THE DAYS AFTER CHRISTMAS

 The Days After Christmas

Now that Christmas day has come and gone, and we have celebrated and basked in the wonder and special activities,  what do we do next?

As I think of Joseph and Mary in the days following the birth of Christ, the coming of the shepherds, and the wonder of looking upon the precious Christ child, I can't help but think of my own experience in the days following the birth of our first son.

After all of the miracles and special spirit of the arrival of our firstborn, and all the well wishes from family, friends and hospital staff, we then brought him home to our small apartment.  I remember holding him on the couch and looking at my wife, and we were alone, and the reality of the situation set in, and I said, "what do we do now?"  It suddenly dawned on me that now we had responsibility to raise him, protect the him, provide for him, and actually learn how to BECOME a father and mother.  It was utterly humbling and a bit overwhelming.  I realized suddenly that my life could never be the same again, and that I needed to become someone different.

As this picture below portrays so well, Joseph and Mary likely faced the same sobering realities.

So what did they do?

Luke 2 explains that they moved forward in faith and obedience.  They didn't just wander back to Nazareth.  Instead, they completed the necessary purification and then took Jesus to the temple to present him before the Lord.

There is an example in this which we can learn from.

We have completed all the Christmas festivities and traditions and the day has now come and gone.  Will we simply revert back into our prior ways, patterns and habits?  Or will we remember the Christ and how having Him in our lives forever changes who we are and what we should become, and begin a process of purifying our hearts and moving towards Holier ground to present ourselves to the Lord?

Each time we remember Him, whether it be at the Christmas season, Easter, or even each week as we partake of the Sacrament,  we should be changed by such experiences.  It would be foolish for us to simply complete the hollow outward observances of such occasions and then revert back to who we were before.  We must reflect, make further changes of purification and commitment and move forward in faith, ever closer towards Him in higher and holier ways.

This type of change is NOT another "to do" list or strict new years resolutions we need to struggle to complete and check off.  Rather it is more of a release and surrender of the heart.  It is a process of letting go of our attempts to control things, and instead surrendering all of what and who we are into His loving hands, which are so beautifully marked with the level of His love and commitment to us.

In fact, the ultimate goal, and what we actually make covenants to do each week in the sacrament, is to "ALWAYS remember Him" so that we can "ALWAYS have His Spirit to be with us" in a state of constant companionship, friendship, and worship.

Why do we hold back or want to revert back into our old ways and habits of struggle?  Do we "fear" what the surrender to Him will require of the natural man within us, which clings so desperately to the temporary and meaningless things of Babylon?

Have we celebrated and are done?  Or will we now move forward and upward in faith and trust towards Him, and BECOME what only He can make us into?

When we truly come to realize Who He is and how much He truly loves us, the surrender is something of peace and ease.  It is a lifting of all our burdens and taking a first breath of fresh air.  For we realize that all He desires is to help remake us into His own image, so we can dwell with Him forevermore.

He Who Stands In The Gap

He Who Stands In The Gap

I don’t want to make any light-hearted comparisons, but I am always amazed at the loving and relatable ways the Lord helps me understand things. Perhaps it is just because I am a simple-minded guy in many ways and He knows I will connect the dots better with relatable imagery. But as I was studying, pondering and praying this morning, and feeling grateful for my Savior, some impressions came to my mind.

What came to me was the scene from the Lord of the Rings, when the fellowship are fleeing the mines of Moria, and are being pursued by the ancient demon, called the Balrog. The company is fleeing across a narrow bridge as the demon is about to overtake them. But in this company of little hobbits and mortal men, is a powerful wizard, named Gandalf. At this pivotal moment, Gandalf stops upon the narrow bridge to confront the fiery beast, standing between the demon and his friends.

Holding a sword in one hand and his staff in the other, he proclaims… no commands… “You shall not pass!!!”

Single-handedly he battles the demon and falls through deep caverns, and is wounded, but eventually emerges from that battle, having slain the Balrog, and having transformed himself from Gandalf the Gray… into Gandalf the White.

In this simple literary and cinematic imagery which came to my mind, the Lord showed me how He stands in the narrow way, between myself and the fiery adversary we would call, the devil. He alone held in his hands the power and ability to command death and hell proclaiming, “You shall not pass!!!” With a sword and staff, he conquered both physical death through the resurrection and spiritual death through His atoning sacrifice. He was willing to condescend and descend through the depths of hell to overcome the darkest of foes, and emerged from the pit a resurrected and glorified Being of pureness.

"He Lives" by Simon Dewey

And even still, like Gandalf the White in the story, He is willing to continue to ride into battle with us in our personal battles against our enemies in the daily walk of life…. Right down in the trenches with us in all the dirty muck of it all. All so he can teach us how to be warriors, how to conquer our fears, and how to become worthy of the crown He so longingly wants to place upon us in His Kingdom.

I am so grateful for my “Gandalf the White”, my Savior and Redeemer, even Jesus Christ!!!

Through my covenants with Him, He stands in the breach between me and the foul demon. He was willing to take my blows, whips and suffering upon Himself… all so that He could lead me towards learning to become a King myself and inheriting a throne in His kingdom.

Oh, how my heart rejoices because of Him! That humble Babe in a manger, once wrapped in simple swaddling cloth, who now stands in royal robes of White! All honor and glory be to Him! He is ever worthy of all our adoration and devotion!