Oak Chapel United Methodist Church

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This collection of daily devotions for the 1997 Advent season is provided for members and friends of Oak Chapel United Methodist Church by The Committee on Worship and Spiritual Life, Marie Gowen, chairperson.

November 30, 1997

THE CHRISTMAS STORY ACCORDING TO LUKE

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem...to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

(Luke 2:4 14)

Juanita Johnston

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December 1, 1997

This morning when you awoke, I was already there with you in your room. I was there hoping that you would say good morning to me; you didn't. I thought maybe it was just a little too early in the day for you to notice me. Again, I tried to get your attention when you stepped out of your door. I kissed your face with a soft, gentle breeze. I breathed upon you, my fragrant sweet breath scented with flowers. Then I sang you a love song through the birds in the trees. You walked right past me.

Later on in the day, I watched over you as you were talking with some of your friends. How I wished that you would talk to me also. I waited, but you just went along your way.

This afternoon I sent you a refreshing shower. I even shouted to you a time or two with thunder, trying to get your attention. Then, I painted for you a lovely rainbow in the midst of my fluffy clouds. I just knew you would see me then, but you were unaware of my presence.

This evening to close your day, I sent you a beautiful sunset. After that, I winked at you a thousand times through my stars hoping that you would see me and wink back. You never did.

Tonight, when you went to bed, I spilled moonlight upon your face to let you know that I was there with you. I was hoping that you would talk to me a little while before you went to sleep. I continued to watch over you all through the night thinking that maybe you would say hello to me in the morning.

Each and every day I have revealed myself to you in many strange and wondrous ways, hoping that you would accept me as your shepherd. For I am the only one that can supply you with all your needs. My love for you is deeper than the deepest ocean and bigger than the great blue sky. I have so very much to give to you and also share with you. Please let me hear from you soon.
God.

Anonymous

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December 2, 1997

A Promise...

What is a promise?
A pledge of faith
Like the Song of Isaiah
"Unto us a child is born.."
"Wonderful Counselor..."
"Prince of Peace..."

What is a promise?
A statement of hope
Given by Gabriel to Mary
"God is gracious..."
"You will give birth to a son."
"And Elizabeth..."

What is a promise?
A message of love
From the angels to the shepherds
"Fear not..."
A Savior is born..."
"Peace among men..."

What is a promise?
New life from God Almighty
For us
"A child..."
A son..."
"The Savior..."

Chris Mosier

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December 3, 1997

"...You shall call his name JESUS."
(Luke 1:31)

People of his day called him Teacher, Prophet, Blasphemer...
Some today call him A Great Man, a Wonderful Example...
The inscription over the cross called him King of the Jews...
Isaiah called him Suffering Servant...
The writer of Hebrews called him High Priest...
Demons called him Holy One of God...
Daniel called him Ancient of Days...
People of the synagogue called him One Who Had Authority...
Mary and Martha called him Friend...
Jeremiah called him Our Righteousness...
A leper called him Lord...
Zechariah called him Dayspring...
The Pharisees called him Sinner...
Micah called him Ruler...
St. Paul called him The Rock...
The Angel Gabriel called him Son of the Most High...
Angels called him Savior...
A blind man called him Son of David...
The multitude on Palm Sunday called him King...
A once paralyzed man called him The Man Who Healed Me...
John called him The Word...
John the Baptist called him The Lamb of God...
Peter called him Messiah...
Jesus called himself The Bread of Life...
God called him My Beloved Son...

What do you call him?

Marie Gowen

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December 4, 1997

"THE GOD WHO COMES"

Years ago, Samuel Beckett wrote a play, "Waiting for Godot", that has a very striking message. It's the portrayal of two men waiting for someone who never shows up. The two old tramps, Estragon and Vladimir, their lives of action behind them and crushed by a darkness of boredom lighted only by a faint hope, wait on a bare stretch of road, near a tree, for a man whose name is Godot. Who Godot is, nobody seems to know. A small boy appears twice to announce that Godot has postponed his arrival. As time goes on, the tramps even think of committing suicide, giving up on Godot, or returning again tomorrow to wait. Each time, they decide to wait till tomorrow, and the play ends exactly where it began the two characters are still waiting...

There's danger of reading more into this drama than the playwright intended, but I can't help thinking of the contrast between the bleakness, the depressing meaninglessness of the waiting of these two tramps for someone who never comes, and CHRISTMAS, the celebration of THE GOD WHO COMES. That our God is a GOD WHO COMES is the great affirmation of this season of Advent. As the prophet Isaiah cried out: "SAY TO THOSE OF A FEARFUL HEART, 'BE STRONG, FEAR NOT: BEHOLD, YOUR GOD WILL COME AND SAVE YOU'".

But there seems a pervasive notion today that though God came once, He no longer comes. As Creator, He set the universe in motion with fixed laws and forces, but we're now left to manipulate these either for our progress or for our ruin. He's a deistic God Who watches us stew in our juice from some distant and remote place in the universe. In a list of questions submitted to high school students for off the cuff answers, there was this question: "DO YOU THINK GOD UNDERSTANDS RADAR?" Most of the students answered "no". They felt that radar was something that man had developed after God had taken His hands off. Evidently, to these students, God is fixed, static, and remote certainly not a God Who COMES!

But our God IS a God Who Comes! From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is the Book of "the God Who Comes," the God Who invades this planet, Who enters human history to establish His Kingdom, a God in dialogue with His people. Hosea was conscious of this dynamic relationship; he thought of God as having a CONTROVERSY WITH HIS PEOPLE. And the entire life and ministry of Jesus is interpreted by the New Testament writers as God's COMING. As one author phrased it, "NOW AT LAST GOD HAS HIS DWELLING AMONG MEN! HE WILL DWELL AMONG THEM AND THEY SHALL BE HIS PEOPLE, AND GOD HIMSELF WILL BE WITH THEM." The message of this beautiful season of Advent is indeed GOOD NEWS. Christmas marks the coming of One Who is near enough to save because He is God. It marks the coming of One Who is near enough to save because he is also MAN. No wonder people through the ages have rhapsodized about Christmas picturing the earth and heavens as singing for joy on that first Christmas night.

Rev. John Walker

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December 5, 1997

COLORS OF CHRISTMAS

The earth here below,
With the colors of Christmas is all aglow.
We pass them but with blinded eyes do not see,
What Christmas really is to you and me.
Each color significant in its own right,
Take a closer look and receive your sight.
Silver is the star that was so bright,
Shining above the manger that night.
Gold is the gift the wise man brought,
As diligently the Savior he sought.
Red is the blood which that Savior would shed,
For he came to die in our stead.
Green is the life eternal we receive,
When in our hearts the truth we conceive.
White is that life so fresh and new,
The whole meaning of Christmas for me and you.
So let us look around once again,
And see the colors of Christmas from our heart within.
The story of Jesus, our great Lord and King,
Who came as a babe salvation to bring.

(Author Unknown)

Carol Rhoades

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December 6, 1997

One of my favorite passages of Scripture is John 1:1 18. Unlike the Synoptic Gospels, John does not go through the genealogy or even provide a simple birth narrative. In fact, there is no baby Jesus. In a sense that is where we are in Advent. Advent is a time of preparation for Christmas, for the celebration of the coming of Jesus Christ.

In one of my classes at Wesley this term we have been discussing God's salvation history. As we define our theology, we are encouraged to examine who God is, what God has done, and how we are to respond. In our limited human understanding of God, we are left to say who God is from what God has done. John describes the God who became flesh and dwelt among us. What does this tell us about the God who wants to be in relation with us and who loved us enough to become incarnate?

As we approach Christmas this year, the question of how we respond is left for us. Are we preparing to celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ, are we just preparing to celebrate, or do we somehow feel that we have nothing to celebrate? For me the answer lies in John's statement of the light shining in the darkness. The God of Creation did not abandon the world but came into the world, full of grace and truth. Through Jesus Christ we have received grace upon grace.

Indeed, God has given us something to celebrate!

Dick Glassbrook

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December 7, 1997

"He has helped his servant, Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever."

(Luke 1:54 55)

I am humbled when I think of God's great mercy to his children. He loves us all and just wants us to be with him, regardless of what we have done. I have come to expect God to help me, to forgive me, and to give me the strength and guidance to start again.

Do I show the same mercy to my children and those around me?

Amie King

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December 8, 1997

"All things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose."
(Romans 8:28)

The word "all" is an absolute word: It includes all of the many wonderful blessings bestowed on us; but it also includes all the traumatic things that can happen to us.

In our world if you miss certain opportunities, you miss out on glory, success and many other rewards. If you don't select the right job, take the right turn, choose the right doctor, if you don't have the right friend at the right time, or if you are born to the wrong parents from the earthly standpoint you feel that it did not work out for you.

But God has promised that everything will advance your good if you love God and are seeking to follow him. The mistakes, the mishaps, the misfortunes, the misjudgments, the sins of others committed against you, the sins you commit every circumstance in life works for your good. We are told in the Bible to be thankful in all things. It's easy to be brave in the high moments of life, but when you are up to your elbows in grime it's not so easy to be thankful. Let us today be thankful and as joyful as we can accepting whatever lies before us.

Dear Heavenly Father, I am thankful that whatever comes to me today pain and pleasure you will use for my benefit. I receive your peace and pray that by my thoughts and my actions I will further the coming of your kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Eileen Stewart

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December 9, 1997

"What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"
(Micah 6:8)

At work and at home, the demands placed on our family can at times seem overwhelming. There is simply not enough time or enough hands to complete the tasks that need to be done. Who will change the diapers? Who will get the groceries? Who will help with the homework? Who will prepare the meals? The bath? The medicine? Who will wipe up the mess, bandage the scrape, and reassure the crying child that everything will be okay?

The many demands that are placed on us often are compounded by the demands we place on ourselves, especially during the holidays. The work before us can seem too great, given the time, energy, and commitment that is required. All that God requires, however, is for us to practice love, fairness, and forgiveness. When we seek his kingdom first and rely on the strength that God provides, the day to day and moment to moment problems take care of themselves.

During this Advent, we pray that our family and the family of Oak Chapel will continue to recognize and attend to God's presence in our lives, and that this season will be a joyous celebration of His grace.

Hugh, Linda, Christina, Gordon, and Matthew Berry

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December 10, 1997

Psalm 51

This is my prayer
Because of your constant love
Because of your great mercy
Wipe away my sins!
Wash away all my evil and make me clean from my sins.

A Prayer for Forgiveness

Be merciful unto me O Lord, a sinner
We were born in a world of sins,
But there is no condemnation now.
For those who live in the law of the spirits
Our Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior of the World
We thank you for the love, which brought you to the cross
To die for our sins
We thank you for your patience with our waywardness and failures
And for the abiding presence of your spirit, O Lord
Teach us to follow in your footsteps
Teach us to follow your example
Fill our hearts with such love as is yours filled
To care for others as you cared for us
Fill our hearts that we may serve their needs
And seal their redemption for the sake of our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ who rose from the dead, and went to heaven to make a place for us.
Amen

(Mark 10:45, Psalm 130, Romans 8:5)

Gwendolyn Greaves

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December 11, 1997

(John 1:1 3)

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...." These are words filled with wonder, beauty, and mystery. They are words which lie at the center of the Christmas season ahead, because it, too, is a season filled with wonder, beauty, and mystery. Certainly there is wonder at the God who would become an active part of this struggling world in order to love the creation back to wholeness.

There is beauty in this season also. The beauty of a baby's birth, a star in the sky, and the song of angels is something we try in our own way to duplicate. We retell the birth narrative, hang lights above our houses, and sing songs matched in beauty by no other season all in an attempt to touch the beauty of the Christmas event.

But there is also mystery in the season ahead. Christmas was not a simple event. As the words in John's gospel remind us, this same Christ who was born as a baby 2000 years ago was also the Christ who was present and active at the creation of the universe. "All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being," we are told. That puts us hard against mystery, because, in the words of the Christmas carol, "the stars in the sky [which] looked down where he lay," were looking down on the very God which created them.

Prayer: Enter our hearts this day Lord Jesus, allowing us to delight in the wonder, the beauty, and the mystery of this holy season.

Rev. Harry C. Cole

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December 12, 1997

The Advent season always brings to my mind the circumstances surrounding Jesus' birth and a comparison of a baby's birth in the more developed countries of the world today.

Would a young woman of today, perhaps less than twenty years of age, accept such a responsibility as that given to Mary by God? Would she marry an itinerant carpenter with no steady job, no retirement, or insurance plan? Yet Mary had all the faith she needed for this honor. A young woman of today, facing imminent birth of a son (she would know the sex of her unborn child by an earlier test) and would have all arrangements made with her obstetrician and hospital. Mary had only a stable and a manger for her baby's bed. No sterile, stainless steel delivery room flooded with light and staffed with doctors and nurses. No expensive layette and Pampers for the baby Jesus, only swaddling clothes. Yet from this lowly birthplace came the greatest person every to be born...our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Has the world made a mockery of his birth by succumbing to the commercialism displayed during this season every year? Yes, Virginia, there is a Lord Jesus. He is with us every day of every year, not just the one day when we celebrate his birth.

Imogene Beal

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December 13, 1997

"Besides this, you know what hour it is, how it is full time now for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licenteousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." (Romans 13:11 14)

Three strangers rode together on white camels, so they say...
Three who shared a secret dream in a city far away.
While following an eastern star they heard the angels sing...
Balthasar, Melchior, and Casper came to see the newborn King.
They found Jesus in a manger in the town of Bethlehem,
And three kings of the Orient knelt down to worship him.
They rode away together so Herod wouldn't know...
An Egyptian, Greek, and Hindu, that first Christmas long ago.
The baby born in the darkness of time,
One baby born for the good of mankind.
So small, so frail, so meek was he
Who would have thought the Son of God he would be?
One baby born to laugh and play,
One baby born to give us hope that day.
So small, so frail, so meek was he,
Who would have thought his mission was to die on a tree?
One baby born to suffer for all,
One baby born to die was his call.
So small, so frail, so meek was he,
Who would have thought he held the key
That opens life's gate of victory?
One baby born in the darkness of time,
One baby born for the good of mankind.
So small, so frail, so meek was he,
Born to die to set man free,
A gift of love for you and me.

Jackie Fraley

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December 14, 1997

THE NIGHT THE ANGELS SANG

"And suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.'"
(Luke 2:13 14, KJV)

It must have been an awesome experience for the shepherds to hear a choir of angels joyfully announcing the Christ Child's birth! I wish I had been there. But, there was another night when I'm sure the angels sang ... and I was there. Many years ago, Marie and I went to Constitution Hall to hear the Philadelphia Orchestra. Zubin Mehta has just directed the dramatic opening of "Thus Spake Zarathustra". The music had become hauntingly serene, and I found myself leaning forward from my balcony seat in an attempt to better view the stage. Marie asked me what I was looking for, and I said, "The women's chorus". She assured me there was no such chorus. I know there was none to be seen, and that the score does not call for singing. Nevertheless, I heard them! As it was for the shepherds, it had been an awesome experience for me, and the sound was glorious.

I know I will hear singing like that in Heaven. Until then, I shall be content with hearing again the timeless and beautiful account from God's Word of the night the angels sang.

Paul Gowen

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December 15, 1997

WHAT CHRISTMAS MEANS TO ME

White snow falling gently from the nighttime sky. Looking under a street light one can see the small crystalline shapes as they land on the ground. All is silent; even the animals are hushed, filled with awe. Peace blankets the neighborhoods.

Christmas lights of many colors flicker and dance from the homes and trees leaving behind a radiant warmth. Inside windows, Christmas trees pose seductively as they taunt and tease one with their hypnotizing beauty. Plastic candles, placed in windows stand tall, burn brightly all night long. The aroma of butter cookies, cooked turkey, ham, and pine linger in the air, leaving one feeling hungry and relaxed. Faces glow with sheer happiness; old resentments are forgotten for a while. Those in need are remembered and helped. Kindness touches the hearts and souls of those who are bitter and angry. Love is abundant...Life is joyful!

All this is a celebration of the birth of a baby boy; a time of remembrance and thanksgiving to a King, our Savior Jesus Christ.

Happy birthday, Jesus!

Stephanie Dimisa

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December 16, 1997

Psalm 100

"Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the lands!
Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into His presence with singing!

Know that the Lord is God!
It is He that made us and we are His;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And His courts with praise!
Give thanks to Him, bless His name!

For the Lord is good;
His steadfast love endures forever,
And His faithfulness to all generations."

Jo King

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December 17, 1997

A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE

A shy and reserved girl started ninth grade in a big city high school. She never thought she would be lonely, but she soon found herself thinking of her old eighth grade class, small and friendly. In the new school, no one seemed to care if she felt lonely. She would occasionally have a buddy who took advantage by cheating on her.

She would walk the hall but no one spoke to her. She became obsessed that her thoughts weren't good enough to be heard. Her parents were worried about her for they feared she would never make friends, and since they were divorced, she needed a friend badly. They bought her clothes and CDs, but that didn't work. They didn't know she was thinking of ending her life. She finally decided to jump off a bridge on Christmas Eve.

She had written a note to her parents. When she pulled down the door of the mailbox, several letters fell out and one was addressed to her. When she tore it open, she saw it was from a boy in her youth group who wanted to be her friend because he was going through the same thing she had gone through with divorced parents. I guess you could say he was a "Christmas Miracle" because friendship is the best and cheapest gift you can give anyone, as it was with a little babe born at Christmas. Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay and leave footprints on our hearts and we are never the same.

Laura Butco

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December 18, 1997

"For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He might be the first born within a large family."

This scripture for me describes the greatest miracle by far of any in the Bible passing through the Red Sea on dry land, feeding the 5000, Jesus walking on water these are minor miracles compared to the miracle of God changing an ordinary human being to be like the Lord Jesus Himself What a miracle!!

God does some things in an instant but the Bible uses the word "conformed", and the word conformed indicates a process that takes time. The adverse winds, the raging misfortunes, the unfair words and actions, the long boring dailyness of many people's lives as well as the sunshine and warm summer rains of life all are used of God to change into the final product the immature Christian who sings, "I surrender all" with great fervor while having a heart full of pride and other sin he knows not of. The little toddling crown prince in the royal nursery, though he seem an ordinary child, is destined to be king. And we whom Jesus calls, we sinful, weak, inconstant are yet promised this miracle of transformation to be like our Lord.

Dorothy and Donald Moseley

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December 19, 1997

A HUMAN DIVINITY

He was placed in a manger
Meant for feeding cattle.

His visitors were shepherds
Watching sheep in a field.

An angel told the good news,
"Peace among men."

No silver tinsel adorned the stable,
Just a place for animals.

No Christmas cards greeted him,
Only ordinary people.

No jingle bells announced the arrival,
Instead praising angels.

Just animals, shepherds, angels present,
At the Savior's birth...

Chris Mosier

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December 20, 1997

"Jesus Loves me, this I know,
For the BIBLE tells me so"
Little children ask no more,
For love is all they're looking for,
And in a small child's shining eyes
The FAITH of all the ages lies
And tiny hands and tousled heads
That kneel in prayer by little beds
Are closer to the dear LORD'S heart
And of His Kingdom more a part
Than we who search, and never find,
The answers to our questioning mind
For FAITH in things we cannot see
Requires a child's simplicity
For, lost in life's complexities,
We drift upon uncharted seas
And slowly FAITH disintegrates
While wealth and power accumulates
And the more man learns, the less he knows,
And the more involved his thinking grows,
And, in his arrogance and pride,
No longer is man satisfied
To place his confidence and love
With childlike FAITH in God above
Oh, Father, grant once more to men
A simple childlike FAITH again
And, with a small child's trusting eyes,
May all men come to realize
That FAITH alone can save man's soul
And lead him to a HIGHER GOAL.

Helen Steiner Rice

Cheryl Olavarria

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December 21, 1997

At this special time I am reminded of something that Norman Vincent Peale once said about Christmas:

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful. If only for one short day, ill will is set aside, and the effect upon our lives is miraculous. What an astonishing contrast Christmas creates in the upsurging of love and kindliness in men's hearts! Everyone is happy.

The mental and spiritual health giving quality of good will refreshes mankind like a tonic. Nothing during the year is so impressively convincing as the vision Christmas brings of what this world would be if love became the daily practice of human beings. What a world we will have when at last men heed His wise advice to "love one another"!

Wayne Blackburn

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December 22, 1997

AT CHRISTMAS EVE

In the quiet hush of the nighttime,
We come to the manger to look
In awe and wonder at the Tiny Babe
Asleep on the hay.

We see Mary and Joseph gazing with loving eyes
At their new born Son,
Wondering at what has happened to them,
And why God has chosen them to be
The Holy Child's earthly parents.

The animals too are still and watching,
For there is a soft glow
Around the manger bed,
And even they are able to sense
That something altogether lovely
Has happened.

So we also stand at the door of the cave,
Wondering, wondering...
Dare we go inside and look upon this Child,
Or do we choose to remain outside
And touch Him, and let Him touch us?
And never receive the wondrous gifts
He longs to bestow upon us?

O lovely Holy Child,
We will do our part!
We'll step inside to the manger...
Come, be sovereign in our heart!

Bobbie Walker
(October 19, 1985©)

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December 23, 1997

PRESENTS AND PRESENCE

"Christmas is for children." we have often heard it said. Fortunate are those of us who have a childhood memory of a very special gift at Christmas (or some other time of year) something that fulfilled a longing or deep seated wish, something that we received with great joy and satisfaction and perhaps (or perhaps not) gratitude.

More than likely most of us, as parents or family members, have happily planned and bestowed a gift that we hoped would be so received. PRESENTS are great!

If only we can approach Christmas in the spirit of knowing that the coming of Christ Jesus was the greatest gift of all time, and that we have only to receive the gift with joy to have our longings fulfilled.

* * * *

There is a Divine PRESENCE in which we live and move and have our being. Never are we apart from this Presence. It is the source of perfect everything. It is the Spirit of Wisdom, the Spirit of Love, the Spirit of Peace. It is God with us and in us. It is our Savior, our Messiah. It is our Christ.

In stillness and quietness we are able to make our union and communion with this PRESENCE within with the Holy Spirit. Let us work on "Practicing the Presence" during this Advent Season by finding a quiet moment each day to reflect on Him.

"Acquaint now thyself with him, and be at peace; thereby good shall come unto thee." (Job 22:21)

Marion Hastings

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December 24, 1997

CHRISTMAS EVE

Only in early childhood did the Day outweigh the Eve in my excitement. (That was before I learned that trips were more fun than arrivals.) The thrills of Christmas morning dumping stockings, unwrapping boxes and discovering "what Santa had brought" gave way early to the delicious expectancy which filled the days before, and which culminated, for me, at midnight on Christmas Eve.

To have hidden in the recesses of a dresser drawer, or pushed back on some high shelf, a gift carefully considered (and not to share the precious secret with a living soul) to imagine the beneficiary opening it and understanding immediately what was meant by the giving, that was a deeply satisfying prospect. I decided Jesus was right: it is more blessed to give than to receive, and the secret of the blessing is in the anticipation.

I remember icy clear Christmas Eve nights at church, greeting friends on the steps friends with new sweaters and red cheeks and breath you could see. And going in together. I can smell the candles, see the choir, hear the carols. Palpable memories, forty or fifty years old! To this day, no matter where I am on Christmas Eve, when I sing Silent Night at midnight, I am there home again. We had glad faces and cheerful hearts on Christmas Eve, because (although we didn't talk about it much) we knew a secret about a hidden gift that was about to be opened. In its expectation we took great pleasure.

Rev. William Boyer

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