St. John's United Methodist Church | Baton Rouge

Category: Advent Devotionals 2015

The 2015 Advent Devotional by the people of St. John’s United Methodist Church. Our theme this year is The Walk to Bethlehem. We invite you to join us.

  • Christmas Day

    Luke 2:15 Then the angels returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened.” n

    nOn this Christmas Day, we are at the end of a journey—the end of our Walk to Bethlehem. For many of us, the journey has been long: filled with busy schedules, long hours at work, extra chores, and added stress. Many of us have the attitude that we want Christmas to “just be here already”! And it is. Christmas is here. The Christ child is born. The angels have come. 

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    nBut are we prepared to receive the gift of our Savior? In today’s world, we are seemingly obsessed with “right now.” We want everything done immediately, to our personal specifications, and without inconvenience. I have been guilty on (many) more than one occasion of taking out my iPhone and ordering something from Amazon so that I can have it done immediately, and so that it will be delivered to my doorstep in two days or less. We are out of the practice of waiting—we fill our lives with so many things to do that we lose sight of what it is we are preparing and waiting for—the gift of our Savior.

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    nIt is on this day, that I think the shepherds have something important to teach us. As the shepherds are going about their daily tasks, keeping watch over the sheep, the angels appear to them, announcing the birth of the Messiah. And the shepherds’’ response: “Let’s go right now to Bethlehem and see what’s happened.” The shepherds had been waiting for and preparing for this announcement for their entire lives, just as generations before them. And when the word came, they went without hesitation, to see their Messiah. 

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    nAs we celebrate Christmas this year, my hope is that all of our desire for instant gratification will be transformed into a desire to meet our Savior without hesitation. I hope that we will, just like the shepherds, leave our daily tasks behind so that we can worship our King. 

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    nChrist is born! The Messiah has come! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

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    nPrayer: Jesus our Messiah, thank you for coming into the world to live and walk among us. Help us to lay aside our busy-ness, so that we can meet you in wonder and amazement. Amen.
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    nDeacon Sarah Shoup
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  • Christmas Eve

    Isaiah 9:2
    nThe people who walked in darkness
    nhave seen a great light;
    nthose who lived in a land of deep darkness—
    non them light has shined.
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    nTo trust God in the light is nothing. To trust God in the dark – that is faith. This from the larger-than-life Baptist preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, reminds me of a Christmas Eve feast under the golden arches. “You mean McDonald’s…those golden arches? Seriously, Jay, c’mon.” You would be right to wonder.n

    nChristmas Eve, 2010. Beck, Mariah and I were leaving University UMC after the 7 pm Communion service. Grateful for having them with me for worship, we drove back down Highland Road toward our home in Kenilworth. Hunger crept up on us pretty quickly. Little did they know more than hunger was gurgling in me. Instead, a dark cloud was brewing in my spirit. I was due to deliver them back to their mom’s house by 10 pm. We were facing the first Christmas Eve of our “new normal” – the reality of a Christmas season removed from familiar patterns into the darkness of separation and impending divorce. 

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    nWhile I was hoping like mad that my son and daughter were happy about Christmas Eve together and excited about Christmas celebrations to come, I was sinking. With every 100 ft down Highland Road, they were hungrier. I felt like I was drowning. 

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    nSometimes desperate places in life crack open lightened moments for God to move. And there it was – McDonald’s on Lee and Burbank. Turning into the lot, I saw Beck’s smile and Mariah’s eyes light up. Only 2 souls were there – 1 at the counter, the other standing at the fryer. I believe they were happy we 3 happened in. 

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    nThough the scene was certainly no Rockwell and maybe cheeseburgers don’t measure up to turkey and dressing, there was indeed a choir of angels. Light in my darkness. My two kids. God’s love outpouring. Reminders that the Everlasting Father holds us through dark times – even those of our own making. On Christmas Eve. Of all places, under the golden arches.

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    nPrayer: Shining God, even the darkness is not dark to you. Please shine in our darkness, and light up our lives. When we walk in the gloom of confusion, when pain drains the color out of life, when we are paralyzed by the shadows of fear, please shine through. And when we know that others are walking in the darkness, grant us courage to be light for them. In the name of Jesus Christ, the illuminating Son, we pray. Amen.
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    nPastor Jay Hogewood
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  • The Canticle of the Turning

    Stanza 1:
    nMy soul cries out with a joyful shout
    nthat the God of my heart is great,
    nAnd my spirit sings of the wondrous things
    nthat you bring to the one who waits.
    nYou fixed your sight on the servant’s plight,
    nand my weakness you did not spurn,
    nSo from east to west shall my name be blest.
    nCould the world be about to turn?
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    nRefrain:
    nMy heart shall sing of the day you bring.
    nLet the fires of your justice burn.
    nWipe away all tears,
    nFor the dawn draws near,
    nAnd the world is about to turn.
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    nStanza 2:
    nThough I am small, my God, my all,
    nyou work great things in me.
    nAnd your mercy will last from the depths of the past
    nto the end of the age to be.
    nYour very name puts the proud to shame,
    nand those who would for you yearn,
    nYou will show your might, put the strong to flight,
    nfor the world is about to turn.
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    nRefrain:
    nMy heart shall sing of the day you bring.
    nLet the fires of your justice burn.
    nWipe away all tears,
    nFor the dawn draws near,
    nAnd the world is about to turn.
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    nStanza 3:
    nFrom the halls of power to the fortress tower,
    nnot a stone will be left on stone.
    nLet the king beware for your justice tears
    nevery tyrant from his throne.
    nThe hungry poor shall weep no more,
    nfor the food they can never earn;
    nThese are tables spread, ev’ry mouth be fed,
    nfor the world is about to turn.
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    nRefrain:
    nMy heart shall sing of the day you bring.
    nLet the fires of your justice burn.
    nWipe away all tears,
    nFor the dawn draws near,
    nAnd the world is about to turn.
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    nStanza 4:
    nThough the nations rage from age to age,
    nwe remember who holds us fast:
    nGod’s mercy must deliver us
    nfrom the conqueror’s crushing grasp.
    nThis saving word that our forbears heard
    nis the promise that holds us bound,
    n’Til the spear and rod be crushed by God,
    nwho is turning the world around.
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    nRefrain:
    nMy heart shall sing of the day you bring.
    nLet the fires of your justice burn.
    nWipe away all tears,
    nFor the dawn draws near,
    nAnd the world is about to turn.
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    nRory Cooneyn

    (Luke 1:46-45)n

  • The Faithful Journey

    Luke 2:3-5 “Everyone was required to return to his ancestral home for this registration. And because Joseph was a member of the royal line, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, King David’s ancient home—journeying there from the Galilean village of Nazareth. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was obviously pregnant by this time.” n

     
    nI must have read the Christmas story a thousand time over the years from childhood till today. Every time I read it I find comfort and always a point of view I had not seen before. This fall St. John’s has been preparing for a new beginning, renewal and addition to two of our buildings. We have begun “The Walk” to a promise of God’s blessings. I imagine that Joseph and Mary had to prepare for their journey to Bethlehem, not easy for Mary so pregnant and unsure of what was to happen as any new mother would be. Joseph also had his share of nerves and concern for himself and Mary. Yet they stepped out in faith to travel a road full of uncertainty and hardship. The trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem has a variety of terrain surfaces, flat lands, desolate tracts, along with Hills!! So they prepared to take on whatever they needed to in order to arrive at their destination.

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    nMary packed food, utensils, water or drink, bedding and items they might need along the way. Joseph I imagine took care of the donkey, money needed and shelter. So as any journey it began with the first step. We do not know what or if anything happened to them on the journey all we know is they arrived to find themselves in a desperate situation. They need a place to stay and Mary is about to give birth!!! 

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    nIn today’s world we might say that these people are young and not so smart! Who would leave on such a journey and not have reservations when they arrive!!!!! Did not Joseph write ahead to tell his family they were coming? Why did they wait so long to leave for Bethlehem? Why didn’t her mother go with her to help her? The hundreds of questions we would ask today are not asked in the Christmas story. Why? Could it be that Mary and Joseph had faith? Did they trust God more than we do? Is the story just that—a story? No, I don’t think so. I believe this story brings to light all that God promises us. The journey of unknown happenings, failure to plan and unexpected events is there to show us that God is always faithful, God will always provide and God’s ultimate desire is for we his children to obey his will so that He may gift us with abundant graces. 

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    nSo family of St. John’s, we have begun the faithful journey of stepping out in grace listening for God’s Call to His Children. He calls us to come to Bethlehem so that I may gift you with my Love! We know not what will happen along the way and we may be fearful and unsure of our journey but we will trust God that his Love and Mercy will lead us to a place with a Star and a manger shedding light to the world and hope to those in need of His presence and Love! May we continue to find strength as we “Walk” in the Light of God?

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    nPrayer: Loving and gracious God, we ask you to be our beacon of Light, lead us on our path so that where ever we arrive you are there with us guiding our thoughts, our hands and mostly our Hearts to be like yours. Help us this season of Advent to reach out to others and to share your word with them. Give us the strength to be a flicker of you light in our home, church and community this Holy season, And all God’s Children Say AMEN.

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    nLorri McGuire
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  • Joseph & Mary Walk to Bethlehem

    Deuteronomy 6:4-7 Hear, O Israel: The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. n

    nI benefited from parents and grandparents who grounded me in the faith and recited God’s words to me at home and away, at bedtime and when rising. I want to provide that for Jane and her sibling.

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    nFor example, Jane loves to hear the Christmas story. We don’t participate in the Santa myth, so the Christmas story for her is and always has been the story of Jesus’ birth. It doesn’t have to be December for her to ask to hear me tell it again. There’s power in telling and retelling this story, and even though I don’t always feel like telling any story I try to indulge her when she asks. When I asked her to draw what she thought of when I say “Walk to Bethlehem” she gave me two figures – Joseph and Mary walking to Bethlehem, no extra explanation needed. 

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    nPrayer: Be with us, Lord, during this holy season of Advent. Help us tell your greatest story to our children in ways that make it real for them. Fix our hearts and minds on you as we take this walk to Bethlehem. Amen.

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    nMari Walker
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  • Bring Me Peace

    nLuke 1:45 Happy is she who believed that the Lord would fulfill the promises he made to her.
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    On this fourth Sunday in Advent, a Sunday which is traditionally known as the “peace” Sunday, the scripture reading, at least at first glance, is hardly “peaceful.” Mary has just been told by an angel that she is going to be pregnant: she is very young; although she is engaged, she is not married; she certainly fears for her very life; her first response is to flee, to run away. Mary leaves her home and travels the seventy or so miles to the “hill country.” It was not really a smart thing to do. In fact, for a man to make a journey like that alone was difficult and dangerous. For a young woman to do that, it was unheard of.

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    The inner turmoil that she was experiencing, however, made her do things that were totally out of the ordinary. I can picture the frantic pace of her journey – her actual walk and her emotional pace also. When she came to her cousin Elizabeth’s house she must have been filled with relief. She was physically safe and she must have known that in her cousin’s presence she was emotionally safe. 

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    nWhat must have surprised Mary was that she was also spiritually safe. Elizabeth’s greeting to Mary was an affirmation to her that all of this was God’s doing; that indeed they were part of God’s plan for the salvation of the world. In the midst of turmoil, Mary found that peace that she so desperately needed. That peace gave rise to words of hope, love and joy.

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    nI am reminded that as I journey through life, I may find myself in situations of turmoil and fear like Mary did. If I stop and listen to the voices of faith around me, I will hear the voice of God calling to me as it did to Mary two thousand years ago: “Emmanuel” – God with us – God with me. Those words bring me peace.
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    nPrayer: Loving God, in the midst of the turmoil of life, in the frantic pace of my journey, bring me into the presence of faithful friends. Open my ears, God, that I may hear the word that you are with me. Bring me peace. Amen.
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    nRev. Marie Williams
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    Lighting of the Advent Wreath for the Home – Week 4 

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    LOVE 

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    We have come to the last week of the Advent Season. Our spiritual walk to Bethlehem is almost complete. Not far ahead we see the outlines of the town, illuminated by the great star which hangs above it. We want to run now, not walk, to meet the newborn king of kings. Our hearts, filled with love, reach out to him. 

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    Each Sunday during this season of waiting, we have lighted a new candle in our Advent Wreath. The first was the candle of HOPE. Next we lighted the candle of PREPARATION. Third came the candle of JOY. Today all the candles will be lighted. The fourth candle is the candle of LOVE. 

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    With hearts filled with love, led by the light of the star, we walk on toward Bethlehem.n

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  • Praying the Scripture – Week 3

    Luke 1:39-45 Mary got up and hurried to a city in the Judean highlands. She entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. With a loud voice she blurted out, “God has blessed you above all women, and he has blessed the child you carry. Why do I have this honor, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. Happy is she who believed that the Lord would fulfill the promises he made to her.”
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    n1. Take a few moments in silence to center yourself. Consider what you desire from this encounter with God.
    n2. Read the scripture passage twice, slowly, so the details become familiar.
    n3. Close your eyes and imagine what is going on. What do you see? Hear? Smell? Taste? Touch?*
    n4. What emotions rise up for you? Does anything in particular cause a reaction for you?*
    n5. Where do you see yourself in the scripture?*
    n6. What questions or thoughts bubble up?
    n7. Close this time by talking honestly to God about your experience.
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    n*If you are practicing this with children, offering them crayons and paper to draw the scripture is a good way for them engage with the scripture.

  • Prayer of Thanksgiving and Supplication

    O God our Redeemer, by your grace you enrich us in speech and knowledge. We can pray with all confidence that through Christ you hear us. You fill our days with the presence of your Holy Spirit; we receive guidance for the decisions we must make. Waking or sleeping, we are enfolded with your protection.n

    nYou bid us watch for signs of your reign. Open our eyes to behold your presence in all parts of our lives. Keep us from putting you on the fringe of existence, from turning to you only when we are in need. Keep us forever aware that you accompany us in all our journeys; help us to make you preeminent in all that we do. Let others see in us the firstfruits of goodness and mercy, and they themselves brought to know you through deeds of goodwill.

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    nYou tell us through Christ to be ready, since we know not when the hour will come. Keep us from putting of until another time the discipline that will make us better disciples. Make us willing to break the comfortable routine and dare to start ventures that will test our obedience. Surround us with those who have made a similar commitment, so that they may teach us. Help us to seek their assistance and to learn of their ways. 

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    nYou send us out to be about our tasks. Go before us to guide us, and stay behind us to prod us. Live within us as God who fashions our being, as Christ who keeps us from falling, and as Holy Spirit in whose name we can do all things. Amen.
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    nJames G. Kirk
    nin When We Gather
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  • ECCE!

    Luke 1:38 “Behold, I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her. n

    nThe title of the text series I use with my Latin students is Ecce Romani, “Behold the Romans.” The word ‘ecce’ (pronounced eh-kay) means ‘look’, ‘behold.’ The word is used to turn the reader’s attention to the language, culture and history contained within the treasure house of the textbook. ‘Ecce’ is an important word in the Vulgate, St. Jerome’s Latin translation of the Bible from the original Hebrew and Greek. Often, English translations of the text omit the word, perhaps considering it too old fashioned or unnecessary. In the Advent story, however, ‘ecce’ occurs often and prominently and, I think, deserves special notice.

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    nIn Matthew’s account, the arrival of the angel delivering a message typically begins with ‘ecce.’ In Matthew 1:20, when the angel appears to Joseph, the text reads “Behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him” (my translation) to tell him not to be afraid to take Mary as his wife. In Luke 1:31, the angel Gabriel begins his message to Mary with ‘ecce’: “Behold, you will conceive and will bear a son.” Mary herself uses the word in her response to the angel’s message: “Behold the maid servant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38) In Luke 1:44, Elizabeth uses ‘ecce’ to call attention to her own baby’s leaping in the womb in response to Mary’s greeting: “For behold! As the voice of your greeting was brought to my ears, the infant in my womb exulted in joy”. In Luke 2:9 the word occurs to call attention to the appearance of the angel to the shepherds: “Behold an angel of the Lord stood next to them” and in verse 10 the angel announces “Behold, I bring good news of great joy for all peoples.”
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    ‘Ecce’ is a rich and important word! It calls our attention, begs our notice. What deserves our attention more than the news of the promise and miracle of Advent?
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    For me, ‘ecce’ is a call to be attentive, to live in intentional awareness and gratitude for all of the good news and everyday wonderful gifts with which our awesome God showers us – the stars, the seasons, the songs of birds and beauty of flowers. As Mary Oliver so aptly expresses in her poem “Yes No”: “To pay attention, this is our endless and proper work.”

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    nSo, in this season of Advent,
    nEcce the song in your heart,
    nEcce the miracle of your life,
    nEcce the angel that brings news
    nEcce the whispers of God in the silence
    nEcce the babe in the manger
    nEcce the miracle of Emmanuel – God with us!
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    nPrayer: God of mystery and miracle, open all our senses to behold the innumerable gifts you give us each day. Help us live this precious life with focus and attention, in constant and genuine awareness of your presence with us. Amen.

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    nBetty Schroeder
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  • Loving God Means Loving Always

    Mark 12:30-31 ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
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    nOver the past year I’ve gotten to hear this passage quite often. You see, every Sunday I had the privilege of being in a room full of middle school kids, learning about God from Mr. Jere Johnston and his family this past school year. Mark 12:30-31 was one of Mr. Jere’s favorite verses, and he reminded his students of the greatest commandment on a regular basis. Pastor Jay preached on this passage for All-Saints Sunday, where we honored the saints who have gone before us, including Mr. Jere.n

    nFollowing the Great Commandment is not easy, but rather than throw our hands up and give in, we have to try, right? As a follower of Christ, I have been reminded over this past year and a half that life is short, and you should not let a day go by where you are not reflecting on and being a reflection of, the love of God. Pastor Jay preaches that “Faith is an action word” and I like to think that “Love is an action word too!” God put his love for us into action when he sent Jesus to be born, did he not? He desires a loving relationship with us and for us to share his love with others every day.
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    nPrayer: Faithful and Loving God, fill us with your Holy Spirit and fire! We long to be in relationship with you every second of every day. Let us not take that relationship for granted, let us not take each day for granted, led us back where we belong, led us back safe into your arms. Amen.
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    nBrian Shoup
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