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“Presence” Sherry Lohman - Dec. 27, 2009 John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. Well, Christmas day is over for another year. Whatever cleaning, baking or decorating you didn’t get done--- it probably didn’t matter. If you are like me, there are a few cards left to be mailed, and a few remaining goodies waiting to be delivered to friends and family. Christmas comes, all too fast (though probably not fast enough for children!) Do you remember, as a child, waiting—especially that last week before Christmas, how the days seemed to drag by?/ As kids, we were warned not to go rummaging through closets and cupboards, looking for any hidden, unwrapped gifts./ For those gifts, already and waiting under the tree, we were allowed to pick them up, but not shake any of them, lest they break. Mom used heavy wrapping paper and plenty of tape, wise to our peeking through any untaped gaps. Years later, one of my sisters confessed that one year she had learned how to ease the tape from the paper, and had secretly opened every one of her gifts and resealed them, without anyone knowing. It’s true, Christmas day is over, but in our Christian tradition, we continue to celebrate twelve days of Christmas, which lead us up to the beginning of Epiphany, (the twelve days beginning Dec. 25th through Jan. 6). Epiphany is usually celebrated as the time the Wise Men or Magi arrived to present gifts to Jesus. I guess, legitimately, we still have a period of grace for tying up those unfinished Christmas goals. We’ll continue singing Christmas songs and playing Christmas music- in a sense, holding onto that wonderful spirit of Christmas; all the good tidings and great joy. But in a few weeks, or sooner, we’ll be taking down the Christmas decorations, carefully removing the ornaments from our tree. We may throw out the last of the sugar cookies and fudge. We’ll write our thank you notes for the gifts we have received. I wonder--…….is it possible we pack up the Spirit of Christmas, the presence of God, and store it away in the attic, with everything else? This year, let’s not leave Jesus in the manger. Jesus is God’s gift for us. Jesus, the manifestation of God: hope, peace, joy and love…the presence of God, waiting to be born anew in us. God’s gift, to be received---not just at Christmas, but every day, every moment, pregnant with possibility, waiting to permeate our every moment. How possible is that?/ If we do believe that God is Emmanuel, God with us, that God will never leave us, then doesn’t the possibility have more to say about where we are. Where is our awareness of God? If God is always with us, then why are there times we don’t feel God’s presence?// Is it possible that our vision is clouded by distraction. The opposite of “presence,” is “absence.” To be present, one must be existing in the moment, in contrast with being in the past or future. If God is present, then is it we who are absent?// What does it mean, to be present, to God?// My mind jumps quickly to the babe in the manger. Dependent, vulnerable, naked, but not ashamed. As we grow we become childlike, curious, questioning, awed, trusting, fearless./ In time, as we begin to leap into greater independence and adulthood, we may lose track of the presence of God. Responsibility and trials can make us stronger, but they may also cause us to second guess our trust in God, and lead us to look to our own devices for taking care of matters. Don’t misunderstand me. It’s not that we shouldn’t use our minds….but along the way, we may sometimes forget to consult God, or only call upon God for a second opinion after ours has failed. The presence of mind is the ability to think clearly and act quickly and intelligently in an emergency. The presence of God is the ability to receive God’s spirit so that you may live presently in the spirit of hope, peace, joy and love./ This may be why, after someone you love has passed away, you can still feel their presence. Their spirit is there with you, in the present moment. They are physically absent, but their spiritual presence consumes the absence. You open yourself up to their presence in your own awareness, in the moment. This is true to God’s Spirit. Each of us hold the power of experiencing the power of God’s Spirit…in every moment, if we so choose.// This morning, this very moment, I’d like to invite you to share in practicing the presence of God (maybe something you haven’t been able to do with all the rushing around and preparations for Christmas). Give yourself permission to linger, now, in the presence of God. And so, if you will relax, close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths, clearing out all thoughts except for this present moment…this time that you want to be completely present to God. Rest in this silence. Call upon God’s name. Thank God for your life, for your family, for this moment that you want just for God, who waits for you….who delights in you. God’s Spirit is not anxious, so empty yourselves, completely, preparing for the indwelling of hope. What is it you hope for? Tell God. If you have been disappointed in your hope, tell that to God, too. Ask God to restore your hope in God./ Think of how you have brought hope to someone else. Who was it, and how did you help restore some semblance of hope for them?/ Allow God’s peace to move into your being. Who or what is it that brings you a great sense of peace? Is it a memory of a grandmother, your spouse, or visiting with a good friend. Is it sitting quietly making a gift for someone else? Is it watching the snow or fishing in a quiet pond or listening to music? How often do you make room to rest in that peace?/ Remember the occasions you have shared that peace with someone else./ Ponder, now, the joy you have known. Recall the excitement and surprises you have experienced. Sometimes part of our joy comes with great anticipation; the awaited birth of a child or return of a son or daughter. Or your joy might come in the form of a gift; a hand drawn picture from your grandchild or a broken but beloved bowl that’s been handed down in the family—with no monetary value, but full of memories of Grandma’s chicken and noodles and family gatherings./ For this moment, this present moment, thank God for the breath you breathe; the life you have been given, the warmth of this sanctuary; for your brothers and sisters sitting next to you. Thank God for God’s promise to be with us, always, even when we’re distracted./ Thank God for the joy you have known, and the joy yet to come your way….for the joy of knowing Jesus, and for the joy of life with God. And now, allow yourself the presence of God’s love. Accept God’s love. Imagine God wrapping a warm blanket around you and holding you and whispering, “I love you.” “I love YOU.” “I delight in YOU!” “I see all good in you.” “You bring me great joy!” “You are MY beloved, and I am Yours.”// Think for a moment, all of the ways you have been loved. Who else has extended their love to you? Take a moment, right now, and thank God, for God’s abundant love. Dwell in this moment of God’s love.// If you haven’t fallen asleep, wrapped and loved in God’s hope peace and joy, could you open your eyes, now.// There is one final piece to today’s reflection, and it’s one that we need to be awake and very aware of. If we truly believe that God is with us, in every moment, and we live in that awareness, or presence of God, then our lives will be changed in all kinds of ways. Our lives will be changed because our eyes will begin seeing with the eyes of God. That means that we, too, will love, unconditionally; that we will see the good in others. It means that we may even experience some growing pains in our capacity to love. Loving, as God loves us, might make us a little uncomfortable, sometimes./ Think, for a minute, about how it is you have extended love to others. How many different ways have you found to express God’s love? Was it with a kind word or gift? Helping them with their garage door or taking them some cookies. Did you take some time to sit and visit with them or send them a note. Who is it you have you loved? That’s all great—but let’s crank it up a notch. How has your love grown and changed, over the years? If our love is made manifest, in God, then our capacity for love will be growing, too. So let me ask you this…. When did you last extend your love to strangers—not just folks on a corner, requesting small change, but people you might not get along with so well at work….or the slow clerk at the grocery store, the shoe salesperson who couldn’t count back your change, the aunt that drives you crazy or the paper boy who brings your paper late, every Saturday. They, too---like all of us, are children of God, loved unconditionally and abundantly. That’s how God loves them. How have you loved them? Let’s not pack away Jesus with the manger. Let’s grow up with him, in our awareness of our great God. Let’s polish the hope we hold and with great joy and gratitude, and share it. Let’s practice passing the peace, extending it to those we love, and those we should love, which includes all people, on this sacred ground. Let’s pull out the stops and blast our love, worldwide. It’s not just an idle hope. It’s a real possibility…..because we believe that… In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Hope, peace, joy and love, for all. The word of God. Amen. |