Love

Fourth Week of Advent
Monday December 23, 2013

Titus 2:11-14

 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds. 

Succinct and to the point, the letter to Titus tells the story of Jesus with little flourish but filled with substance. God graces us with salvation through the gift of Jesus Christ. Jesus modeled and taught a way of living that prepared us for our role as being the Body of Christ in the world today. He continues with us as we follow his path in service. 

We hold this story close in these final hours leading toward our celebration of the coming of the Christ. The events described changed our lives totally, gave us focus in chaos, courage in times of fear, strength in weakness, and the ability to love beyond our wildest dreams. Jesus Christ sent his followers on a quest to take that story and that way of living to the ends of the earth. 

It is funny how we can so easily tell others about the new athletic shoes we just discovered, the car that gets such great gas mileage, or how well our team is doing this year. It is hard to talk about the depth of God’s love and how that has impacted our lives. Perhaps it is too emotional. But if it is indeed the greatest gift we have ever received, is it not also the greatest gift we could give someone else? 

It broke my heart when I recently heard on the news that a 12 year old girl had committed suicide as a result of bullying. It made me stop and think, where did I learn to respect others as much as I respected myself? Certainly from my parents, but the church was where I heard about it, read about it, sang about, and acted it out in plays and pageants. It was at church where my friends learned it, even the ones who did not have parents that taught then either self-respect or respect for others. 

This year let us celebrate the coming of Christ with all the spirit we can muster and continue in that spirit with a passionate renewal of telling the story of Jesus to the ends of the earth starting next door. 

Prayer: Jesus, Come into my heart, and shine out of my heart to the ends of the earth and right here at home as we wait for the full glory of God. Amen.

All scripture passages are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.