New Year's Thoughts

"...If we believe that God has come then of necessity we will believe that God will come (forever comes!). This belief should radically change the way we live our lives. We will not say 'it does not matter', for, because Christ comes, everything matters.
* Because Christ comes, we will not leave until tomorrow that which we should do today.
* Because Christ comes, we will be careful over what we do, preparation is worthwhile.
* Because Christ comes, we will leave space for surprises, we will allow our lives to be filled with awe and wonder.
* Because Christ comes, we will believe in a future for the young, that they might believe in one too.
* Because Christ comes, we will look at each other with anticipation and respect, for fear that he may come disguised as our own familiar friend.
"Living with hope is arguably the greatest gift that the Christian community can bring to the world. We all know that hopelessness is the great 'dis-ease' of our time. As we prepare ..., may it be our personal resolve to live a life of hope..."

- George Browning, Anglican Bishop of Canberra and Goulburn

The Sixth day of Christmas

Christmas is not just a day, an event to be observed and speedily forgotten. It is a spirit which should permeate every part of our lives. To believe that the spirit of Christmas does change lives and to labour for the realization of its coming to all men is the essence of faith in Christ. - William Parks

The Lion and the Snake

(An African Folk Tale)
The lion and the snake were fighting. The snake escaped the lion's claws before the lion could kill it, and fled to the man's house. The snake begged the man to hide it because the lion was pursuing it. The man hid the snake in his cupboard and the lion never found it, although he searched the house.
When the lion had gone, the snake took his leave from the man, saying, "How are good deeds rewarded?" The man said, "Normally good deeds are rewarded with money, but since you have no money, you may give me an animal as soon as you have been successful at hunting." The snake said, "But do you not know that snakes reward good with evil? I am going to devour you, man!" The man said, "No, no, that isn't fair. We men always reward good with gratitude and useful goods. Let's ask the bee first." The bee said, "I never get any gratitude. Man just takes my honey after having smoked me out of my own house." The man said, "Let's ask the mango tree." The mango tree said, "I never receive thanks. Man takes my fruits, and when I bear no more, he cuts me down and throws me into his fire." The man said, "Let's ask the coconut palm." The coconut palm said, "It is true, good is rewarded with evil. Man takes my nuts, taps my sap, and to cap it all off, he cuts off my leaves for his roof."
The snake said to the man, "You see, now I will eat you." The man said, "Wait until I have said goodbye to my wife." The snake agreed and they went to the man's house. The man said, "Dear wife, the snake is going to eat me, goodbye!" The wife said, "Surely, Mr. Snake, you would like some eggs as a hors d'ouevre?" She took a bag of eggs and held it open for the snake. The snake put in his head to take an egg. The woman pulled the string tight and so caught the snake with its head in the bag. Then she took a knife and cut its throat, saving her husband's life. But the husband divorced her, for men reward the good women do them with evil.

Wreathed in Flesh

A novice master once responded when asked about a life lived in Christian authenticity, said that to be a Christian was not to know the answers but to begin to live in the part of the self where the question is born... He was speaking of an attitude of listening, of awareness of presence, of an openness to mystery.

Wendy M. Wright

Meanings of Christmas

It might be easy to run away to a monastery, away from the commercialization, the hectic hustle, the demanding family responsibilities of Christmas-time. Then we would have a holy Christmas. But we would forget the lesson of the Incarnation, of the enfleshing of God—the lesson that we who are followers of Jesus do not run from the secular; rather we try to transform it. It is our mission to make holy the secular aspects of Christmas just as the early Christians baptized the Christmas tree. And we do this by being holy people—kind, patient, generous, loving, laughing people—no matter how maddening is the Christmas rush...

Andrew Greeley

Gift of Wonder

Each year, God asks us to shed one more coat of awareness, one more dream state and come alive to the vision of God’s plan for each of us and the world-at-large.
The older we get, the harder this is to do. As children we had a sense of wonder. Our eyes were wide open and drinking in the fascinating gifts we beheld…Our thirsty souls could not have enough of the wonders of creation.
Then, somehow, we grew too old to dream. We tired of the abundance of the world, or at least grew weary of keeping up with the feast of life, and stepped away from the banquet of life.
The natural gift of wonder God gave us as children was meant to be kept alive.…Instead we let wonder go to sleep. We entered the typical dream state of most humans.
Why else does Jesus tell us today, ‘Stay awake!’…Advent says, ‘Wake up and realize the gifts of love you have received.’
...Psychology says, ‘Let go.’ Spirituality says, ‘Wake up.’ In both cases there is a withdrawal from the busyness of daily life (our dream state) and a waking up to the subconscious and spiritual depths of ourselves.

Alfred McBride

The Lost Message

The Brueghel painting, The Census, portrays the census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria and recorded in the gospel of Luke. The painting shows a great crowd of people, with a long line waiting to be registered. We observe busy shops and active commerce.
At first glance you think that it is a painting of a crowd - until you look in the lower right part of the canvas and notice a man pulling a donkey which is carrying a pregnant woman. If you have ever seen that painting, you know that it is easy to miss Mary and Joseph. You have to look hard, because their part seems so insignificant and unimportant in relationship to what is going on in the painting. Christmas can be a sad time because so many people miss the real point... and at Christmas they are so close.

Heart of Christmas

A noted poet was once asked in an interview if he could explain one of his poems ‘in ordinary terms.’ He replied with some feeling, ‘If I could say what I meant in ordinary terms I would not have had to write the poem.’
From the time of Christ’s birth the people of God have ‘had to write a poem’ to Christmas, composing a single multi-stranded paean of praise spanning the centuries, because ultimately the meaning of Christmas resists being fully spelled out ‘in ordinary terms.

Dr. Brian Linard, A Way to the Heart of Christmas

Anticipation

ANTICIPATION has a powerful effect on our lives, whether it be the anticipation of being reunited with a loved one, the prospect of new opportunities and experiences that come with a new qualification or job, awaiting results of exams in the post, or the simple yearning for a cold drink after some hard work in the garden. As we anticipate we run a video on the screen of our minds of the way in which the events will unfold; we rehearse our responses, feel each aspect of the journey, even savour the taste of refreshment before we have a drink in our hands. The power of anticipation is that it can commence the fulfilment of what is expected, even before it actually happens.
Statistics tell us that twice as many aged people die in the three months after a birthday than in the three months leading up to it. Psychologists put it down to the power of anticipation, driving the person on to reach a special milestone. My own great-grandmother died shortly after a longed-for reunion with a sister she had not seen for 77 years.
Of course many of us have known the anguish of disappointment that follows on unfulfilled expectations. The sense of betrayal is more acute when the expectation is of something close to our heart. The length of our “recovery” from such a setback is in direct proportion to our desire to see it fulfilled. This pain is identified in the Proverb “Hope deferred makes the heart sick.”
There is a lot of anticipation generated at this time of year. We need to ask ourselves the question, “Is what we are really hoping for worthy of high expectation?”. What is foremost in our minds in this Advent Season? There is One who is Faithful. What do we anticipate from His hand?

Gary Heard

Christmas Peace

There is the famous unofficial truce on the bleak, muddy western front during World War One, when British and German troops began singing carols in their respective trenches one Christmas Eve. After a while they began singing the same carols together, sometimes in English or in German but more naturally in their own mother tongues.
Christmas day dawned, and tentative signals were sent about meeting each other in No-Man’s land between the lines. Gradually, but increasingly, soldiers went over the top of the trenches and exchanged gifts, photographs and shared their food.
To the frustration and embarrassment of the top brass from both sides, this truce lasted almost four days, when the whole compulsory insanity gradually resumed.
Similar events happened in prisoner of war camps, most notably when a Salvationist guard or prisoner would whistle a distinctive Salvation Army Song or march, to find the melody or a harmony line being taken up from the other side of the bars.

Feel Like Giving Up?

This poem was written by Mother Teresa and is engraved on the wall of her home for children in Calcutta.

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centred. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies. Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you. Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight. Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough. Give the world the best you've got anyway. You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

Depends On The Hands

A basketball in my hands is worth about $19
A basketball in Michael Jordan's hands is worth about $33 million.
It depends whose hands it's in

A baseball in my hands is worth about $6
A baseball in Mark McGuire's hands is worth $19 million
It depends whose hands it's in

A tennis racket is useless in my hands
A tennis racket in Pete Sampras' hands is a Wimbledon Championship
It depends whose hands it's in

A rod in my hands will keep away a small, wild animal
A rod in Moses' hands will part the mighty sea
It depends whose hands it's in

A sling shot in my hands is a kid's toy
A sling shot in David's hands is a mighty weapon.
It depends whose hands it's in

Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in my hands is a couple of fish sandwiches.
Two fish and 5 loaves of bread in God's hands will feed thousands
It depends whose hands they're in

Nails in my hands might produce a birdhouse
Nails in Jesus Christ's hands will produce salvation for the entire world
It depends whose hands they're in

So put your concerns, your worries, your fears, your hopes,
your dreams, your families and your relationships in God's hands because...
It depends whose hands they're in.

An Evening Prayer

O God, our Father, we thank you for this day which is passing from us now.
For any glimpse of beauty we have seen.
For any echo of your truth that we have heard;
For any kindness that we have received;
For any good that we have been enabled to do;
And for any temptation which you gave us grace to overcome:
We thank You, O God.

We ask Your forgiveness for anything which has spoiled and marred this day.
For any word which now we wish that we had never spoken;
For any deed which now we wish that we had never done;
For everything which makes us ashamed when we remember it;
Forgive us, O God.

Eternal God, who gives us the day for work and the night for rest, grant unto us, as we go to rest, a good night's sleep; and wake us refreshed on the morrow, better able to serve You and to serve our fellow-human beings. This we ask, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

from William Barclay: The Plain Man’s Book of Prayers

You are important

Xvxn though thx typxwritxr I usx at homx is an old modxl, it works quitx wxll, xxcxpt for onx of thx kxys. I wish many timxs that it workxd pxrfxctly. It is trux that thxrx arx 47 kxys that function wxll xnough, but just onx kxy not working makxs a lot of diffxrxncx. Somxtimxs sxxms to mx that our community is somxwhat likx my typxwritxr - xach mxmbxr is important. You may say to yoursxlf, "wxll, I'm only onx pxrson and I won't makx or brxak thx church." But it doxs makx a diffxrxncx, bxcausx to bx xffxctivx thx community nxxds thx prayxrs and participation of xvxry mxmbxr. So, thx nxxt timx you think your mxmbxrship isn't rxally nxxdxd, rxmxmbxr my old typxwritxr and say to yoursxlf, "I'm a kxy pxrson in this community and I am nxxdxd vxry much."

The pre-Christmas Rush

With thanks to Michael Leunig

The Advent Experience

Life is a constant Advent season: we are continually waiting to become, to discover, to complete, to fulfill. Hope, struggle, fear, expectation and fulfillment are all part of our Advent experience.
The world is not as just, not as loving, not as whole as we know it can and should be. But the coming of Christ and his presence among us—as one of us—give us reason to live in hope: that light will shatter the darkness, that we can be liberated from our fears and prejudices, that we are never alone or abandoned.

Christmas

Christmas is more than a time of music, merriment and mirth;
it is a season of meditation, managers and miracles.

Christmas is more than a time of gaiety, greenery and gifts;
it is a season of wonder, worship and wisemen.

Christmas is more than a time of tinsel, trees and toys;
it is a season of preparation, prayers and peace.

Christmas is more than a time of festivities, family and friends;
it is a season of generosity, gladness and gratitude.

Christmas is more than a time of carols, cards and candy;
it is a season of dedication, direction and decision.

Christmas is more than Santa, stockings and surprises;
it is Christ, care and concern.

William Arthur Ward

On the Horizon

The season of Advent means there is something on the horizon the likes of which we have never seen before… .What is possible is to not see it, to miss it, to turn just as it brushes past you. And you begin to grasp what it was you missed, like Moses in the cleft of the rock, watching God's [back] fade in the distance. So stay. Sit. Linger. Tarry. Ponder. Wait. Behold. Wonder. There will be time enough for running. For rushing. For worrying. For pushing. For now, stay. Wait. Something is on the horizon.

Jan L. Richardson, Night Visions: Searching the Shadows of Advent and Christmas

Life Is an Advent Season

Life is a constant Advent season: we are continually waiting to become, to discover, to complete, to fulfill. Hope, struggle, fear, expectation and fulfillment are all part of our Advent experience.
The world is not as just, not as loving, not as whole as we know it can and should be. But the coming of Christ and his presence among us—as one of us—give us reason to live in hope: that light will shatter the darkness, that we can be liberated from our fears and prejudices, that we are never alone or abandoned.

source unknown

A Thirst for Knowledge

God be with those who explore in the cause of understanding; whose search takes them far from what is familiar and comfortable and leads them into danger or terrifying loneliness. Let us try to understand their sometimes strange or difficult ways; their confronting or unusual language; the uncommon life of their emotions, for they have been affected and shaped and changed by their struggle at the frontiers of a wild darkness, just as we may be affected, shaped and changed by the insights they bring back to us. Bless them with strength and peace.

from Leunig, The Prayer Tree

Take Time to be Aware

Take time to be aware that in the very midst of our busy preparations for the celebration of Christ’s birth in ancient Bethlehem, Christ is reborn in the Bethlehems of our homes and daily lives. Take time, slow down, be still, be awake to the Divine Mystery that looks so common and so ordinary yet is wondrously present.
"An old abbot was fond of saying, ‘The devil is always the most active on the highest feast days.’
"The supreme trick of Old Scratch is to have us so busy decorating, preparing food, practising music and cleaning in preparation for the feast of Christmas that we actually miss the coming of Christ. Hurt feelings, anger, impatience, injured egos—the list of clouds that busyness creates to blind us to the birth can be long, but it is familiar to us all.

Edward Hays, A Pilgrim’s Almanac

Success

To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

With God's help...

Somebody said that it couldn't be done, but he with a chuckle replied,
"Maybe it couldn't", but he'd be the one who wouldn't say so until he tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin and if he was worried he hid it;
And he started to sing as he tackled the thing that couldn't be done - and he did it.

Somebody scoffed, 'Oh you'll never do that, for no one has yet ever done it.'
But he took off his coat and took off his hat and trusting in God he’d begun it.
With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin, if any doubt rose he'd forbid it;
And he started to sing as he tackled the thing that couldn't be done - and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done and thousands just waiting to fail you;
There are thousands to point out to you one by one the dangers that wait to assail you.
But just buckle right in with a bit of a grin and take off your coat and go to it;
God will give you the strength to tackle the thing that cannot be done and you'll do it!

Following one's calling

If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause and say, here lived a great streetsweeper who did his job well.

-Martin Luther King Jr -

Be Still

Most of the significant advances in human history - great social and political reformations, artistic productions, unique inventions, etc. - have come not from rushing around but from being still. They required periods of deep and rigorous contemplation, for only in this way can we escape the clamor of outer voices that remind us of 'how we've always done it.'
How do we find this time for solitude and introspection? We must stake it out for ourselves. One top manager I know does not allow his people to talk on the phone or meet between 8:30 and 9:30 in the morning. This is their quiet time. I used to talk to people on airplanes. Now I use that time to reflect, read, write, or just quiet my mind. I am amazed by my creativity after a long flight.
The point here is that there is no way to do silence wrong. The only thing 'wrong' would be not to do it.

Ken Blanchard, The Heart of a Leader

Stained Glass Windows

People are like stained glass windows: they sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light within.

- Elizabeth Kübler-Ross -

How to promote the absence of God

(some tips from C. S. Lewis)

“Avoid silence, avoid solitude, avoid any train of thought that leads off the beaten track. Concentrate on money, sex, status, health and (above all) on your own grievances. Keep the radio on. Live in a crowd. Use plenty of sedation. If you must read books, select them very carefully. But you’d be safer to stick to the papers. You’ll find the advertisements helpful; especially those with a sexy or snobbish appeal.”

The Cracked Pot

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.
For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.
After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologise to you." "Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?" "I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.
The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path." Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some.
But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologised to the bearer for its failure. The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."
Each of us has our own unique flaws. We're all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, God will use our flaws... In God's great economy, nothing goes to waste. So as God calls each one of us, don't be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and allow Him to take advantage of them, and you, too, can be the cause of beauty in His pathway. Go out boldly, knowing that in our weakness we find His strength.

The Flying-Eye-Dog

A man was flying from Brisbane to Sydney. Unexpectedly, the plane stopped in Tamworth along the way. The flight attendant explained that there would be a delay, and if the passengers wanted to get off the aircraft, the plane would re-board in 50 minutes.
Everybody got off the plane except one gentleman who was blind. One man had noticed him as he walked by and could tell the gentleman was blind because his seeing eye dog lay quietly underneath the seats in front of him throughout the entire flight.
He could also tell he had flown this very flight before because the pilot approached him, and calling him by name, said, "Keith, we're in Tamworth for almost an hour. Would you like to get off and stretch your legs?" The blind man {Keith} replied, "No thanks, but maybe my dog would like to stretch his legs."
Picture this: All the people in the gate area came to a complete standstill when they looked up and saw the pilot walk off the plane with a Seeing Eye dog! The pilot was even wearing sunglasses. People scattered. They not only tried to change planes, but they were trying to change airlines!
A True story... and remember...
things aren't always as they appear...

Parents and New Technology: The Last 100 Years

1890s

How can I afford a phone at home?

1900s

Why do my children know more about automobiles than I do?

1910s

Should I take my children to the moving pictures?

1920s

Why do my children know more about the radio than I do?

1930s

Are radio programs too violent?

1940s

Are comic books a bad influence on my kids?

1950s

Is TV good for my child or not?

1960s

What are my children learning from rock and roll?

1970s

Are TV programs too violent?

1980s

Is my child playing too many video games?

1990s

Is being on-line safe and beneficial for my children?

The Value of Simplicity

(A Chinese Folk Tale)
As Tzu-Gung was travelling through the regions north of the river Han he saw an old man working in his vegetable garden. He had dug a deep well and an irrigation ditch. The man would descend the circular steps into the well, fetch up a vessel of water in his arms, and pour it out into the ditch. While his efforts were tremendous, the results were meagre.
Tzu-Gung said, "There is a way whereby you can fill a hundred ditches and irrigate a hundred gardens in one day, and whereby you can do much with little effort. Would you not like to hear of it?"
The gardener paused in his work, looked at him, and said, "And what would that be?"
Tzu-Gung replied, "You take a long wooden lever weighted at the back and light in the front, and hang a bucket from the end of the lever. In this way you can bring up water so quickly that it just gushes out. This is called a draw well."
Then anger rose up in the old man's face, and he said, "I have heard my teacher say that whoever uses machines does all his work like a machine. He who does his work like a machine grows a heart like a machine, and he who carries the heart of a machine in his breast loses simplicity. He who has lost simplicity becomes unsure in the strivings of his soul. Uncertainty in the strivings of the soul creates conflict and dissension within one's very nature as a human being. To endanger one's humanness is something which does not agree with honest sense. It is not that I do not know of such things, I am ashamed to use them."