Presenting...Jesus!

I learned this morning that February 2nd is the day the church traditionally observes the presentation of Christ in the temple. Luke describes this significant moment in Luke 2:22-40, when Mary and Joseph bring Jesus to the temple, with the "poor people's" offering of two doves. There, they encounter the priest Simeon and the prophetess Anna, who both proclaim amazing things about this baby boy. Can you imagine what it was like to be Simeon and Anna, to know you've been waiting for something for almost your whole life, and to finally behold it with your own eyes?! What a thrill! What a wonder! But what was it like for Mary and Joseph? Sure, they'd heard from angels, and lots of crazy things had happened, that should have clued them in that this child was not any ordinary child, but to hear it from the mouths of two different people, in the temple, when they came just to do an ordinary ceremony? I bet it was scary. I bet they wondered what they were in for. I wonder if they doubted, if they were uncertain of what to do next. I think I would have been, if I were in their shoes.

Isn't it kind of like that for each of us, after we learn who Jesus really is? We may wonder at the stories we read and hear, and we may try to wrap our minds around a Savior of the universe who could come and be born as a little baby, just like each one of us. And then, when we read what he taught and we see how he lived, we're just a bit uncomfortable. We might read Anna and Simeon's claims and wish that we, too, could be so sure, could feel the Spirit so strongly as to be certain of who this Jesus is. Our faith is always a journey. Sometimes we know who Jesus is, are sure he is Lord of our lives, and then other times we stumble and feel like he's left us behind. Sometimes we can proclaim his good news, can know for certain the salvation he offers, and other times, feel like we're completely unsalvageable.

But Jesus is still there. He's still all the things Simeon and Anna claimed he was. He's still offering us grace and love, asking us to change our hearts and lives and follow him. It's never easy, but it's a blessing to try.

Who is Jesus, in your life? I pray for his peace for you today, friends. Let him be what scripture claims him to be...and follow him along the way. He'll surprise you, I bet. But he'll also be right there with you, no matter what. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Gracious Words

Now that you can find our churches on Facebook, by searching for Bethel UMC, French Broad UMC, or Huckleberry Springs Administrative Center and Chapel (UMC), you can check out a daily (or almost daily) devotional on any of those pages. Here's the daily thought/devotional from January 11th, which is a response, of sorts, to the shooting in Tuscon, Arizona, on January 8th. Feel welcome to share your thoughts by commenting here.

The apostle Paul gives the early churches a lot of instructions on how to be the people they are called to be, as this new Church, as followers of Christ, as members together of the Body of Christ. In Colossians 4:6, he instructs the people at Colossae, "Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone."

This verse has challenged me since I was in college. Often prone to bitter words, and sometimes easily angered, I wondered how to use more gracious words with the people around me. I am still challenged by this verse today, though I've learned a lot more about being gracious and showing grace since I started college almost 14 years ago.

Recently, people in our country have had reason to examine their words more closely. Following the shooting in Tuscon, Arizona, on Saturday, lots of things have been said about people's words and how others translate them into actions. Last night, Jon Stewart addressed this issue on his nightly news parody show, _The Daily Show_. He pointed out that trying to blame Saturday's tragic events, or the choices of the shooter, on what any one person or group has said or done is fruitless; there are many factors that make people act out the way the shooter did, and though placing blame is always tempting and can make us feel a bit better or perhaps "safer," in some sense, in reality, doing so very rarely brings resolution or positive results. Trying to make sense out of something senseless is, to say the least, futile.

Now, I realize it may be questionable to refer to a self-identifying political liberal (and one who is Jewish) in a devotional writing, but Stewart's comments brought me back to Colossians 4:6, as I reflected on them this morning. We are called to use "rhetoric" that is gracious and loving, not because of our nationality or our political leanings, but because we are Christians. We know the political climate in this country is full of words that hurt, despite the childish mantra we were all taught to recite--"stick and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me." As Christians, I believe we are called to something better, not for the sake of democracy, but for the sake of the Kingdom of God. Whether we identify with a particular political party or ascribe to a particular leaning theologically, there should be no room in our churches and communities of faith for words that are ungracious. Jesus tells us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, not to place blame or use words to cut people down. Using gracious speech, seasoned with salt, should be an aspiration for each of us, not because of anything about who we are or where we live, but because we know the one who offers us salvation, whose gracious words, even in the midst of agony--"Father, forgive them..."--speak life into our broken hearts.

Today, wherever your find yourself, and whatever conversations you're involved in, pray for gracious words, use language that is life-giving, and give thanks to the one who offered grace to you--to each of us, if we will only turn and accept it.

Bible Study News

Coming soon: A brand-new Bible study! Betty Newman and I will be co-teaching the new Immersion Bible Study of Matthew, written by Ellsworth Kalas, using the new Common English Bible, beginning Wednesday, January 19th. We'll meet at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesdays, at Huckleberry Springs Chapel and Administrative Center. The study lasts for 8 sessions, so we will conclude on Wednesday, March 9th. Drop me a line at betzy.elifrits.warren@gmail.com or comment on this post to let us know you want to join us. We're looking forward to this!

Reading Material

Looking for something to read in the new year? I've got just the thing for you, then! I'm hoping to do more reading this year (other than commentaries!), and I've already picked out one book for each month that I think you might enjoy reading with me. This month, I'm looking at Mark Batterson's In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day. I'll create a post at the end of the month with some thoughts and questions on the book, but if you'd like to read it, too, and discuss it with me in person, just comment here or email me at betzy.elifrits.warren@gmail.com. I plan to have a "book club" type meeting each month, but the details of this meeting haven't been set yet because my "book club" is missing one important thing--you!! Will you come along on this journey with me? I hope to hear from you soon!

New Year's Wishes

¹⁸ Do not remember the former things,
or consider the things of old.
¹⁹ I am about to do a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert.
--Isaiah 43:18-19

It's New Year's Eve. Lots of people are out partying. Some are playing or watching football. I am, as has been the case of most of my 31 years, sitting at home, probably going to doze off before midnight, and possibly going to drink some hot chocolate. It's not the most exciting New Year's Eve tradition. But then, I don't claim to be the most exciting of people. It's good for reflecting, though, and thinking about the passage of time.

So, I don't know what you might be wishing for in the new year. I have a few things I'd like to take care of--some things I didn't get done in 2010, and some new things I want to try in a new year.

I'm thinking about change, about how we all face change in a new year, no matter what. How difficult is it to change what year we write on our checks (for those of us who still write checks)?! I've just never liked change. Even now, as I type, I'm also listening online to Love 89, a local Christian radio station, which is switching over to nationally-syndicated Air 1 Radio at midnight tonight. I'm savoring the last few hours of the familiar station identifications that even say, "Welcome Home," and the voices I'm used to, even though all that's left is pre-recorded; all the personalities signed off together at 6:00 p.m. tonight. It's a sad, sad thing, to me. And yet, that's what New Year's Eve is all about, in a way. No other time of year, in our culture at least, is so full of nostalgia and promise, so likely to keep us on the brink of tears for what has been and also breathless for what is to be. As I think about it, though, in these moments of tension, of promise and regret, of all that was and all that might be, these are the times we should know most that God is with us. It's not just that we celebrated Christmas Eve only a week ago, that we rejoiced with shepherds and angels about a baby boy that was born. No, what is going on for us right now should be where we are always--right in the middle of being amazed at where we've been and being ready to see what happens next. God is walking with us, whether we can sense God there, or not. On New Year's Eve, when so much is possible, when we look at another year and wonder, what's certain is God. And that will just have to be good enough, I guess. As a United Methodist pastor, I never know where I might be from one year to the next, but what's certain is God. And for that, on this New Year's Eve, even as I say goodbye to Love 89, look ahead to a year of uncertainty--and hope--and wait, I am thankful.

Find us on Facebook!

I've just put up a page for Bethel UMC and a page for French Broad UMC on Facebook, so if you're on Facebook, find our new church pages and "like" us, then let me know what you think! Hope to see you there soon!

Watch Night Service Canceled

The Watch Night Service, scheduled for 7:00 p.m. December 31st, at Bethel UMC, is canceled. We'll see you at church on Sunday, the 2nd.