The Best Answer is Always Yes (when God's asking the questions)

from my nativity collection - this was made in Kenya

Hey there,

My Christmas countdown pillow says there are 20 days left until Christmas.  It's going too fast already.  Time to slow down and think about important things of the season.  As is my custom, and probably some of yours too, I've been reading the book of Luke.  There are so many details.  It could take a lifetime of Decembers to take them all in.  The best part is that each invite a personal application or action point.  I hope you find yours in some of these observations about one of the main characters.

Mary, the mother of Jesus said, “I am the Lord’s servant, may it be to me as you have said.”  (Luke 1:38)  Faithful.  Trustworthy.  Believes.  She said “YES” to god.   She was a teenager completely tuned into to what the God of the Universe was up to.  In saying yes to carrying the Messiah, she said yes to so much more…

q  Yes to scorn from her communtiy and possible stoning

q  Yes to possibly losing her closest friends

q  Yes to giving up a comfortable, predictable life – her dreams and plans

q  Yes to travelling pregnant on a donkey

q  Yes to giving birth in a stinky, animal filled, unsanitary, public stable (no private hospital rooms here)

q  Yes to Joseph delivering her baby

q  Yes to any “rights” or entitlement to her child.  He was born for all mankind, not simply for her pleasure

q  Yes to allowing Joseph to lead her (middle of the night fleeing to Egypt)

q  Yes to raising the perfect son of God in her home

And so much more…..

While that could sound rather unappealing, when Mary said yes to God she also said…

q  Yes to being the one who would know Jesus best

q  Yes to having a permanent place in Biblical history in a story that would be told over and over again throughout all time

q  Yes to the blessing of obedience to God

Mary said yes to a lot of risks.  She said yes to trusting God when she couldn’t see ahead.  It would involve pain and perhaps loneliness.  Am I that willing for the Son of God to disrupt the plans I have set for my life?  Truly I want the blessing and favor and presence of God, but is it on my terms?  Do I require it to be pretty, romantic and comfortable?  Is there something God has asked of you?  Take Mary's example and say yes.

I think Mary had a hard life, but I also believe it was marked by abundance, blessing and contentment.  A decision she never regretted.  That sounds worth it to me.

Christmas Isn't Just For Children

Today is the first Sunday of Advent but as you can guess, I started my heart preparations already.  I love what I read today from David and Warren Wiersbe:

"No doubt you have heard people say, or perhaps you have said yourself, 'Christmas is for children.'  Take a long look at this group standing in the temple and you will never say it again.  You have Mary, Joseph, Simeon, Anna - and Jesus, the center of their hearts' attention.  Mary was a teenager, Joseph was perhaps twice as old as his wife, and Simeon and Anna were aged; but they were all united around the Savior."*

What a tremendous thought....mostly everyone invited to and affected by the birth of Jesus were adults or near adults!  There is something here for all of us.  Our celebrations should be just as meaningful to and anticipated for us as they are for little ones.

'Christmas is for children' certainly wasn't true at that first Christmastime, because Jesus was welcomed and worshiped by angels and shepherds, common people and sages, and especially by the older folks who had long been awaiting His coming."*

There you have it - permission to be as giddy as a child at Christmastime!  Of course, most kids are simply eager for gifts and physical delights but there is so much more.  We should be equally as eager to receive.  We are awaiting Christ's return.  I'm excited for that and Christmas reminds me of how we are to come..."Truly, I tell you," said Jesus, "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 18:3)  By children, perhaps means the humble of heart, regardless of age.

Is He describing you?

*C is for Christmas

Let Every Heart Prepare Him Room

The last day of November.  Finally!  My favorite month of the year starts tomorrow.  Is it yours too?

As I wrote earlier this week, many Advent devotionals begin December 1st.  Are you ready?  


The words “let every heart prepare Him room” are familiar Christmas carol lyrics.  Have you ever given them much thought?  Yes, if we have received the gift of salvation, we have salvation through Christ,  Jesus in our hearts.  But, have I prepared room in my heart for the coming of Christ?  Is their room in my heart for Him daily to move around at His will, to transform my thoughts, to rearrange my behavior to center around Him, etc.?  I wonder…

Thomas Kinkade answers the question, “How do we prepare Him room?” 

“By cleaning out our inner lives, deliberately putting away the resentments and the distractions that clutter our hearts and minds, and by giving a priority to forgiveness and reconciliation in this season of relationships.  By rearranging our obligations to make sure there’s room for prayer and reflection in the midst of all the busyness.  By decorating our hearts with thoughts and attitudes that are worthy to welcome a king – love and joy and peace – and by decorating our lives with loving deeds.

Most of all, by setting aside the time and the space for inner preparation – time to read and listen, time to pray, time to ponder.  Time to reflect on what it means that the One whose name is Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace…still came in the form of a tiny, vulnerable human child.  Let every heart prepare Him room.”*

In John 8:37, Jesus spoke the following to His accusers, “You are ready to kill me because you have no room for my Word.”  How I would dread hearing those words.  I ask myself, “Do I have room in my life for His Word?”

In the Message, Col. 3:2 reads, “Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you.  Look up and be alert to what is going on around Christ – that’s where the action is.  See things from His perspective.”

2 Tim. 4:8 says that there is in store a crown of righteousness for those who “long for His appearing.”

It is my prayer today that you and I would become like Mary and the shepherds in Bethlehem.  Max Lucado in his book, God Came Near suggests “God goes to those who have time to hear Him – so on this cloudless night, He went to simple shepherds.  At this point in history, the human being who best understands who God is and what He is doing is a teenage girl in a smelly stable.”  What about in December 2012...who among us has time to hear him?  Who among us understands best who God is and what He is doing?  Something to think about.

As we enter the busy days before Christmas, let’s make room for God.  Let’s make time to hear Him.  God rarely speaks to those who aren’t listening.  Pray that He’ll open your ears and eyes to find Him this Christmas.  He will give you time to sit before Him if you ask Him for it.  He’s out there, waiting to be sought.  I believe that when we do seek Him and He is found, that He is smiling and anxious to surprise us with His gifts, which by the way are better than anything that can be bought in any store (even Target!).

Here are a few good passages to ponder:

Isaiah 9:2-7 – the proclamation!

Luke 1-2

Isaiah 61:1-11 and Luke 4:16-21 – Jesus’ job description written first in OT – fulfilled in the NT.

Read them over and over until they are engrained on your heart! 

*Christ, Light of the World

My Most Favorite Thing about December

 "Advent is a season, not an event; a spiritual discipline, not a calendar date."

It's finally come...the most wonderful time of the year!  By far, last week was my favorite week.  The anticipation of family being together (this heightens when you have one child away at college), the refrigerator stocked with holiday food, the boxes of Christmas decorations begging to be opened early, the lists of what we are grateful for bulging at the seams, and permission to get on with Christmas.  My expectations were exceeded by God's gracious gifts of love, fun, friends and family.

Which brings us today - only a few days from what is without a doubt my most favorite month, December. We've had a little snow this week which makes it especially anticipated. Why so excited you ask?  For many reasons, really, some mentioned above.  To the cynic, there is too much fluff at Christmastime that clouds what lies beneath, the "real meaning", God sending His only Son Jesus into our world to walk among us and eventually die in order to save us from our sins. It is true that we can get caught up in the shopping, baking, wrapping, party hopping, list-making and more.  But to the seeker, God is never more present, in my opinion, than in December. I believe that people are more open to listening to the Gospel of Christmas than they are any other time of year.  Just listen to the sacred songs played freely on the radio or at public concerts.  It's inescapable, Christmas is Jesus.

The real thrill for me is this season of Advent.  While December and Advent are happening simultaneously, they are not synonymous; very different in fact.  "December brings all the outward preparations, all that we have to do to prepare for Christmas.  Advent is an invitation to an inward preparation, calling us to listen to, to attend to the preparation of the heart.  Advent calls us to stop - however briefly - all of the frenetic doing and invites us to come into an experience of the holy.  Advent is a season, not an event; a spiritual discipline, not a calendar date.*

For you, advent might be a church word from your past that you've long since forgotten.  Revisit I beg you. "Historically, a time of rich tradition and meaningful reflection within the Church, the word advent comes from a Latin root that means 'coming'.  Advent is an experience of anticipation, an invitation to prepare for the coming of the light of Christ into our world."*  Jesus used the word 'come' many times as He engaged with would-be followers in His short time on earth, always beckoning us to draw near.  Homework - do a little word search in the Gospels - you will be amazed!  We are all invited to come.

"Answering the call to come in Scripture almost always results in faith.  Luke 7:16 says, 'God has come to help His people'.  God has come. This news is the crux of my faith - the glad tidings of great joy the angel proclaimed to the shepherds.  The coming of God to His people.  Advent.  The gospel in a word. Because of Advent, I came.  I come still.  And I hope you will come too.  And eventually through God's coming, His children will all come - back to the cradle, back home, back to where we belong."**

Every year I take my own journey through the season of Advent even as I attend to the demands of December.  It can be done.  I set my mind to it.  It's a discipline, but a most enjoyable one.  A big part of this comes in the form of Advent devotionals (most urging a December 1 start date).  This is my favorite kind of pleasure at Christmastime.  Over the years my collection of these special and often gorgeous books has grown.  However, my first love will always be Thomas Kinkade's "Christ, Light of the World".  Year after year, I read through this book, trying to limit myself to one chapter a day which is not always easy to do.  I can't even tell you how many of these I've given to friends I love for the express purpose of guiding them into the very best of Christmas delights - God Himself.

I sit quietly in the morning in my red chair near the twinkling lights of our tree and read and let my heart wander through the Christmas story - the Nativity. I simply can't get enough of the Gospel and prophetic accounts in the Bible and the thoughts from these devotionals. Jan Richardson writes, "Advent is a dance set to the rhythm of waiting.  We wait for the holy, we wait for the birth, we wait for the light....Advent reminds us that we are a pregnant people, for God calls each of us to bring forth the Christ." See what I mean? I'm waiting. Waiting for God. I want Him more than any other gift.

I want you girlfriends to experience the inner watching and expectant waiting; to listen with your heart; to be attentive to the presence of God within even the most mundane moments.  As I do, ask God to "show up" this year in your life in a new, previously unexpressed way.  I'm not talking about extra-Biblical revelation, I mean becoming more sensitive and aware of His work in your life and the world around you. Let Him thrill you.  Truly, we are all looking for something at Christmastime.  We are all longing.  What we may not realize is that it's God Himself that we ache for.  He can do this in any number of ways.  He is the Creator after all.

In my experience, He has never let me down.  I've never gotten to New Years and wondered where God was.  Every year a new part of His story becomes relevant and awe-inspiring to me, invoking even more robust worship as I sing along to my favorite Christmas songs or just sit and stare at my nativity.  And it can for you too.  For example, one year, the word "believe" stuck out in my Bible in Luke 2 as if it were highlighted just for me to notice.  Elizabeth believed, Mary believed, the shepherds believed....in application, "will I believe"?  There are so many nuances to the Christmas story it will take you a lifetime of Decembers to appreciate each one.  Why not grab an Advent/Christmas devotional to lend aid?  Have so much fun as you do! You can even borrow one of mine if you like.

Here are a few options that I love:

*Christ the Light of the World by Thomas Kinkade

Love Found a Way by Ron Mehl
The Power of Christmas Prayer by Stormie Omartian
Wonderful Counselor by Larry Libby and Steve Halliday

 Preparing for Jesus by Walter Wangerin, Jr.

A Promise Kept by Chuck Swindoll - a beautiful, pictoral coffee table book

God Came Near by Max Lucado - this was one of my 1st faves...a must-have classic
**The Gospel of Christmas by Patty Kirk

Giving Thanks Looks Different This Year

Thursday is Thanksgiving Day!  My mind and heart are all abuzz with preparations.  I'm busy making lists, dreaming of how to set the table, deciding on recipes, buying our favorite foods, cleaning the house for guests and early in the morning, considering gratitude....what God deserves from me this year.

If you've read previous posts recently, you know that I keep a daily list of what I'm grateful for (and encourage the four people who live with me to do so as well), so how can Thanksgiving Day be significant, different, special?  

Everybody's talking about it.  That tiny little phrase we see everywhere all month long....Give Thanks. I've placed reminders all over the house.  We probably agree that it's easy to give thanks when the sun is shining and our world is all as it should be. We quickly think of our families, our friends, our health, our stuff, our faith. All good things but what if it's not all good?  Perhaps you, like me, can reflect on this last year and ask "what went wrong?".

For us, this year has been very different than previous ones.  It's not been easy.  Our family has adjusted to many changes, pretty drastic at times.  Traumatic, even. So as I spend quiet moments this week seeking to present God with a grateful heart, I know what I need to do.  This November, I will practice giving thanks for the things I don't want.  You read it right.  The things that have invaded my typically smooth, happy, and predictable life.  The stuff I didn't "sign up for".

This kind of gratitude is not for wimps and if I'm honest, I'm pretty wimpy most of the time.  However, even in the face of this glaring weakness, I don't want an opportunity to be lost.  Everything is an opportunity. Have you heard that growth occurs more often in the valley than on the mountaintop?  That growth in the garden comes after a hard rain (storm)?  These truths roll right off the tongue when we're not experiencing that sort of pain. 

"Gratitude follows grace as thunder follows lightening — and the storm is grace and this is the grateful harvest: whatever drives us into God"*

Storm - check.  Driven to God - check.  Now the grateful harvest.  I want to see the harvest.  I want this life, this family to reflect the harvest of God's faithfulness.  God really is good all the time.  We will give thanks in all circumstances.  When we do, we are telling God that we trust Him.  No matter what.  Kind of like wedding vows...in sickness and in health....for richer or poorer.  We belong to a great God and loving Father who deserves our trust and praise. I can speak for the Burtis family when I say He's got ours.

So we list the things we received in 2012 that we did not ask for, expect or even want, frankly. Trials. Confusion.  Heartbreak.  Endings.  Loneliness.  More change.  When we bring it to God with thanks, He takes the sting of what we could perceive as negative and turns it to positive.  He assures us everything is going to be ok.  Did you get that?  When we say "thank you" to God, He hears "I trust you" then He comforts and blesses. 

I've been quite overwhelmed these past few weeks with God's gift to us in the form of encouragement, strength, and grace.  Often it comes when we least expect it, but most need it.  He has used people, His people to be His arms and heart showering us with unsolicited, undeserved love.  I chose those words carefully (because I love words, remember)......encouragement, strength, grace, love, showering, unsolicited, undeserved, love - mirroring God Himself.  These gifts have come in wonderful ways.  Notes, meals, visits, calls, provision, specific Scriptures, friendship and prayers.  I love the last three so so much.

This might sound a little hokey but sometimes I see it in the eyes.  Lately, when we spend time with people we love, I've noticed it.  It is the way they look at me and the way I see them looking at Scott eye to eye that speaks so much without words.  This is the stuff that matters and makes me cry a little. I see God's handprints all over it.

The only answer to God's unending grace is my unending gratitude."*

So I guess Thanksgiving for me this year is about receiving with thanks that which I don't want and what makes me (us) feel loved.

I pray you will have a similar experience. That no matter what you've lived this last year you can give praise to God for all of it....the good, the bad and the ugly. Dig deeper.  As you do, you will be able to see all the ways He shows His love to you.  Then you can give thanks for that too.  No wonder He has commanded that we give thanks in all things....it's because everything is Him and He is everything!  Don't be too busy to notice.

 A Thanksgiving Song (my favorite parts):

The sun comes up
It's a new day dawning
It's time to sing your song again
What ever may pass and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes
 Bless the lord oh my soul
Oh my soul
Worship his holy name
Sing like never before
Oh my soul
I worship your holy name
You're rich in love and you're slow to anger
Your name is great and your heart is kind
For all your goodness I will keep on singing
10,000 reasons for my heart to find**

Happy Thanksgiving. 

*Ann Voskamp
**10,000 Reasons by Matt Redman