep watch”?  Is it easy or difficult?

Can you try praying with open hands today?

nk

 

 

While Mary and Joseph were staying in a stable in Bethlehem, the time came for her to give birth.  The illustration below done by artist Susan Scott and the poem “Stable Song” by Judith Nicholls are from a book entitled “Bright Star Shining, Poems for Christmas.” Together the art and poem give such a unique portrayal of that intimate moment of Jesus’ birth.  I was stirred to experience anew what has become so familiar with a heightened sensitivity and awareness of that incredible “down to earth” moment that took place in a stable. Those of us who have been present, participating in human birth in any way, can feel this intimacy and miracle of new life entering the world.  If we have ever been in barns or stables where animals live, the sounds and smells also become quite real.  We can only smile in awe at the Holy One arriving on earth in this way!

Here is another photo that brings fresh eyes to the manger.  It is from the children’s book “The Last Straw” illustrated by Vlasta van Kampen.

The donkey and the sheep have discovered that someone is occupying their feeding trough.  However, they do not seem upset at all.  Clearly, baby Jesus has something important to say to them, and they are listening intently.  They are all three communicating at a level you and I do not yet fully understand.  But then, the Love language Jesus brings transcends all boundaries.  One day we shall all fully know!  In the meantime, look for Jesus in unexpected places!!

Questions to think about…

Is there any place Jesus would not go?

What might Jesus be saying to the donkey and the sheep?

nk

 

Friends asked me to stop by their home after a Christmas party last night because they had something they wanted me to see.  Among other things, they had a collection of nutcrackers and this one sort of jumped out at me…

I must admit I NEVER thought I would see Elvis as a nutcracker!  However, Elvis has appeared in lots of unexpected places for me, and perhaps for you too.  And then there is that song “Blue Christmas” sung by Elvis. Maybe he is singing that while he stands on the star?  Look again at the nutcracker.  I’ve seen people peek over the top of their sunglasses, but never have I seen anyone peek out from under the bottom of the sunglasses, and with only one eye!  Pretty tricky!  (You should try it). Well, here is what my friends really wanted me to see…

They had a beautiful miniature village all lit up at night.  It was magical, and called me to come close.  It made me think again of the little town of Bethlehem, birthplace of baby Jesus.  Wondering about the night Joseph and Mary arrived in Bethlehem, I remembered again that the town was bustling with all sorts of visitors who had come to register.  Mary and Joseph tried to find a place to stay but “there was no room for them in the inn”.  So they stayed in the stable where the animals slept.  The Innkeeper often gets a bad rap for the issue of “no room”.  But it is still something worth pondering.

Here is a birds-eye view of the churchyard in the little village.  The choir is caroling by candlelight.  Mary and Joseph are in the stable out in front of the church and baby Jesus is lying in the manger.  The Angel is proclaiming the good news that a Savior is born for all people.  The pastor is close by with a young child who appears to be reading the Bible out loud.  The church is lit up inside revealing stained glass windows.  Now….the activity you cannot miss is what is happening front and center.  The nuns are having a snowball fight!  I wonder if they are having a ball playing in the snow, or are they taking this opportunity to somewhat graciously duke it out?  A couple of bystanders have joined in to take a potshot at the nuns.  It’s just not your normal nativity scene.  It does seem that there was no room for the holy family in the church.  What’s going on inside the church?  Is there no room for baby Jesus?

Or should baby Jesus be outside the walls of the church for the world to see?  What if he just can’t be captured and contained?  What if the Christ Child brings SO much JOY that people want to break out of their old habits and frolic in the snow?  Hummm….what do you think?

Questions to think about…

Where would you put baby Jesus…inside or outside?  And why?

If you were in this picture, what would you be doing?

nk