For a child has been born for us,
a son given to us;
authority rests upon his shoulders;
and he is named
Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
Take your time and check in over the next couple of weeks, to move through the story from the birth of Christ in Bethlehem in the presence of Angels and Shepherds through the visit of the Wise men bearing gifts of frankincense, myrrh, and gold, the subsequent exile of the Holy Family to Egypt and finally their call to return home to Israel where they settled in Nazareth. Enjoy the nativity depictions and the music with images of Christmas. I'll be back to the Lectionary on January 12 for the baptism of Jesus. May your Holiday be blessed with Hope, Peace, Joy and LOVE!
Listen to Love Came Down at Christmas sung by Shawn Colvin
*****
Lectio DivinaRead Luke 2:1-6 What word or phrase catches your attention?
Around the time of Elizabeth’s amazing pregnancy and John’s birth, the emperor in Rome, Caesar Augustus, required everyone in the Roman Empire to participate in a massive census— the first census since Quirinius had become governor of Syria. Each person had to go to his or her ancestral city to be counted.
Mary’s fiancé Joseph, from Nazareth in Galilee, had to participate in the census in the same way everyone else did. Because he was a descendant of King David, his ancestral city was Bethlehem, David’s birthplace. Mary, who was now late in her pregnancy that the messenger Gabriel had predicted, accompanied Joseph. While in Bethlehem, she went into labor and gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped the baby in a blanket and laid Him in a feeding trough because the inn had no room for them.
Read & Reflect: What is God's invitation to you?
Read & Respond: How do you respond to God's invitation?
Listen to Do you Hear What I Hear? sung by Third Day
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... Gentle Jesus
Breathe Out ... Open my ears to your whispers
Fade into silent prayer ... Amen
*****
Reading with your SensesRead Luke 2:7-14
What you are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching? What insights do you have into the story by what you experience through your reading?
Nearby, in the fields outside of Bethlehem, a group of shepherds were guarding their flocks from predators in the darkness of night. Suddenly a messenger of the Lord stood in front of them, and the darkness was replaced by a glorious light—the shining light of God’s glory. They were terrified!
Heavenly Choir: To the highest heights of the universe, glory to God!Listen to Hark the Herald Angels Sing sung by Amy Grant
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... Jesus our Liberator
Breathe Out ... Anoint me with Peace
Fade into Silent Prayer ... Amen
*****
Lectio Divina
Read Luke 2:15-19 What word or phrase catches your attention?
As soon as the heavenly messengers disappeared into heaven, the shepherds were buzzing with conversation.
Shepherds: Let’s rush down to Bethlehem right now! Let’s see what’s happening! Let’s experience what the Lord has told us about!
So they ran into town, and eventually they found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in the feeding trough. After they saw the baby, they spread the story of what they had experienced and what had been said to them about this child. Everyone who heard their story couldn’t stop thinking about its meaning. Mary, too, pondered all of these events, treasuring each memory in her heart.
Read & Reflect: What is God's invitation to you?
Read & Respond: How do you respond to God's invitation?
Listen to What Child Is This? sung by Martina McBride
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... Heavenly God
Breathe Out ... Let me feel your Presence
Fade into silence ... Amen
*****
Writing a Praise Psalm
Read Luke 2:20
The shepherds returned to their flocks, praising God for all they had seen and heard, and they glorified God for the way the experience had unfolded just as the heavenly messenger had predicted.
Like the Shepherds, consider those places you have seen and heard God working in your midst. In your journal or on a simple piece of paper, write about your experience of God over the Christmas
season.
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... God of Grace and Glory
Breathe Out ... Fill my heart with words of praise
Fade into silent prayer ... Amen
*****
Reading with your Senses
Matthew 2:1-2
What you are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching? What insights do you have into the story by what you experience through your reading?
Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem, in the province of Judea, at the time when King Herod reigned. Not long after Jesus was born, magi, wise men or seers from the East, made their way from the East to Jerusalem. These wise men made inquiries.
Listen to We Three Kings by The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, the graphics are quite beautiful!
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... God of Curiosity and Wisdom
Breathe Out ... Let me reach the Stars in your Presence!
Fade into silence ... Amen
*****
Lectio DivinaRead Matthew 2:3-8 What word or phrase catches your attention?
King Herod began to hear rumors of the wise men’s quest, and he, and all of his followers in Jerusalem, were worried. So Herod called all of the leading Jewish teachers, the chief priests and head scribes, and he asked them where Hebrew tradition claimed the long-awaited Anointed One would be born.
Scribes and Priests: An ancient Hebrew prophet, Micah, said this: But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are no poor relation—
For from your people will come a Ruler
who will be the shepherd of My people Israel.
Herod called the wise men to him, demanding to know the exact time the special star had appeared to them. Then Herod sent them to Bethlehem.
Herod: Go to Bethlehem and search high and low for this Savior child; and as soon as you know where He is, report it to me so that I may go and worship Him.
Read & Reflect: What is God's invitation to you?
Read & Respond: How do you respond to God's invitation?
Listen to O Come O Come All Ye Faithful by Chris Tomlin
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... God of my Faith
Breathe Out ... Strengthen Me
Fade into silence ... Amen
*****
Writing a Praise Psalm
Read Matthew 2:9-11
The wise men left Herod’s chambers and went on their way. The star they had first seen in the East reappeared—a miracle that, of course, overjoyed and enraptured the wise men. The star led them to the house where Jesus lay; and as soon as the wise men arrived, they saw Him with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped Him. They unpacked their satchels and gave Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Consider the places you have seen God during this Christmas Season. How have you found a joy such as that of the wise men? Where have you felt God leading you and expressed your gratitude in worship? Take some time to write to God in worship, praise, and prayer.
Listen to Silent Night by Mannheim Steamroller, this is a beautiful video of eclectic images.
Rest in a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... God of Miracles
Breathe Out ... Fill the World with Peace
Fade into silence ... Amen
*****
Lectio Divina
Read Matthew 2:12-14 What word or phrase catches your attention?
And then, just as Joseph did a few months before, the wise men had a dream warning them not to go back to Herod. The wise men heeded the dream. Ignoring Herod’s instructions, they returned to their homes in the East by a different route.
After the wise men left, a messenger of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.
So Joseph got up in the middle of the night; he bundled up Mary and Jesus, and they left for Egypt.
Read & Reflect: What is God's invitation to you?
Read & Respond: How do you respond to God's invitation?
Listen to In the Bleak Midwinter sung by Dan Fogelberg
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... Midwinter God
Breathe Out ... Keep my Soul warm when I land on a Snowy Path
Fade into silence ... Amen
*****
Reading with your Senses
Matthew 2:16-21
What you are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching? What insights do you have into the story by what you experience through your reading?
After a few months had passed, Herod realized he’d been tricked. The wise men were not coming back. Herod, of course, was furious. He simply ordered that all boys who lived in or near Bethlehem and were two years of age and younger be killed. He knew the baby King was this age because of what the wise men told him.
This sad event had long been foretold by the prophet Jeremiah:
A voice will be heard in Ramah,
weeping and wailing and mourning out loud all day and night.
The voice is Rachel’s, weeping for her children,
her children who have been killed;
she weeps, and she will not be comforted.
Joseph, Mary, and Jesus stayed in Egypt until Herod died. This fulfilled yet another prophecy. The prophet Hosea once wrote, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
And after Herod died, a messenger of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt:
Messenger of the Lord: You may go home now. Take the child and His mother and go back to the land of Israel, for the people who were trying to take the child’s life are now dead.
So Joseph got up and took Mary and Jesus and returned to the land of Israel.
Listen to Joy to the World sung by Casting Crowns
Rest with a Breath Prayer
Breathe In ... God of the World
Breathe Out ... Let me make my Home in your Presence
Fade into silent prayer ... Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment