Christmastide

December 27, 2021

Scripture Reading:

Numbers 6:22-27

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, Thus you shall bless the Israelites: you shall say to them,
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.
So they shall put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them.

I was introduced to this beautiful blessing early in life. It tells us that we are always God’s children. To bless means to make sacred, and keep means to retain forever. The light of God shines on us so that we can see our way forward. For example, I had to get a new thermostat some months ago, and the one installed had a more prominent face. During the day, it is hardly noticeable, but at night it illuminates the whole room well enough for me to find my way when darkness is all around me. The face of God provides such light on all we do. God being gracious to us indicates God’s gift of grace filling in the blank space between where we are and where we should be related to kindness and courtesy.

As a child, I most likely did not understand the word countenance. It means one’s mood, emotions, or character. For God to project those traits on us is an interesting circumstance to consider. When God is pleased with us, we will welcome his countenance. I am reminded of the scene when Jesus drove the money lenders out of the temple, which was undoubtedly an expression of God’s countenance. That took courage on the part of Jesus. Would we have the tenacity to do such a thing? And how would we have felt had we been one of the money traders?

The blessing follows the countenance challenge with the promise of peace or shalom where we are granted completeness, soundness, wellbeing.

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for your blessings and dedication to our wellbeing. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.