1 John 4:7-8 says, “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

We are told to love one another because love comes from God. God is revealed through that love. This is manifested through face-to-face connections with others. Since God is love, loving another person reveals God not only to ourselves, but it is revealed to all.

But the bottom line is that our souls long to be face to face. It is a fundamental part of our creation. God created us in relation. We desire to have real interactions with other people, but more and more, we choose to substitute physical interactions for other forms of communication. This can impact our relationships with others negatively and is realized in our ability to resolve conflict. Calhoun writes, “Our faces – arguably the most vulnerable part of us – go naked into relationships every day.” Not that technology is bad or evil, but there is truth behind these words. We can more easily put up an impenetrable wall around our lives when we hide our faces. This causes resolving things to be more difficult because we become a creation of defense. It enables hate, anger, and fear to take the reins of our lives. Without loving people, we quickly categorize into “us & them”. Dualism overtakes our thoughts and polarizes our opinions.

Source: Calhoun, A. A. (2015). Spiritual Disciplines Handbook: Practices That Transform Us. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, an imprint of InterVarsity Press.

Why do we worship? What is the point of gathering as a family of God to sing and hear from the Word every week? We are beings formed from the dust and created to worship, and I know that I often have the tendency of becoming distracted and forget the why behind worship. Too often, it becomes such a routine and the meaning behind worship gets forgotten.

We worship because at one point we had a false identify, but through God’s infinite mercy, we are brought to fullness. We receive mercy, and we become found people. No longer wanders. No longer slaves. We are now a people identified as those reconciled by God. That is something to get excited about! Through our response to this realization, it is only natural for us to worship. It is only natural for us to shout and sing praises to the God who has loved us from the beginning and will continue for eternity. This is why we worship! We worship because we have a reason to. We worship as a reaction and response to the boundless love of God.

Mark 11:7-11, NIV

⁷ When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it.⁸ Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. ⁹ Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,

“Hosanna!”

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

¹⁰ “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

¹¹ Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple courts. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

Today is Palm Sunday. The day when Jesus rode into Jerusalem not on a warhorse but a donkey. The day when Jesus came riding into the city without bloodshed but with peace. This is Jesus. This is our God. In the gospel of John, the author quotes Jesus saying, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9, NIV).” God is continually revealing God’s self throughout the entire Bible, but we do not fully see God revealed until we see Jesus, the Son of God.

Through Jesus, in Mark 11, God is shown as One who comes to restore and reconcile creation not through violence but through love. Through Jesus, we see God as One who would rather sacrifice and die than to enact violence. The Bible is a story of reconciliation. Those who sang, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” Many may not have fully understood this, for many of them resorted back to violence in the crucifixion of Jesus. But on Palm Sunday, we have the create privilege of joining the cries of praise to Christ that day when Jesus rode into Jerusalem, and we have the advantage of knowing the full story and meaning of Christ riding into Jerusalem on a donkey.

The Christmas season is, to borrow the cliché, the most wonderful time of the year. It is filled with opportunities for families to reunite. It is a chance to break out of the drudgery of our everyday routine. The Advent season is a time when we are reminded of hope, joy, peace, and love, and that Christ is Emmanuel—God with us.

Christmas can also be difficult. It can be hard to feel welcome to express anything other than joy and happiness. Whether due to financial troubles, the death of a loved one (recent or long past), or something else entirely, the holidays can be discouraging and challenging. It can be hard to feel like Christ is with us.

I write this in the midst of the death of my grandmother. During this time, it is hard to find language for grief. It’s Christmas time, and Christ’s birth is on everyone’s mind, but the pain is real. However, the hymn “Abide with Me,” written by Henry Francis Lyte in 1847, provides helpful words. I love this sobering hymn with deep passages. It is a beautiful poem and has a wonderful tune. It was actually written and revised at the threshold of Lyte’s death. While this hymn is most often used in the church calendar around Lent or Pentecost, I believe it also has a place during Advent and Christmas time. It invites the worshiper to express hurt.

(The Brigham Young University’s men choir performance of “Abide with Me“ is a beautiful arrangement which allows for meditating on the lyrics and allows the listener to freely contemplate.)

“Abide with Me”

Verse 1
Abide with me, fast falls the eventide
The darkness deepens Lord, with me abide
When other helpers fail and comforts flee
Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.

Verse 2
Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day
Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away
Change and decay in all around I see
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Verse 3
I need your presence every passing hour
What but your grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who like yourself my guide and strength can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.

Verse 4
I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness
Where is death’s sting?
Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Verse 5
Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies
Haven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee
In life, in death, o Lord, abide with me.

Lyte writes for an occasion like a family’s first gathering after hardship. It has given language for grief as my family works through the death of my grandmother, and speaks to anyone who has painful memories or difficult situations arise during the holidays. No matter what is happening for you this Christmas, Lyte’s words can speak to you.

Take, for example, “Change and decay in all around I see; O Thou, who changest not, abide with me!” It is a line that is entirely destitute. There have been many times in my life when I realized that everything was different. The passing of my grandmother has certainly been one of them. It has affected everyone in the family, it has changed family dynamics, and it can be a hard reality to grasp, but a reality we have to come to terms with eventually.

The words, “The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide!” is a cry for help amongst grief and pain. It is a cry to feel the presence of God. Even if you aren’t dealing with having financial struggles, hurt among family, or a family member’s death, the holidays and Christmas is a busy time, and it can be hard to know and feel the presence of God. The hymn is a constant prayer for the Divine to be near and stand beside us.

What seems most important is how the hymn centers the singer with the Divine, and gives an assurance of faith. At the end of verse 3, Lyte writes, “Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.” Even though we are surrounded by death, heartbreak, and sorrow, we have assurance through Christ, our Lord. Through darkness, tears, and hardship, Christ stays the same. Through light, joy, and good times, Christ abides with us.

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Matthew 6:25-34, NIV

When Jesus was talking to his disciples, he told them not to worry, and he uses the birds of the air as an illustration. This passage is not often thought of as a passage about worship, but it actually is. One of the key points in this passage is the first word of verse 26. Jesus said, “Look.” To look or consider something requires us to take time, and when we take time to slow down, we become centered.

Taking time to look, consider, or observe is crucial in a person’s worship and spiritual life. Without that, it is like looking at the world through a pinhole. It is hard to see the beauty because of all the things happening, but when a person slows down, they can see all the things they can be grateful for. It is a good step in developing a healthy spiritual life.

Life can easily become overwhelming. This is no mystery. Without realizing it, our days can be filled up with commitments and appointments. This is especially the case with the holidays. Thanksgiving just flew passed us, and now Christmas and New Years are fast approaching. It can be hard to take time to consider the birds and the lilies, but taking time each day to simply be, can change an overwhelming life into an encouraging one. This can look different from person to person. For me, I spend time each day praying around a prayer rope. This helps me to slow down and focus on God. Slowing down is unique to each individual, but it only takes a little time to just look around.