Luke 1.26-56- Good morning! You're beautiful with God's beauty, beautiful inside and out!
Ezekiel 34-I'm going looking for them. As shepherds go after their flocks when they get scattered, I'm going after my sheep. I'll rescue them from all the places they've been scattered to in the storms.
Isaiah 58-What I'm interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families. Do this and the lights will turn on, and your lives will turn around at once.
Titus 2.11-14-He wanted us to be his own people and to be eager to do right.
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The garage door opener quit working the other day. So I took it apart. Looked inside. Discovered a plastic gear that had sheared. Why did it shear? Age? Something else! While looking the remainder of the system over, the rails and all other associated hardware; I discovered some loose screws on the door. But I don't think that would cause the door to bind. What might make it bind? I had noticed over the past couple of weeks a peculiar shimmy the door would make while opening. Hm mm...then I saw it. The rail was slightly out of its bracket. A pin had moved out of place causing the rail to shimmy. The cotter pin that held the main pin in place had broken away and was gone. After tightening everything down and putting the main pin in place secure with a cotter pin I ordered the plastic gear over the Internet. So I wait. Wait for the part. Then the assembly. Then the test. I am spoiled with this garage door opener. First thing every morning I use it to go out into the world. Simply push a button and God's new, fresh world and life begins anew for me each day. And as I go; I take my God with me. Kind of like Mary. God comes to each one of us. Comes to us personally. We carry him deep within ourselves. Like Mary. And the angel Gabriel told Mary this and pointed out how the advent of Christ in our lives is both corporate, with the church, and personal, in your daily life. Yea, each morning with "God-with-us" we are beautiful. Inside and out. But as the day wears on. After I've opened that garage door and continued on my way---I stray. I may move away from God. And like a shepherd, God chases me down. Brings me back to him. Back home at the end of the day, when I open that garage door once again. Reflect on the day past and realize his presence. Realize the presence and advent of God, moment by moment. Moments when I felt close to God and moments when I sinned. I reflect and plead forgiveness. But God wants me to be his own. He forgives and shows me how he wants me to act tomorrow. Shows me how to love those I meet. And sends me out once again with instruction and beauty to open that garage door to his kingdom. Day after day. Thanks be to God! I'll serve and love him and you in his kingdom day after day. But first, I need to raise this garage door... by hand for now.
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Jesus, I give you thanks for the beauty you have brought to this world. Beauty in our churches and beauty to my heart and beauty in the ways I see you in others. You are God and your advent is glorious! ---Amen
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