Fill 'er up!

What if, when God looks at you, He sees YOU . . . every quirk and peculiarity about you . . . and He is well-pleased?
—Maggie Dnistran


Christmas is over (finally—or already). The tree has come down, the decorations are back in the box for another year, and the kids’ new toys are already on their third set of batteries. Mary has borne a son, Jesus; they received visits from angels, shepherds and Wise Men, and now, in today’s reading, Jesus has been baptized, declared beloved of God, and soon will be led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit.

It sounds a bit like our lives today, doesn’t it? We focused so hard on Christmas, expended a whole lot of energy (and money) on making everything just right, and now it’s over. We return to our wilderness lives, our days overflowing with emptiness. Before long, if we’re not careful, it can almost feel as though the whole season never happened. The memory of the manger is shoved aside in our busy-ness.

Before we know it, the spiritual tank is nearly empty and we are searching for something—anything—to fill it.

Years ago, a friend gave me a “one-piece” nativity: stable, manger, Mary and Joseph, all in one, carved from olivewood. I leave this small reminder out year-round, placed unobtrusively on my hutch. It serves me well when I find myself wandering in the wilderness.

This week, pay special attention to your “tank.” Let your heart rest in the memory of the manger.




Monday, January 13 After his baptism, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, where he faced forty days of temptation. Where do you face temptation in your life? Pray to be led by the Spirit. Matthew 4:1-11

Tuesday, January 14 Do you have a spiritual mentor, someone to whom you can turn when your soul is troubled? Give thanks for their presence in your life. (Send a note of appreciation.) Isaiah 42:1-9

Wednesday, January 15 To whom do you serve as a spiritual guide? (You do, you know.) Pause and reflect for a moment; pray for your relationship with that person. Luke 2:41-52

Thursday, January 16 Pray today for the spiritual leaders, both professional and lay, at your house or worship. Ask the Lord to protect and keep them as they lead. Romans 1:8-10

Friday, January 17 Today, make opportunities to be deliberately kind to someone you might otherwise not engage. Whether you offer a smile or a cup of coffee, be Jesus. Top off another’s spiritual tank. Galatians 3:26-28

Saturday, January 18 As you pray for yourself today, allow God to affirm the unique creation that is you. Name a few qualities that make you, you. Proverbs 19:21

Sunday, January 19 As we gather again for worship, focus your gaze upward—literally and spiritually. Absorb the beauty of sight, sound and Children of God that surrounds you. Genesis 28:16-17


In all our searching, the only thing we’ve found 
that makes the emptiness bearable is each other. –Carl Sagan


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Spiritual dehydration

  Inside myself is a place where I live all alone, and that is where I renew my springs that never dry up. –Pearl S. Buck   The past two years (at least) have been exhausting, haven’t they? We had a pandemic that physically left us anxious and afraid. Our churches, where we go for nourishment, were closed or online longer than we wanted—and even now, we are careful. Politically, we have been divided against one another, and those wounds are still bleeding in many cases. We need to take care of ourselves. And it’s never been more difficult. What to do? How do I make time in our busy schedules—for me ? The simple answer: Whatever it takes. Remember when we would fly to a vacation destination? How the flight attendant would remind us that if the cabin loses pressure, the oxygen masks would drop down out of the ceiling? And that before we offer to help anyone else, we need to have our own masks in place ? Good advice for life in general. Today: Pause. Take inventory ...
Read more

What are you waiting for?

  The waiting is the hardest part. –Tom Petty   We spend a lot of time waiting. Waiting for the coffee to finish dripping. Waiting for the light to turn green. Waiting for the next available agent. It’s inevitable, really. We cannot always be first, and if we aren’t first, we’ll have to wait. But I think the more important thing is to ask yourself: How am I at waiting? Do I find myself getting anxious and fidgety? Am I worrying about things not going the way I really need them to go? Is my attitude rubbing off on people around me? The best way to wait is not to worry where we are in line, or gripe about wasted time. The best way to wait—is to be right there , in the moment of waiting. The disciples waited in fear; we wait in hope. Why not use this waiting time to pray? Welcome God’s presence into your heart. Ask God to bring you into the moment. Inquire what God would ask of you in this moment . Thank God for wisdom, patience, humor. . . . Take a d-e...
Read more

Don't be afraid.

Living is a great deal more than simply not dying. It is carrying out a mission, committing oneself to fashion some meaning that will attain eternity. –Leonardo Boff When asked, “What are you afraid of?” we offer a myriad of answers: snakes, spiders, flying in an airplane. But when pressed, many people, believers and non-believers alike, will admit that the one thing they fear most, at the core of their being, is death. Most of us enjoy having control over our lives, and frankly, we have very little control over, or way of knowing, how or when our earthly journey will end. And we have even fewer concrete answers about what will happen next. We have the profession of our faith and the occasional “crossing-over” story—but. No wonder death is near the top of that list. But sometimes, as I look around, it seems like people are less fearful about dying—and more afraid of living. Really cutting loose and enjoying our time together as human beings privileged to live in God’s am...
Read more