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“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

With this opening sentence, John begins describing the creation of the cosmos. The world, he goes on to say, was a formless waste. 

But God created order – and with that all of humanity.

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We know how the history of our world has unfolded since – there’s been a combination of light and darkness, love and hatred, peace and war, action and indifference. 

You might say, a mixed bag.

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Maybe that’s how 2019 was for us – a mixed bag.

There were days we’d probably like to repeat and days we’d like to erase; days when we were sinners, days when we were saints, and lots of days in between.

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But herein lies the blessing of New Year’s Eve. We’re at the end of the road. 

Tomorrow is a new year – a new decade – and with it a clean slate.

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As we turn to 2020, may every blessing you seek be yours.

Bring the right attitude, never forgetting Jesus is Emmanuel, God is with us.

Happy New Year!

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“There was a prophetess, Anna…who never left the temple” (Luke 2:36-40).

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This is one of the only passages in the entire bible where a female prophetess is mentioned.

In this case, it’s the prophetess, Anna, an 84-year-old widow, who spends her days in the temple praying to God.

Like many in Israel, Anna believed that God would visit his people – it’s the most important promise the Lord makes in the Old Testament. They just didn’t know when he would do it. 

Today, in her elderly years, Anna sees this promise answered.

Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us.

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Though we may not be physically frail – or in our 80’s – like the prophetess Anna, how many of us have become spiritually frail, tired of waiting for the Lord to act?

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Anna waited her whole life for God to answer her deepest desire.  And notice where he answers it – in the temple.

The same will be true for us.

If we want God to act in our lives, the best place be is right here in church. 

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There’s a beautiful, sometimes overlooked, detail in today’s Gospel. 

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After Jesus rose from the dead, he tossed his burial cloths aside – much like we’d toss aside dirty laundry; he had no further use for them.

However, he took the time to roll up the cloth once covering his head, placing it in a separate area.

Why??

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There was a custom in ancient Israel where a master would drop his napkin on the table when he was finished eating, signaling for his servants to clean the table.

The napkin was used, much like dirty laundry.

But if he folded it, then it signaled he wasn’t finished eating; he was coming back.

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Jesus folded his napkin. 

As the Gospel tell us, he “rolled it up in a separate place,” meaning:

“I’m not finished. I’m coming back.”