Better late than... (written on 1/5/2011)

::The Twelfth Night::

Okay, so I am trying to milk every last drop out of Christmastide as I can. I still have the tree up and the lights on. I am listing to Christmas music on Pandora. I am still attempting to immerse myself in the wonder and mystery of the incarnation. Because, after all, it is still Christmas.

So how does one celebrate “the twelfth night”? For medievals this was a night of raucous feasting and masquerading. But I’ve got an elder’s meeting tonight and I don’t think the guys are going to go for that.

Traditionally the twelfth night was also a time to take the decorations down in anticipation of the end of Christmas and the beginning of Epiphany. It should be time of reflection of the wonder of the incarnation and a time of visioning of the revealing of Christ to the nations.

That’s where worship and missions come together. We gaze, reflect, wonder and respond to the miracle of the incarnation. We marvel that God took on our humanity not to deliver us from it, but to redeem it. We consider the deep humiliation of Christ who would go to such lengths and leave so much to deliver us. We were lost, so God came down to find us. Who would have thought of a plan like that?!

But our worship/celebration does not end there. Our next though is, “How can I get this message to my neighbors? How can I get this news to the nations? The Savior who would do all this deserves the honor and affections of all people!” Worship fuels missions and result of missions is global worship.

And is fuels our prayers. We pray for Christ to invade our own souls with renewed love and affection for Him. We pray for our friends, neighbors, and co-workers that they would embrace the cross and love the savior. We pray for the masses of the lost and unreached and we ache that that would know Jesus.

And so with every ornament tucked away, every string of lights wound and stored, every crèche wrapped and boxed, we pray, “O Jesus, Hallowed be you name, let your kingdom come!”

The well wisher of your soul’s happiness,
Pastor Tom