Advent IV - Mary as a model for a Servant of God

What does it mean to be innocent yet WILLING?  Ask Ruby Bridges.

1. Meaning: Done, given, accepted, or borne voluntarily or ungrudgingly. Mary is our model for a willing servant of God.
2. To be willing does not require understanding - such as taking orders or requests.
3. Some are willing in the midst of adversity or danger, their spirit overcomes uncertainty or fear and they accept the outcomes prior to acting.
4. Some balance the outcomes or ‘good’ which benefits the community.
5. Spock once said, "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few".
6. John Stuart Mill concluded that the "greatest good for the greatest number" is the sum total of the moral and ethical choice to make.
7. Do arguments or moral rightness sway us to do the ‘right’ thing?
8. The inclination to do what is best or right or good is the result, many have concluded, of having formed a certain kind of ‘character’ which guides us.
9. To choose to do the best for others, in the midst of conflict, is called brave or heroic. If there were not risk, there is no bravery or courage.
10. To choose the right thing to do when it is likely no one is aware except the actor is a result of and reinforces the moral fiber or ‘character’ of the individual.
11. Some well known for such character are: the prophets, Jesus, Mahatma Gandhi, Dorothy Day, Dietrich Bonhoeffer , and Martin Luther King, Jr.
12. Some are children.(See art above)
13. While conscience is not always ‘right’ in assessing a situation, the resolve to do what one judges as moral or ethical is a demonstration of depth of character.
14. When one understands what principles govern many rules and practices, one them might make choices those who do not comprehend the precedence of principles will not necessarily understand or agree with.
15. Mary is an example to us of the character of an innocent young woman who was willing to accept the desire of God to take on human flesh and dwell among us.
16. The four Sundays of Advent:
1. Mary is our example in her WONDER at the beauty of creation.
2. Mary is our example in her WATCHING the miracles of God unfold.
3. Mary is our example in her WAITING for God’s will to be clear.
4. Mary is our example in her WILLINGNESS to be God’s handmaiden.
17. In Short, Mary offered herself totally to the service of God.
18. "O GOD, who art the author of peace and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom; Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in thy defense, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."  - This is the Collect for Peace from the Episcopal Church's Book of Common Prayer.

Christmas Food Court Flash Mob, Hallelujah Chorus - Must See!

The Third Sunday in Advent - A time of watching and discernment

There are so many kinds of watching!

1. "Watchman, watchman what of the night? The watchman said 'the morning comes and then the night" Isaiah 21:11" (Prophecy against Edom)
2. "Daddy, Mommy, Watch Me!"
3. "I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay - Watching the tide roll away - Ooo, I'm just sittin' on the dock of the bay - Wastin' time..." Otis Redding.
4. The San Juan Islands provide one of the best whale watching opportunities anywhere in the world...
5. "You just watch yourself, young man, or you will get more than you bargained for!"
6. "This is the surgeons knot, watch how I do it and then you try".
7. Looking is different from watching because you might miss some of the signs.
8. Do we understand the difference between look up and watch out?
9. The Prophets gave us the signs and the warnings but would not paint a picture.
10. Mary knew watching, not just looking, or they would never had gone to Egypt.
11. Life is more a dance than a race, rhythm is essential and everyone can win.
12. What we learn from watching nature teaches us far more than they learn from us.
13. You better watch out, you better not cry, the signs are there if you just try....
14. The key difference in watching, really watching, is to learn the meaning of what we see, but often do not absorb.
15. Mary knew, not because she understood from what she was told, but because she was willing to live into the promises and prophesies of the history of her people.
16. The goal of watching, of exploring as T.S. Elliott put it, is to connect the dots, that is to understand in all its' fullness:

We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time.

Through the unknown, unremembered gate

When the last of earth left to discover

Is that which was the beginning;

At the source of the longest river

The voice of the hidden waterfall

And the children in the apple-tree

Not known, because not looked for

But heard, half-heard, in the stillness

Between two waves of the sea.

Quick now, here, now, always—

A condition of complete simplicity

(Costing not less than everything)

And all shall be well and

All manner of thing shall be well

When the tongues of flame are in-folded

Into the crowned knot of fire

And the fire and the rose are one

The Second Sunday of Advent

Things that make you full of Wonder - and AWE: Awesome Things

Advent II

　

1. Being born
2. The first time we realize we are truly loved just for who we are.
3. Standing on the shore of any Lake with not an artificial light in sight and seeing stars like you have never seen them before, realizing your solar system is one of them.
4. Sitting in the Colorado River for an hour after hiking down the 9 mile Kaibab trail, eating lunch then hiking back up again on the same day.
5. Flying above the earth at 36,000 ft on a clear, sunny day looking down.
6. Watching a chrysalis break open and the butterfly hang out to dry.
7. Finding a real friend, one who will not abandon you when things get tough.
8. The first time staying up late into the night and finding how much we have in common with the other.
9. The first time we get to drive the car alone (even if the voice of our parents lives).
10. Those special days we wake up knowing we love life and are glad for who we are.
11. Times we really sacrifice what we wanted to benefit someone else and don’t even feel a need to tell them.
12. Days we realize we love what we do and really don’t NEED too much more.
13. When we finally understand that asking the right questions is more important that having the right answers.
14. Times when everyone at the service sang exactly the right notes at exactly the right time and there was silence when it was over because no one would break the moment.
15. The day we discover we have a unique and special purpose and embrace the opportunity the way we would embrace a long lost friend.
16. The lack of any sound outside at night after the first snowfall of the winter.
17. Dreaming of flying.(Especially when we know you are dreaming and take control)
18. Seeing the awesome power of nature in a storm - or in the quiet before the storm.
19. Believing you have come to the end of your strength and finding that you have gained strength you never knew or expected.
20. Seeing a baby born. The Cycle Continues.......

What does 'Awesome' really mean to you.

The word awesome has been abused somewhat. This week I am contemplating what the concept of 'wondering' might mean to myself and others. Later I will share some experiences of moments of 'awe', yet I am curious if you might share those moments with us. This is not 'shock and awe' but rather 'wonder and awe'. Do you recall these moments? Tell us.