Advent Devotional 2010

Belmont University

Advent Devotional Guide

2010

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Advent 2010Seven years ago we began producing an Advent Guide for the Belmont University community. While thousands of students have passed through our doors over these years and as the world has experienced incredible change and challenges, we are always aware of the need for the Coming Christ in the lives of people here and everywhere.

Advent is that season of waiting that carefully and purposefully helps us to realign our priorities and to glimpse, anew, our place before God. For the second year in a row we are making this guide available online so more people and more churches may have access to it and we hope this guide helps prepare each of us for Christmas.

Advent reminds us of the once and future visit of our Lord Jesus Christ. May the Christ come to all of us this Christmas! May these devotionals help prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus.

This guide has instructions for daily devotions during this season. You are encouraged to read scripture, the brief devotion, and pray each day as you prepare your heart for Christmas.

I am grateful to the students, staff, and faculty who have contributed to the guide. I offer my gratitude to Pat Raines, the Interim Provost of Belmont University, for his support of this project. I also especially thank Debbie Jacobs, Assistant to the Dean for the School of Religion. As in many things that are a part of the work of the School of Religion, Debbie is the key to bringing this project to fruition. I thank her for her service and commitment.

May each day reflecting upon God’s Word and upon the words of these writers lead each of us through Advent and to the coming of Christ!

Blessings,

Dr. Darrell GwaltneyDean, School of Religion

Week OneCome, thou long-expected Jesus,

Born to set thy people free,

From our fears and sins release us,

Let us find our rest in thee.

o

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Guide to Daily PrayerOpening PrayerComfort, comfort your people, O God!Speak peace to your people.Comfort those who sit in darkness and mourn, Forgive us our sins and end the conflict in our lives. Confession of Sin Reflect quietly before God asking for forgiveness for

all those things done and left undone that are unpleasing to God. Remember, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

1 John 1.9

Scripture LessonsRead the Psalms for the day.

Read the Old Testament passage for the day.

Read the Gospel passage for the day.

Read the Epistle passage for the day.

PrayersThe following is a suggested guide for prayer during Advent.

Pray for all Christians around the world and especially for those who endure persecution for their faith.

Pray for our nation and all those in authority.

Pray that Christ’s peace may cover the world. Pray for the end of conflict and war and the triumph of truth and justice.

Pray for all those who engage in the educational ministry of the Church and especially for Belmont University.

Pray for those who suffer and grieve.

As a closing prayer, read the words to Come, thou long-expected Jesus appointed for the week.

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Sunday, November 28

Psalms 111, 112, 113, 146, 147

Isaiah 1.1-9

Matthew 25.1-13

2 Peter 3.1-10 Today is the first day of Advent. Advent begins with the fourth Sunday before Christmas and culminates in Christmas morning, when we arise to meet a special new dawn. Advent is a time of deliberate preparation to receive a deep and abiding blessing, a time of longing for something that cannot quite be put into words, a time of spiritually sensing that something is in the air, something is about to happen that is going to be beyond all other experiences.

Advent is the season to be full of hope, joy and good will as we once again ponder God’s gift of love, manifested in a small baby, born in a lowly estate so very long ago and so very far away. Who would have ever expected God would come in this way—taking the form of a little baby, born to the most humble of parents, born in an out-of-the-way place in an impoverished land? Who would have expected this little child would change the world forever?

What a gift of the ages! And yet that gift is ever new and fresh—very present, very near, and yet timeless. May we, through all the moments of our lives, take joy in discovering God’s gift, spiritual in nature, brought to full revelation in Jesus of Nazareth.

Throughout his life Jesus proclaimed God’s grand purpose for us—to be loved of God and to love others as He loves us. So simple and yet so profound! All can easily grasp it, from the most unsophisticated to the most learned. Whatever other purposes we set in life—managing a career, achieving recognition, gaining wealth—the ultimate purpose is to realize God’s transforming love and to translate that love into acts of human kindness. What a wonder it is, too, that we are connected through God with all creatures who have gone before, who are living now, and who will come after we pass from this earthly scene into the Larger Life of God’s eternal kingdom. This joy is forever dawning on all of God’s people in the eternal now, as it dawned on the humble shepherds of old. We are one with them.

The realization of God’s gift of love and fulfillment on Christmas morning will come through a period of deep spiritual reflection during this Advent season.

Love and peace,

Ernest HeardDirector, Library Services

Monday, November 29

Psalms 1, 2, 3, 4, 7

Isaiah 1.10-20

Luke 20.1-8

1 Thessalonians 1.1-10

In the current age, being associated with a specific organization or community is of great importance to the majority of people interacting within the world. Such association gives us value and a sense of identity. At times, some take this attempt at an association so seriously that they alter who they truly are just to “fit in.” Unfortunately, those things that we try so hard to be associated with are things that draw our attention and focus off of the one group that truly matters most.

It is during this advent season that we are called to recognize and rejoin that group—the group of God’s children. As we prepare for the birth of God’s son, Jesus, we need to remember the importance of being called a Child of God. To be a member of this group there are no financial dues or burdens, nor are there stipulations for attire or personal appearance. The only qualification is that we are born! We have been created each with a certain purpose of which God is fully aware. He calls each and every one of us to a life filled with love and genuine acceptance within God’s community.

With the birth of Jesus, we have a renewed sense of hope in the world; hope and confidence that we are accepted and loved for who we truly are, and not who we pretend to be. Much like the church of Thessalonica, to whom Paul writes, we too have been chosen by God to be a living and physical example of God here on this Earth.

During this Christmas season, take a moment to reflect that God knows your name, knows your traits, evens knows your sins, and still wants you to be a member of God’s community. The Lord proclaims a decree, “You are my Son, today I have become your Father” (Psalm 2: 7). Such a relationship can never be broken! It is this association and it is within this group, that we should be most concerned and active. This group truly is the only group that will grant eternal life and everlasting peace and hope. Place your emphasis and focus on living how Jesus lived in His time. Accept one another, encourage one another, and above all else, love one another!

Hilary WoodruffSenior, Religion and the Arts and Music Business Major

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Tuesday, November 30

Psalms 5, 6, 10, 11

Isaiah 1.21-31

Luke 20.9-18


As we come upon another Christmas season, it seems that our attention and thoughts throughout the day naturally flow towards the birth of Christ… right? I’ll be the first to admit that for me, it doesn’t work that way. We live in a country that thrives off of selling Christmas, and the official day to mark the beginning of the season is Black Friday.

Everyone in my extended family comes to my house for Thanksgiving and every year there is always a Black Friday crew that gets up at absurd hours of the morning to go buy Christmas presents, and they are always met with an enormous amount of other shoppers all fighting for the best deals. From Black Friday onward, the “Spirit of Christmas” is more like a spirit of spending. Everyone now associates Christmas with spending money and receiving gifts, Jesus has been replaced by Santa Claus, and the people who are truly happiest are the credit card companies. Christmas has become a season of indulgence and comfort.

In today’s reading in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus says this about himself, the Cornerstone: “Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.” Jesus splits humanity into two groups: those who fall upon Him and those who He falls upon, and it is clear that it is more desirable to fall upon Jesus than to be fallen upon by Him. The interesting thing, though, is that even those who fall upon Jesus are broken. There is no third group of people who are left in one piece. Even before Jesus was born, and continuing on to this day, Jesus made and makes people uncomfortable. Before He was born Jesus struck fear into the heart of the King. While he was living on Earth he was an ever-present threat for the Pharisees, and two millenniums after his death and resurrection he continues to transform the lives of people on the Earth.

It is very easy in this country to be consumed with material things during Christmas time, but we must remember that Jesus did not enter the world in order to give everyone presents or to make everyone feel comfortable. In fact, upon entering the world, Jesus received presents. As this Christmas season is upon us, in all of our gift-giving, let us not forget to give gifts to Christ: our attention, our thoughts, and most importantly, our willingness to fall upon him and be broken.

Jared BurkeSenior, Christian Leadership Major

Wednesday, December 1

Psalms 12, 13, 14, 119.1-24

Isaiah 2.1-11

Luke 20.19-26


The psalms in today’s readings display a heavy dose of cynicism: “Help, O LORD, for there is no longer anyone who is godly, the faithful have disappeared from humankind” (Psalm 12:1). “How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?” (Psalm 13:1)

In her book Radical Acceptance, Tara Brach tells the story of Mohina, a white tiger who lived for many years at the National Zoo in Washington D.C. For most of her life, Mohina lived in the old lion house in a twelve by twelve cage typical of zoos from an earlier era. She paced back and forth restlessly hour after hour, day after day. Eventually, a new philosophy of zoo keeping came to the National Zoo and staff moved Mohina from her cage to a more natural habitat that encompassed several acres. With great expectation, staff joyously released the tiger into her new home. However, it was too late. After displaying extreme anxiety, Mohina claimed a corner of the compound where, for the rest of her life, she methodically wore a twelve by twelve path in the ground.

Mohina’s story reminds us that many of us get stuck in prisons behind mental and emotional stockades that confine our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to patterns of self-judgment leading to anxiety and depression. Paradoxically, we cannot escape our prison until we accept that we are imprisoned. Change always begins with acceptance. Paul Tillich, a theologian/philosopher of the last century has the best definition of grace I know: “Accept the fact that you are accepted despite the fact that you are unacceptable.”

Traditionally, Advent has been a season of repentance to prepare our hearts for the coming of Christ. Repentance in the most literal sense means “to change one’s mind.” Before you or I can change our minds, however, we have to know what’s in our minds. That’s why the psalmist’s honest expression of cynicism is hopeful. Only when we recognize and accept that we are cynical can we change our perspective: “I will sing to the LORD, because he has dealt bountifully with me” (Psalm 13:6). In this Advent season let’s be honest about our feelings—negative or positive—as a starting point to enrich our faith.

Marty BellProfessor, School of Religion

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Thursday, December 2

Psalms 18.1-20, 18.21-50

Isaiah 2.12-22

Luke 20.27-40


A baby coos as he clutches a large finger with all of his gentle might. He blinks and breathes, yawns and cries. Who would have guessed he would be the source of our strength?

The Christ, the God incarnate has come. He is our solid rock, our refuge from trouble, our strong tower. If we only enter in, we will surely find rest and security. He looms high above all of our fears and failures. It is here that we find help for our struggles and power over temptation. The Christ is our peace, our hope. He alone is worthy of our praise. These are the images preserved for us in the Psalms and manifested in the person of Christ. May we worship him this season as the humble, yet mighty God.

Although Christ was born, we have been left in a season of waiting ever since the ascension. Amidst the waiting, he is our strength. This season of waiting is not without purpose, for God is yearning and working. This is part of the meditation of Advent. To the haughty, God is a terror, a strict overseer. For those who humble themselves, God is Parent, full of affection and love. God’s commands are not burdensome, nor are his desires darkness. To those who have spent much time inside the Strong Tower, God is their source of life.

God is yearning, as are we, for the second Advent. On this day God will seem a terror to some and a long awaited lover to others. On this day God alone will be exalted and glorified by humankind. There has never been a day where God alone is exalted in all the earth; even those who love God scatter their praises. The season of Advent, however, looks forward to the day when all of our idols shall utterly pass away. On this day we will be presented before the glory of God’s throne as holy and blameless with all the saints. On this day we will experience the anticipated resurrection from the dead. Let us wait inside of our refuge, our help, our solid rock. “Come, thou long-expected Jesus” was once the cry of Israel, and it has become our cry again.

Grace and peace be upon you from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Misty MotesJunior, Religion and the Arts Major

Friday, December 3

Psalm 16, 17, 22

Isaiah 3.8-15

Luke 20.41-21.4


Kent Keith in his book, Anyway: The Paradoxical Commandments, states: “People favor underdogs, but follow top dogs—Fight for a few underdogs anyway.” Top dogs normally have plenty of currency and subsequently plenty of company. Yet, few people want to hang around an underdog. Few are those who want to fellowship with a “used to be,” “a has been,” or “a washed up so and so.” We only want to be in the presence of those whom we think have it all, those who are going somewhere.

Yet, the Gospel of Luke speaks of how God can reverse matters so that the underdog today is the top dog tomorrow. In Luke 21.1-4, the author records the admiration Jesus has not for the gifts of the rich, but his recognition of a poor widow’s sacrifice. Whereas his society esteemed the wealthy, Jesus avers a reversal of fortune, a theology of the underdog, to show how little becomes much when given in honor and reverence to God. The widow did not give out of her abundance, but “she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on” (v. 4).

The reversal of Christmas is that a baby born in a manger becomes Master and Savior. The reversal of this time is that a child conceived out of wedlock becomes an adult Lord and Christ. The reversal of this season is that God grants favor to those whom society deems unfavorable and unworthy.

As we continue along this journey of Advent, know that God has come to lift bowed heads and to lighten heavy loads. Jesus has come to turns things around and to set situations in order. Jesus has come to set the captive free and to give sight to the blind. The Light of the World has come to reverse this present darkness.

Stephanie Buckhanon CrowderAssistant Professor, School of Religion

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Saturday, December 4

Psalms 20, 21.1-7, 110.1-7, 116, 117

Isaiah 4.2-6

Luke 21.5-19


All of us have different upbringings when it comes to our religious and spiritual growth. Many grew up in strong, Christian homes, some made it to church on Easter, around Christmas and maybe for Vacation Bible School or something like it, and others had little or no exposure to religion during childhood. But I suspect that most of us knew and often repeated the 18th century classic children’s prayer that says:

Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep;

If I should die before I wake, I pray for God my soul to take.

1 Thessalonians Chapter 4.13-14 seems to relate quite closely to that familiar child’s prayer:

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

I’m no biblical scholar, but it seems to me that every night that we go to sleep and then wake each morning is a sort of resurrection with, hopefully, a renewed and positive outlook on that day and the days ahead because of our assurances from Christ. And, although there is always real grief for Christians, it is unlike the grief felt by those who lose a loved one with no hope of seeing them again.

We all have our favorite times of year, and the coming of Christmas has always been mine. It would be less than sincere to say that part of that includes all the secular components of the season: seeing and trading gifts with family and friends, decorating the tree, watching the kids at the mall and their wonderment at the site of Santa Claus. At my house, watching a video of daughter Andrea at age three (now 26) too excited for the next morning to go to sleep, sing Christmas songs, dance around her bedroom, become Santa and start delivering Christmas presents to her sister Megan and generally put on a little girl comedy show has become a tradition on Christmas Eve. But we should never forget that this Advent season is not just about celebrating the coming of the birth of Jesus, but what that birth did for all of us who choose to believe that He came to die for our sins so we could “sleep” with everlasting life!

Rick ByrdMen’s Head Basketball Coach

Week TwoIsrael’s strength and consolation,

Hope of all the earth thou art,

Dear desire of every nation,

Joy of every longing heart.

o

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Sunday, December 5

Psalms 114, 115, 148, 149, 150

Isaiah 5.1-7

Luke 7.28-35

2 Peter 3.11-18

To what then will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the market-place and calling to one another, ”We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.” For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, “He has a demon;” the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.

This advent, who do we expect to see in Jesus? Do we expect to see a person? Do we expect to see God? Do we expect to see the child who grew in wisdom and in both divine and human favor according to the end of the second chapter of Luke? Does our Jesus drink or not? Do our expectations for “who Jesus is” at times tell us more about who we are than about who Jesus is? Are we wisdom’s children?

In Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, Vladimir and Estragon wait for days under a tree on a country road for Godot. Godot, whoever he is, never comes. Others like Pozzo and his slave Lucky come, as well as two boys with messages that Godot will arrive the next day. It is interesting that we never learn much about Godot directly. We do learn things about Vladimir and Estragon. Estragon is a pure “five sense” person and is clumsy at speech. Vladimir is the more resilient of the two. At the end of the play, Vladimir and Estragon leave and we are left with the impression that Godot is simply a catch basket term for their deficiencies or for their healing.

Back to this generation . . . we may think we are wisdom’s children, but we just may discover the opposite this Advent. We may be disappointed when the Savior we anticipate never comes. Shall we then ask new questions to prepare us for Advent?

Is Jesus the son of poor people or rich? Is Jesus an agitator of those who separate themselves from the poor? Does Jesus forgive sin or the social stigmas the powerful count as sin? Does Jesus follow laws that do not align with God? Does Jesus know that he asks much of people prone to staying put near the trees of their own interests?

Andy WattsAssistant Professor, School of Religion

Monday, December 6

Psalms 9, 15, 25

Isaiah 5.8-12

Luke 21.20-28


Christmas is days away, and the to-do list just seems to be growing. Decorations have been brought from the attic, but, of course, have not found their rightful place. Lights are untangled and lined across the living room floor, but they have yet to be hung. The baking must start soon, because it is not Christmas without four different kinds of pie and Dad’s favorite, chess cake squares. The grocery list is a mile long, and I have not even begun to think about the turkey for Christmas Day. And who can forget my favorite part of the Christmas rush, finding the perfect gifts for my friends and family. I love how shopping malls are decorated this time of year, and I love seeing everyone wrapped from head to toe in their fluffy coats and Christmas sweaters. Yet as “Deck the Halls” and “Silent Night” are played to set the seasonal mood, so much focus is on decking the halls that little acknowledgement is given to the night that is the reason for it all.

In my house Christmas is nothing short of a production. Yet, I get so caught up in the hustle and bustle that I miss Christmas; it is as if it creeps up on me! The Christian life is often lived in such a manner; I was reminded of this as I read 1 Thessalonians 5.1-11. The passage states that Jesus’ return will come as a thief in the night. It will creep up on us just like Christmas, when we are just a few pies shy of being ready for the big day. Yet, as the passage reveals, the Christian mindset does not have to follow the hustle and bustle of the Christmas rush, “But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled” (vs. 4-6). So, as we prepare for Christmas day, let us live in the day. Enjoy the pie baking and the present wrapping, but do it all in remembrance of the meaning of this season and the coming of the Lord.

Kate HarrisSenior, Christian Leadership and Communications Major

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Tuesday, December 7

Psalms 26, 28, 36, 39

Isaiah 5.13-17, 24-25

Luke 21.29-38


Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, so their roots will decay and their flowers blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the LORD Almighty and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Therefore the LORD’s anger burns against his people; his hand is raised and he strikes them down. The mountains shake, and the dead bodies are like refuse in the streets. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised. (Isaiah 5:24-25)

These verses from Isaiah tell us that the Lord does not look the other way when we live lives that are hurtful to others and dismissive of God.

George Bernard Shaw, in his book Why I am Not a Christian, says that it is the bad news of Jesus that kept him from becoming a Christian. It was Jesus’ teaching that we are deserving of judgment and hell that kept Shaw from coming to Christ. Shaw had a more positive view of human nature, and if Jesus wanted to shake that view, then so much the worse for Jesus.

Why did anyone want to kill Jesus? If he were merely the kindhearted caricature that our culture warmly celebrates, it is a hard question to answer. No one gets killed for being too nice.

The truth is that Jesus forces us to face the bad news about ourselves. The most often repeated invitation in the New Testament is “Repent and believe the good news.” The word order matters in that sentence. Without knowing that I am a sinner, why would I think I need a Savior? If I cannot see that I am a lost sheep, why would I let the Good Shepherd pick me up and carry me in another direction than the one I have chosen? If I think I can run my own life just fine, why would I let someone else become Lord of my life?

Jesus said that he came “to seek and to save those who are lost.” If I do not realize that I am lost, I will never let myself be found by Jesus. If I cannot admit that I am “dead in my sins,” then I’ll never let Jesus transform me into the “new creation” he desires me to be. This Advent, let us not miss the bad news, or we’ll be sure to miss the Good News.

Todd LakeVice President, Spiritual Development


Psalms 38, 119.25-48

Isaiah 6.1-13

John 7.53-8.11


How appropriate that in this season of waiting for the Christ child, we come across a story where Jesus shows us how to practice waiting. Here in John 8.1-11, the Pharisees, hoping to catch Jesus in a moral quandary, bring him a woman taken in adultery. What is Jesus’ response to this accusation? Quietly, he takes his finger and writes something on the dusty ground.

Jesus takes on a contemplative posture of waiting. He hesitates. Instead of telling the woman who she is and locking in on an interpretation, Jesus pauses. Rowan Williams says that Jesus “refuses to makes sense of what they want” and tries to hold a moment that gives people time to see themselves differently.

Jesus’ initial reply of silence to the Pharisees recalls the desert father sayings of non-judgment—abbas who refuse to judge other monks in the assembly because their own sins run behind them like sand from a leaky jug or abbas who offer sleepy young monks a place to lay their head in worship.

The desert fathers knew, as Abba Moses said, that “our life and death is with our neighbor” and that “death” meant imitating Jesus’ gesture of waiting and renouncing the power of judgment.

As Jesus writes in the dust, his waiting becomes a place where God happens for the adulterous woman. May we also move our own anxieties and selfishness out of the way so that we can put others—and ourselves—in touch with God’s wholeness and make a place for God to come to us.

Cynthia A. CurtisAdjunct Professor, School of Religion

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Psalms 37.1-18, 37.19-42

Isaiah 7.1-9

Luke 22.1-13


“He will show you a large room all set out: make the preparations there. They went and found everything as he had said. So they prepared for Passover.” (Luke 22:12, 13)

ASK ME Ask me whether what I have done is my life . . . we know the current is there, hidden; and there are comings and goings from miles away that hold the stillness exactly before us. William Stafford

How shall we live? Judas and Peter/John show very different ways. Judas is disappointed with life—Jesus has not lived up to his expectations. Judas tries to coerce life to bend to what he wants. At the level of ego (willpower, cleverness, insistence), Judas forces the action to at least provide a monetary pay-off.

How different it is with Peter/John. They are given a task by Jesus, “go and make preparations . . . to eat the Passover.” They don’t know ahead of time how this works: “where.” Jesus asks them to follow the unfolding of events: meeting a man and finding a room. They are asked to watch carefully, trust what appears, and follow the flow. They are asked to practice “not knowing” with the faith that a larger hand is nudging this drama.

Each of us has a Judas and a Peter/John within us. When things are not going our way, we can try to force the action, or we can stumble faithfully along by following what is opening up for us.

In Telling Secrets, Buechner said of his life:

Beneath the surface of my life I think maybe a kind of purposefulness was working itself out in spite of me . . . often the decisions we think we make on the spur of the moment have been years in the making.

Like the disciples, Jesus watches over our lives. Through dreams and hunches and surprises, he cheers us toward faith.

Ben CurtisProfessor, School of Religion

Friday, December 10

Psalms 31, 35

Isaiah 7.10-25

Luke 22.14-30

2 Thessalonians 2.13-3.5

As I write this, it was almost a year to the day that I had to go home, give my wife what was for us sad news and cry with her.

Going into the Fall and advent season has always been one of my favorite times of year because we are able to gather with friends and family and embrace those relationships. But Lori and I had a rough year going through infertility problems. We so wanted to share our love with a baby.

That day when I arrived home was an overwhelmingly hard day because Lori’s brother and sister in-law were pregnant after just three months of marriage. We were happy for them, but we had been trying for over two years, undergone a surgery and multiple rounds of fertility treatment. This news broke our hearts.

In Psalm 31, David is facing enemies and feels surrounded. He cries out to God “I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul” (v. 7). David was in distress and we felt the same way. Surrounded by enemies we could neither see nor battle nor put up defenses against. The enemy was attacking us at the deepest levels—in our hearts and souls.

We have a strong faith in and relationship with God and we had no other choice but to turn to God to be comforted. We cried, prayed and cried more that evening, but we “took heart and hoped in the Lord” (v. 24). Ultimately we knew that God would bless us in his time. He continued to walk with us and just as Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, God our Father “loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope” (2 Thess 2.16b).

And it is with great joy this year as we prepare to celebrate Christmas, and the ultimate promise that God provided through the birth of Jesus Christ, we will celebrate another miracle for our family . . . the birth of our own child provided by God without any infertility intervention. So whatever enemies you face, be eternally encouraged in the plans God has for you because they will be unimaginably greater than anything you could have expected. So look with expecting eyes for God to act in your life.

Ben LionDirector, New Student and Parent Programs

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Saturday, December 11 Psalms 32, 42, 43 Isaiah 8.1-15

Luke 22.331-38


Psalm 32 offers a flowing refrain of the weight of guilt and the joys of forgiveness. It is miserable to carry guilt and shame and liberating to speak remorse out loud. The psalmist also makes clear the connection between the human mind and body, showing that to hide deceitfulness and destructive behavior wears down physical strength and resiliency. From the human body to the ecosphere: into places no one alive could remember seeing rushing waters before comes the reassurance—God is the refuge, the hiding place where mighty waters cannot reach to destroy.

The heart of God the teacher is present to instruct and guide. Then the psalmist goes too far. He mentions horses and his human centered thinking shows right through.

“Do not be like a horse or a mule; without understanding, whose temper must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not stay near you” (Ps. 32.9). The Jerusalem Bible finishes the phrase: “if you advance to master them, there is no means of getting them to come near.”

If we skip verse nine to close the Psalm, I offer no resistance. Those who resist God will find heartache and those who seek and bless the name of God will find themselves cared for and joyful. This is worth celebrating. But I’ve got to argue with the psalmist about dragging horses into his conclusions. Horses don’t need a bit and bridle to know the path; in fact, they have the path fairly clear in mind . . . away from danger and toward safety. The resistance against bit and bridle comes not because horses are ornery, rather the resistance comes when humans force horses to do what the humans want or need and stretch the trust of a prey animal. For centuries, humans have been using horses to carry them into battle, to pull their plows and even to bear their anger and abuse. Maybe the horses are the smart ones. It seems unfair to label them as stubborn or ignorant. Perhaps at the heart of this image is another observation—when one uses pain and intimidation to force a particular response, it’s quite sensible on the part of the one forced to move away. Perhaps mastery of others, creatures all, isn’t the way to learning and understanding.

So let’s celebrate the goodness of God and if you get the pony you asked for at Christmas, look it in the eye and ask it what it knows.

Judy SkeenProfessor, School of Religion

Week ThreeBorn thy people to deliver,

Born a child and yet a king,

Born to reign in us forever,

Now thy gracious kingdom bring.

o

o

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Sunday, December 12

Psalms 63.1-8, 98, 103

Isaiah 13.6-13

John 3.22-30

Hebrews. 12.18-29

When I was a young boy I loved Christmas time and all the stories, just like every other child I knew. My imagination ran wild with thoughts of what Bethlehem must have been like 2000 years ago when Jesus was born. The city was crowded with Jewish citizens and Roman soldiers, and while some folks were probably having a good time, there was no shortage of tension among the people. Yet, on that night in that crowded, tension-filled city God was about to do something for man that would change the world forever. Psalm 98 says, “O sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done wonderful things.”

In December 1994, my family and I were in Israel on a combination work and vacation trip. We had seen and done all the things you would expect of a family traveling to the Holy Land. It had been an amazing trip, and we were topping it off with being in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. We were excited beyond description about this experience of a lifetime.

That year was the last year that Bethlehem was under Israeli control, and the little village, especially the area known as “Manger Square,” was crowded with Israeli soldiers, Palestinians, and tourists like ourselves from all around the world. Since we had a little time before the church service was to begin, my wife, two sons, and I decided to make our way across the square to the little post office which stayed open so people could mail cards postmarked from Bethlehem on Christmas Eve.

As we crossed the crowded square a group of young Palestinian men and Israeli soldiers got into a heated argument, and we were caught in the middle of a shoving match between them. For a few moments we were scared to death something might happen, but eventually things calmed down. My wife observed with great insight that this night in Bethlehem was probably pretty much like the night Jesus was born.

We went on to the wonderful church service and were reminded once again that even in the midst of the turmoil of life the birth of Christ gives us hope. Psalm 98 continues, “The Lord has made known His salvation; He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.”

May your Christmas be filled with the joy and peace that comes through knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Marty DickensTrustee

Monday, December 13

Psalms 41, 44, 52

Isaiah 8.16-9.1

Luke 22.39-53

2 Peter 1.1-11

I can’t say that I have ever met anyone who inherently loved the dark. Darkness lends itself to an uncertainty. It takes even that which is known and removes the security of familiarity.

In August of this year, the world was captivated by the story of 33 Chilean miners that were trapped after the copper-gold mine they were working in collapsed. For 69 days, rescuers worked to find a way to free the men who were without sunlight and approximately 2300 ft below ground. One of the most memorable images of the successful rescue was the survivors being hoisted to the surface wearing a pair $400 Oakley sunglasses. Admittedly, some executive in the promotional department at Oakley seized an extraordinary opportunity with this event. The sunglasses were a necessity to protect the vision of the miners who had not been exposed to any sort of light for over two months. Medical teams feared bringing the survivors up into the bright lights of the rescue site might potentially cause them to go blind. The sunglasses provided them the protection needed to allow time for their eyes to adjust. This measure was needed because their bodies had grown accustomed to a darkness they had not chosen.

In Isaiah 8 we find God’s people living in a different kind of darkness: a darkness they created for themselves. This darkness took away their sense of familiarity with their God. Walking within this darkness obscured the certainty of their identity as God’s chosen people.

We can relate to both types of darkness can’t we? There are times when the circumstances of our lives collapse around us leaving us to feel utterly helpless. We desire desperately to see the sky but are unable to free ourselves from our imprisonment. We are left only to wait for someone to come to our aide. There are other times when we place ourselves in a darkness of our own choosing and remove ourselves from the familiarity of God’s presence in our lives. In either case, the hope of the advent season is that God does not leave us in our darkness. The hope comes in the phrase “Nevertheless” that we find in Isaiah 9. When darkness inevitably surrounds us . . . nevertheless a Light has come! God does not desire us to become accustomed to the uncertainty or to lose heart in the unfamiliarity. The hope of this season is that the Light has come to illuminate our lives with the glorious radiance of God. This Light pervades the deepest of darkness and reminds us, above all else, that we are not alone and that we have indeed been found.

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned (Isaiah 9:2).

Christy RidingsAssociate University Minister

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Tuesday, December 14

Psalms 45, 47, 48

Isaiah 9.1-7

Luke 22.54-69

2 Peter 1.12-21

The theme for the third week of Advent is entitled “Peace That Comes to Us Through the Savior.” I began to think what exactly does that thought entail and how is it related to the Advent Season. Often as humans, we relate things or situations to be peaceful when there is an absence of turmoil or stress externally, but internally there is no real peace except through the Savior. Scripture tells us, “These things I have spoken to you, that In Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16.33). Each year the meaning of Advent and Peace is entwined together “Christ is coming and He brings the gift of His peace.” I saw on a church marquee a quote that caught my eye, “No God No Peace-Know God Know Peace.” We as people of faith must live our lives in anticipation of His coming not just at the holiday season but throughout the year.

Thinking about the Advent season and what it truly means, I thought about the annual lighting of the Christmas tree in Metro Davidson County. It is always scheduled for the first Friday in December. The Christmas tree of 2009 was a 30-foot Norway spruce, a colossal tree with large full limbs and a hefty trunk. I read in the newspaper that it took several thousand colored lights to cover this tree. The street lanterns that are placed around the square are turned off and darkness comes briefly to the square. Silently hundreds of people wait with anticipation of the tree lighting. Mayor Karl Dean had the honor of holding the switch, he began the count down at 10 and when he reached one, the lights on the tree came on and the crowd shouted Merry Christmas! Then I remembered Isaiah 9.2: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death upon them a light has shined.”

This Advent season, let us see that special Christmas tree as the representation of Christ and the different colored lights representing the people of faith. May we proclaim “Come, thou long-expected Jesus, born to set thy people free.”

Johnetta Young SmithSenior, Ministry Major


Psalms 49, 119.49-72

Isaiah 9.8-17

Mark. 1.1-8

2 Peter 2.1-10a

Psalm 49 appears to speak a lot about the futility of accumulation:

For one sees that the wise ones die, Together with the fool and dolt they perish, And they leave to others their wealth (v. 10).

Do not fear because a person becomes rich, Because the status of their house becomes great. For when they die they will take nothing (vs. 16-17).

We are right to be suspicious of such claims. The rich telling the poor that being rich is not so great and that being poor is virtuous is an old story. It keeps them in their place. Nevertheless, there is an element in these sayings that I would like to be able to affirm. It is a reminder that all speech has the capacity to be both genuine and manipulative. Several years ago, when my children were small, I went to the Christmas play at their school. I enjoyed seeing them perform with their friends, but the script of the play annoyed me. It kept telling me, over and over again, that some people, some nameless, faceless others that it would not identify, had forgotten the “real meaning” of Christmas. It spent so much time telling me this that it hardly got around to trying to say what that “real meaning” is. Nor did it try to understand why we have such a propensity for avoiding it. Could it be because the real meaning is elusive, that it is a difficult thing to say in a manner that is honest and straight? We end up moving and talking around its edges because that may be the best we can do. The beginning of Mark’s gospel is discomfiting. John the Baptizer, the one who speaks to us about the meaning of Advent, is one who lives on the fringes of society. He points to one that he cannot name, and the gospels of Luke and Matthew present a John who, at a later point, is uncertain about the identity of Jesus. We long for genuine speech about the meaning of Advent, but often find it missing, and the space created by this lack easily fills itself with other things—shopping, cooking, football, and travel plans. It is too easy to condemn those things for filling a space that is so challenging, instead of letting them be more in the coming of Christ: gift-giving, hospitality, companionship, and devotion to those we love. These things are not futile.

Mark McEntireProfessor, School of Religion

24 25


Psalms 33, 50

Isaiah 9.18-10.4

Matthew. 3.1-12

2 Peter 2.10b-16

I remember the image of John the Baptist I had as a little girl. The Baptist is crying, “Repent!” I thought he was very odd, eating locusts and honey, wearing camel-hair in the desert. And really, John’s cry to “repent” also seemed pretty harsh to me. John was certainly no people pleaser. The older I get, however, the more John’s one word command blends into the call from many other prophets: turn around, come back, repent. The Kingdom of God really is at hand.

Prophets, teachers, friends, pastors, and writers speak to me—it takes a whole passel of voices to tell us, both in word and action—turn around. You are missing the “kingdom of God” that you could be experiencing. Maybe that’s what we always do with those who tell us to change. I don’t ever want to turn back and look behind when I think I could go forward, propelled by my own strength and images. I don’t want to see the truth at hand--God’s Kingdom is not my own creation.

Like John, acclaimed 20th century writer Flannery O’Conner knew this. She once said “and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you. . . [wait for it] . . . odd.” O’Conner knew many things that would shake most people out of their complacency and into repentance. My favorite character of hers is Joy/Hulga from “Good Country People.” Joy/Hulga, a 32 year-old with a Ph.D. uses her education and her wooden leg as a barrier to block normal human relationships.

The wooden leg is an apt symbol for all that is wooden within Joy/Hulga. She ranks those in her life according to their degrees, and she perpetually sees herself as “above” everyone else. She confuses labels as a measure of a person’s worth. O’Conner cuts through all that clutter: we are all in need of repentance; we all need to be saved from ourselves. In the end, Joy/Hulga finds herself stuck in a hayloft alone with her leg stolen by the traveling Bible salesman she judged as her inferior. Her pretense, like her wooden leg, has been stolen from her and she has no choice but to look at her own foolishness. It’s hard to see the truth that not only sets us free but also makes us odd.

Loud and clear across the centuries, John sharply calls: lose your superior attitude and your false expectations. It’s okay to be what you once thought odd. Whatever your “wooden leg” is, turn around and hear John: God’s kingdom is at hand, but you cannot see it through your own power. Through God’s grace, we can sometimes see our own truth, no matter how odd it may be.

Robbie PinterProfessor, College of Arts and Sciences

Friday, December 17

Psalms 40, 51, 54

Isaiah 10.5-19

Matthew. 11.2-15

2 Peter 2.17-22

As a child, I grew up loving to watch Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood on a daily basis. I was captivated by Roger’s soothing voice, the colorful set, and themes that he held close to his heart, both in his work and in his life. In Mr. Roger’s land of Make Believe, messages of love, forgiveness and the peace of being oneself were dealt with on every episode. As I grew up, I realized the differences of reality and that of Make Believe. In a sense, we all do and this perceptive ability is our culture’s way of defining emotional and intellectual maturity. Now, it is easy for the cynic in me to say that the foundational ideals of Make Believe are impractical and provide a naïve understanding for children and adults alike. On the other hand, this quick judgment of Roger’s fantasyland relies far too deeply on worldly rules alone.

So what happens when we flip this metaphor from the real world to the land of Make Believe and substitute the Christ’s Kingdom for Make Believe? When Jesus comes again, His Ultimate Reality will not be judged by the constructs of the world, as we perceive it. When He returns, Jesus’ “land of Make Believe” will interrupt and interpret our reality, setting His eyes of truth, justice and love upon the world in which we live in. Scripture shows us these types of events in the Gospels where Jesus asked His followers and opponents alike to put on a new set of spectacles, in order to see that grace and love are not impractical and weak, but instead, are the pillars on which Christ’s kingdom exists.

Most importantly, the message of Christ’s coming and the change of vantage He will bring allow humanity to gain a confidence and peace within ourselves. When our actions and thoughts directly reflect God’s grace as the air of which we breathe, we know that we are loved exactly as we are and this grants us the best opportunity to grow into a healthy person.

So let us rejoice in the coming of our Lord, of our Savior; the one who puts everything into perspective, allowing us complete freedom from the judging eyes of the world. As Mr. Roger’s would offer, “You can be loved for who you are” and one could only add that this peace is rooted in the ever-awaited coming of Jesus Christ.

Let us wait for our Lord in peace, Michael HardestySenior, Religious Studies and Audio Engineering Technology Major

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Saturday, December 18

Psalms 55, 138, 139.1-17

Isaiah 10.20-27

Luke 3.1-9

Jude 17-25

What brings you peace? Do you find it often? Worrying seems to come naturally to me. I sometimes think it’s in my DNA, but maybe it’s just my upbringing. Worriers are prominent in my family. My great-grandmother used to say how nervous she would get when, “the boys left for town in the wagon,” and she, “didn’t know when they’d get home again.” Whether this is nature or nurture or both remains a question, but the worry itself is just evident. As I reflect on my past, I realize that my worries are most often inconsequential. Then, I wonder and worry about how much time I have wasted on meaningless thoughts and diversions. And so it goes. At times, it seems like I am in a never-ending cycle of worry.

As I age though, I do think I’ve gotten better. I don’t worry as much about the small things; I spend more time pondering the monumental. I worry about people I love and the health of those around me. I worry about social justice issues and how the world will be for our children. I do still worry about other things too. Did I leave the iron plugged in today? Is my dog happy? Will I ever finish grading papers? I realize this is all part of the human condition. Sometimes, biblical texts are of comfort to me in my moments of worry, and other times, they aren’t. The texts for today mention the destruction of enemies, the dangers inherent in being part of brood of vipers and fears associated with scoffers who would lead others astray. I don’t find great comfort in these texts and they serve other purposes for me. I do, however, find comfort in others.

When I am lost in the chaos and busyness of life, or even when I’m just lost in my own worries, there are times when I find peace. I hope the moments become increasingly frequent, but for now, the moments of peace I experience sustain me. They occur most often when I am aware of the immanence and transcendence of the Holy. It’s not that I’m thinking about whether God is right near me at every moment or wholly and radically other. The peace comes when I’m just taken by it. The Psalmist describes it well.

The Psalmist writes, “it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” This text beautifully illustrates the feelings we may have when we are taken by the Holy. There is an intimacy that is likened to the very formation of life in the womb, and there is an otherness that causes us to be overwhelmed, as we might be when looking up into the night sky. Scholar Rudolph Otto called it “mysterium tremendum” and “fascinans.” We experience a mystery we cannot comprehend, we are overcome by it, and it provokes in us feelings of thanksgiving, praise and adoration. At Christmas, as we ponder the Incarnation, let us experience the peace that comes even though we do not comprehend and even though we are overcome. Let us find peace as we express praise and thanksgiving for the gift of Messiah. Let us remember that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.”

Sally HoltAssociate Professor, School of Religion

Week FourBy thine own eternal Spirit,

Rule in all our hearts alone;

By thine all-sufficient merit

Raise us to thy glorious throne.

o

o

27

28 29

Sunday, December 19

Psalms 8, 24, 29, 84

Isaiah 42.1-12

John 3.16-21

Ephesians 6.10-20

If I were one of the wise men delivering gifts to the Messiah, I definitely would not have chosen to bring him perfume. That seems more like a gift for Mary than for Jesus. I know that the gifts the wise guys brought Jesus all represented important stuff and whatnot, but perfume is kind of lame for a newborn baby boy. So I ask you this: what do you think you would have brought the Christ if you were in their sandals?

Think about it. This baby is supposed to grow up and rule the world; you are giving the future Savior of the universe a gift. He is fulfilling centuries of prophecies and millennia of anticipation. This baby will one day have everyone bowing down to him. You’d get him perfume, right? WRONG. You would go to the nearest blacksmith and get him to make you a really sharp sword; maybe a bow and arrow; at worst, a slingshot.

However, what stupefies me is, somehow, those wise men knew that if they got the Messiah a weapon, he would never use it. Everyone was expecting Rambo to come kicking through Mary’s womb to take down the bad guys, except for the wise men. How did they know?

Not only did Jesus refuse to use weapons, but he also advised others to do the same. Jesus was not post-modern. He did not say, “Well, turning the other cheek and not using a sword is my personal decision, but I would not judge you if you did.” No, Jesus had the audacity to be a King without an army and a Warrior without weapons. Jesus makes Rambo look weak.

However, Christians need weapons. We need a full suit of armor and a sword. Isn’t it weird that Jesus preaches peace and then the writer of Ephesians employs war imagery (6:10-20)? The irony gets thicker though. As we are called to put on “the whole armor of God” (v. 11), we are also instructed to put on shoes that will make us “ready to proclaim the gospel of peace” (v. 15)! We must remember that we do not simply avoid war, but instead we must march towards peace. This is the reason Jesus did not get a sword for Christmas.

Cory WigalSenior, Biblical Studies Major

Monday, December 20

Psalms 61, 62, 112, 115

Isaiah 11.1-9

Revelation 20.1-10

John 5.30-47

I’m waiting in line at the grocery store. I’m waiting at the dentist’s office. I’m waiting for warmer weather or colder weather, sun or rain. I’m waiting while my oil is changed. I’m waiting because my friend is late. I’m waiting to find out good news (or bad news) from the doctor. I’m waiting for the check to clear. I’m waiting for the apology that never comes. I’m standing and waiting, sitting and waiting, wondering, fidgeting, falling asleep. I’m waiting with hope, waiting with impatience, waiting with anticipation, waiting with boredom.

And then I remember that it is Advent and I’m waiting for Jesus. I am brought up short by this thought. What does “waiting for Jesus” look like? Sometimes it looks like any other waiting: I alternate between hope and impatience, anticipation and boredom. Because Advent leads to Christmas, my life gets a little more busy and rushed with activities as school ends and the holidays begin. I do some shopping, which leads to more waiting than usual. Church events increase and I decorate my home.

Sometimes, however, I’m brought to that moment of realization that “waiting for Jesus” is not like any other waiting. As the Christmas season becomes more hectic, I look to the Psalms to teach me to slow down, to step back, to really wait. In Psalm 62.1 we read, “For God alone my soul waits in silence.” This is what I long for. I yearn for that break in time in which the noise of the season is quieted and I am waiting for Jesus.

Do you long for this as well? Now is a wonderful time to slow down, to find a quiet place, to wait for Jesus.

“Come, thou long-expected Jesus.”

Ann CobleAdjunct Professor, School of Religion

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Tuesday, December 21

Psalms 66, 67, 116, 117

Isaiah 11.10-16

Revelation 20.11-21.8

Luke 1.5-25

My family holiday gathering is fun and wildly chaotic. Often I hear little cousins breaking in the middle of conversation, “Jill, come sing, play cars, or color pictures with me.” They continuously tug sleeves, or jump waving hands to gain my attention until I pause to answer their request and smash hot-wheels cars, or build Lego monsters. The more I stall to finish my conversations, the more elaborate the gestures become.

I’ve found myself trying this approach with God. No jumping, or loud voice calling: “Hey, God, a little more attention this way, please.” Instead I have a subtle wondering if He hears me. I believe God’s all knowing, but if I’m honest with myself, I sometimes wonder: “Did God hear my request I made long ago? When will I get His attention? How long do I have to wait?”

In today’s reading God listens and answers. He heard childless Zacharias and Elizabeth’s longing: “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son” (Luke 1:13). Many years had passed with the unanswered request and hope faltered. “Zacharias said to the angel, ‘How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years’” (Luke 1: 18).

That’s just like me! “Is that really You, God, after all this time? It doesn’t seem like You. How do I know it’s You for certain?” And the questioning continues as my restless spirit seeks God’s attention.I believe God knows we doubt and wander off losing hope; that we need God to be tangible. We question if God’s going to hear us, and when God answers, we question that too. The psalmist encourages:

But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer. Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer Nor His loving-kindness from me (Psalm 66.19-20).

I love the LORD, because He hears My voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live (Psalm 116.1-2).

Just like my little cousins need attention at family gatherings, I too need to be heard and cared for, especially by my Creator. His answers might not come on predetermined timetables, but I can trust He knows me and answers my call.

During the boisterous sounds of family gatherings, little ones ask for my attention. This gives me the opportunity to show I love them. This season as your sleeves are tugged, pause and remember God’s loving-kindness in hearing and answering your requests. Then get down on your knees and play!

Jill RobinsonScarlett Leadership Institute


Psalms 72, 111, 113

Isaiah 28.9-22

Revelation 21.9-21

Luke 1.26-38

Love is SO powerful! My wife, Heather, and I enjoyed celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary this past summer. I was quite certain that there was no way I could possibly love her more than the day I proposed to her, but by the time we were getting married, just six months later, I knew that I somehow loved her more than before! And with each year that has passed, I have been amazed at how God has grown our love, our ability to love and our capacity to experience love.

I’ve loved her so much that I didn’t think I could possibly have any love left over to give to anyone else. I confess to you that I was more than just a little nervous when our first child was about to be born because, again, I didn’t think that I had any love left to give. Then Derek was born and it was as if somehow God had stepped into my heart, pushed up the ceiling and blown out the walls—‘adding-on’ to make room for more.

Suddenly there was all of this ‘new love’ available for me to share with this new little life. I was both humbled and overwhelmed. This has proven to be the case with each of our three kids that have come since Derek.

When we were about to have Autumn I thought to myself, “but I love Derek SO much I just don’t know that there’s going to be anything left for Autumn . . . .” Much to my surprise, there was, even as there later was with Kaiya. Then when Noll was born at the end of this past September, I was humbled and overwhelmed by God and the power of love all over again.

It causes me to wonder about that day that Mary, mother-to-be of Jesus, had her life humbled and overwhelmed with the news—the Good News—that God would choose to come to God’s own—in power and love—through her.

The immense feelings of unworthiness and unfettered love must have been enough to imagine that she might surely burst! But she didn’t. She was blessed.

Her capacity for love was expanded beyond what she had previously known and soon the world’s understanding of love would experience a similar expansion, as the word love itself would be redefined forever!

Guy ChmieleskiUniversity Minister

3332


Psalms 80, 146, 147

Isaiah 29.13-24

Revelation 21.22-22.5

Luke 1.39-56

I couldn’t have asked for a better date for this devotional than December 23. December 23 is, after all, the day before the night before Christmas. It is a date ingrained in the memory of my sister and me because of the song of the same title on a record of children’s Christmas music.

“It’s the day before the night before Christmas, and I’m busy, busy, busy being good,” the song began. “On the day before the night before Christmas, I’m going to do everything a good girl should. I’m making up a list about 10 pages long. I’m on page 10 now, and still going strong! It’s the day before the night before Christmas, and I’m busy, busy, busy being good!”

We were so thankful to come to December 23, because it gave us one final chance to cram all the good we could into the day before the day before Santa’s “judgment day.” Forty-eight more hours to tip the naughty or nice scale toward nice.

Somehow, it worked. Christmas morning would come, and great boxes with beautiful ribbon would surround the tree—which always seemed to have grown overnight. My sister and I had been good, and Santa had given us our just rewards.

On one particular Christmas morning, after the presents were open and the tea ring eaten, I picked up my new doll and contentedly flopped onto the couch next to my mother. “It worked!” I happily exclaimed, adjusting my doll’s smock. “Good thing I remembered to be good on December 23,” I added.

My mother softly said, “My sweet Annie, Christmas is more than one day. Christmas is every day.”

I didn’t know what that meant at the time. As I grew up, however, I realized that Christmas is a celebration; and, to me, it’s a reminder to serve others in Jesus’ name every day. Through this service, I praise the Lord. On this day before the night before Christmas, I reflect on what I have done this year to sing praise to my God.

Annie MitchellDirector, University Marketing and Special Initiatives

Friday, December 24

Psalms 45, 46, 89.1-29

Isaiah 35.1-10

Revelation 22.12-17

Luke 1.67-80

One common theme for today’s readings is the assurance of God’s presence in the world with his people in all situations. One reading (Ps. 45) urges the king to act responsibly under the influence of a God whose throne “endures forever.” The second (Ps. 46) encourages God’s people in their trouble to hold the conviction that, “The Lord of Hosts is with us.” The third (Ps. 89:1-29) reminds the people that times of tranquility are an opportunity to sing of the “steadfast love” of God. The fourth (Is. 35:1-10) affirms the promise, “Here is your God” as comfort in a time of national weakness and doubt.

The reading from Luke (1:67-80) is appropriate for Christmas Eve. The writer senses events afoot that overshadow the power of rulers. It was the dawn of a new age, and the events taking place in an unimportant place would change the way history was understood. Those who had dreamed and hoped for God’s presence in their world are about to see that fulfilled. The announcements would not come from Rome or Jerusalem, but from a peasant girl and a rural priest.

By Christmas Eve, preoccupation with the “busyness” of Christmas often overshadows the spiritual preparation necessary to a healthy celebration of the season. It is equally easy to be so intent on getting to the account of Jesus’ birth that we miss Luke’s first birth story. But, it was a big deal to Elizabeth and Zechariah who had waited years. The silence imposed on Zechariah, perhaps, offered him an occasion to reflect. So, he approved giving his son an unexpected name and put everything in a new perspective that recognized God dynamically acting in his world.

His words embrace the entire history of his people from God’s covenants with Abraham and David until the birth of his own son, John. However, he does not limit the work of God in the world to the past only; nor does he project it to the realm of future possibilities. He prophesies, “the Lord God of Israel . . . has raised up a mighty savior for us.” Since then, for believers, all history is bracketed between the announcement of the one who went “before the Lord to prepare his ways,” and the promise of the Lord, “I am coming.”

Bob ByrdProfessor, School of Religion

34 35

Christmas DaySaturday, December 25

Psalms. 2, 85, 110.1-5, 132

Zechariah 2.10-13

John 3.31-36

1 John 4.7-16

At dawn the house rests quietly after the evening sleep, the day awaits new experiences, and possibility hangs in the air. This day, among all days, holds so much possibility.

For the youngest among us, the dawn does not come quickly enough. When my children were younger they would chase the dawn out of bed, bringing an early start to this day out of their excitement and the possibilities presented by all the presents under the Christmas tree.

All throughout the advent season we gather gifts, carefully wrap them, and place them under the tree in anticipation of this morning. Those gifts sit patiently under the tree, awaiting their purpose, awaiting their unveiling. Who among us has not sat down by some Christmas tree, picked up a package with our name on it, given it a little shake, and wondered just what might be inside? The gifts hold wonderful possibility.

Christmas Day defines possibility and what happens when we wait. While we are children we wait most definitely to open our presents, but as we grow older we mostly put away childish things and still find ourselves open to the possibility that defines Christmas Day. Perhaps our children will be home, perhaps our whole family will sit together for a long and graceful meal, perhaps the day will stretch into a long feast of peacefulness.

I think of Psalm 85 this morning. It speaks of this possibility and longing so wrapped up in Christmas Day:

Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts. Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land (Psalms 85:8–9).

As much as we wait for Christmas Day, we wait for the Christ at Advent. “Surely his salvation is at hand … “ (v. 9). Each Christmas Day I am reminded of God’s great promises to bring God’s glory into our lands and into our lives. Anything can happen today. The Christ has come. He brings the peace of God with him. Let the glory of God dwell in your homes today!

Merry Christmas!

Darrell GwaltneyDean, School of Religion

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Adult degree programs through University College include Liberal Studies Program, Accounting, Business, RN/BSN Nursing Program, Ministry and Public Relations Management

Master’s degree programs in Accounting, Business Administration, Education, Music Education, Sport Administration, English, Music, Nursing and Occupational Therapy

Doctoral programs in Law, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Pharmacy

Named fifth in the south in its category in the U.S. News & World Report magazine’s annual ranking of America’s Best Colleges and Universities

Member and host site of the Cooperative Center for Study Abroad which allows students to study in England, Ireland, Scotland, Kenya, Ghana and Australia, among others. Exchange programs also exist with Mexico, Italy, Costa Rica, China, Spain, Germany, Russia and France

AccreditationBelmont University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097; 404-679-4501) to award bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. Persons wishing to review documents relating to Belmont’s accreditation may contact the Office of the Provost 615-460-6400.

School of ReligionVisionThe School of Religion seeks to be a premier academic community that nurtures a living faith in God, reflects critically on its discipline, develops skills for Christian ministry, and distinguishes itself through its emphases on contemplative spirituality and social justice.

PurposeThe purpose of the School of Religion is to provide student-centered, academically challenging religion classes to the diverse student body of Belmont University and to provide a foundation of religious studies for students preparing for congregational ministry and advanced theological studies.

Goals 1. To provide all Belmont students with a solid foundation in

biblical and theological studies. 2. To teach courses for religion majors and minors in the

following areas: biblical languages, biblical studies, religion and society, theological and historical studies, practical studies, seminars and special studies. To offer professional education courses in practical ministry.

3. To offer continuing education opportunities to ministers and laity.

4. To integrate contemplative spirituality and social justice into the curricular and co-curricular program.

School of Religion Faculty and StaffDr. Marty Bell, Church HistoryDr. Robert Byrd, Greek & New TestamentDr. Stephanie Crowder, New TestamentDr. Ben Curtis, Pastoral Care & Spiritual FormationDr. Darrell Gwaltney, DeanDr. Steve Guthrie, TheologyDr. Sally Holt, Christian EthicsMs. Debbie Jacobs, Assistant to the Dean Dr. Mark McEntire, Hebrew & Old TestamentDr. Steven Simpler, TheologyDr. Judy Skeen, Biblical Studies & Spiritual FormationDr. Andy Watts, Christian Ethics

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Belmont University1900 Belmont Boulevard

Nashville, TN 37212

www.belmont.edu

Documents

Advent Devotional 2010