Do You Hear What I Hear? ~11 Days Away

        "Little Drummer Boy"

11 Days Away

"Parum-pum-pum-pum." After hearing only a few notes of this Christmas classic, we know the song. Have we ever thoroughly considered the sentiment behind the simple lyrics? 

Music: "The Little Drummer Boy"

As with yesterday, the concepts behind the lyrics are powerful. Come--behold the baby Jesus.

But when visiting we often bring gifts.

What can we bring? What can we offer? Sadly, our inner, worldly Grinch can often appear here. During the holidays it seems everyone--everywhere--is asking us for more. More gifts, more donations, more time. When we have had enough, we start looking around to scrounge up whatever we might already have on hand to give.--Maybe a gift card will do? Maybe we can re-gift something? We check clearance aisles. 

"Our finest gifts we bring...to lay before the King."

Today, let's individually reflect on what we can bring to Jesus. As we reflect, let us each ask God what we have to offer to our Savior--our King--our Jesus. 

Meditation: "As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 'Truly I tell you,' he said, 'this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.'" ~Luke 21: 1-4

"Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me. 
Restore unto me the joy of your salvation 
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me....
Open my lips, Lord, 
and my mouth will declare your praise. 
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. 
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; 
a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise." ~Psalm 51:10-12; 15-17

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God--this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will." ~Romans 12:1-2

Christmas Day approaches. We are planning to celebrate. Will this celebration involve a heartfelt gift? The song for today is such a strong reminder: we all have gifts that we can bring to the Lord. God's Will for us can be far less complicated than our worldly view of our Maker. 

Jesus witnessed gifts being brought to the temple; Jesus knew the heart and the sacrifice of the gift bearers. Two mites--May we pray about what our two mites are that we can bring. May we pray about what "our song" can be. We often think we "have no gift to bring that is fit to give a King." Let us bring ourselves. Let us bring our selfish spirit. Let us confess our sins, admit our need for a Savior, and accept the gift of salvation that Jesus wants to give us. 

Almighty God, What a sacrifice You were willing to make on our behalf! We praise You, for Your loving generosity towards us. Help us to humbly realize the magnitude of this gift. Let us spend time with You thanking You for our countless blessings. Let us seek our hearts and our talents in order to glorify You this Christmas season and in the years to come. We lay our gifts and our lives at Your Throne, Heavenly Father. In Jesus' Name. Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Do You Hear What I Hear? ~14 Days Away

Image
 Do You Hear What I Hear? 14 Days Away "Do You Hear What I Hear" and a countdown. One might be more than a little perplexed by how this is beginning. My holiday season has started the way it always does: hustle and bustle. I hear the line "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" and my mind immediately clicks into overdrive with "Deck the halls with boughs of holly," and the chaos of this crazy season is anything but jolly.  This year is going to be different. We are going to make every effort to gather our attention and garner our peace in an attempt to truly enjoy the Christmas season. Over the next two weeks--14 days--we are going to silence the craziness of our world in order to appreciate this holy season.  My plan is for us to explore the season through meditation and music, and while I enjoy a wide variety of tunes, we will focus most on the traditional carols of the season. So, my challenge for you before we begin is for you to make a list...
Read more

Do You Hear What I Hear? ~Today is the Day!

Image
               "Away in a Manger" Today is the Day! Jesus is the Reason for the Season.  "An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord."  ~ Luke 2:9-11 Music:  "Away in a Manger" "Away in a Manger" instrumental piano Meditation:  "But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, 'Abba, Father.' So you are no longer a slave, but God's child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir."  ~Galatians 4:4-7 "For you were once dark...
Read more