Healing Rays of Righteousness

In her book, Bring Us Together, Marjorie Holmes writes this yearning prayer for community. “Oh, God, we go through life so lonely, needing what other people can give us, yet ashamed to show that need. And other people go through life so lonely, hungering for what it would be such a joy for us to give. Dear God, please bring us together, the people who need each other, who can help each other, and would so enjoy each other.”

If you are old enough to remember the TV series, THE WALTONS, you may remember one of the programs in which a small black boy, named Josh, is in conversation with Jim-Bob and says, “You were born belonging. That must be a great feeling – to belong.”

I fully believe that God created every human heart with the need to belong, to be accepted, included, and cared for in a community with other human beings. Indeed, he created us to live together in communities of love for one another.

One of the problems in our Western society is our emphasis on individualism, which has greatly diminished our sense of community, and even a felt need for it. I believe individualism is a characteristic of the human heart that leads away from God and his intention for every human being to be in community with others.

When Jesus was asked what is the greatest commandment, he answered by saying, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” And then he added this, “And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39).

To follow Jesus command, we must use the biblical language of community rather than the cultural language of individualism. To experience the abundant life he promised us, we must use the language of mutuality, of caring for one another, providing for one another, and being accountable to one another.

The early Christian community caught this vision and became a fellowship of sacrificial love, sharing life at all levels of spiritual, social, and economic relationships, such shelter, clothing, food, and wealth.

God’s design and purpose of community is what biblical scholars have named “the ministry of shared pilgrimage.” This is a priestly role for all people of God, and fits well into Anabaptist theology regarding the belief in the priesthood of all believers.

Anabaptist Christians regarded the need to live in community as an essential core value.
Myron Augsburger, a highly regarded theologian and pastor who is deeply rooted in the Anabaptist tradition, defines this biblical understanding of “love in community” in his book, “The Robe of God.”
“First, love personalizes relationships rather than institutionalizing them. We are to look at people as ends in themselves and never as a means to some other end.
Second, love energizes relationships rather than legalizing them. Jesus moves us beyond codes to compassion. As we care for people, we regard the law only as a means for treating others with justice and mercy.
Third, love immortalizes relationships rather than temporalizing them. We have been called to always look beyond the need of the immediate, to share the quality and the extension of the eternal. We are not to make our decisions solely on the basis of the needs of the moment. With eternity in view, we share to invest in a life.”

I think this is a compelling, directive word for all of us, countering the noisy, tempting, siren calls of individualism. But most importantly, it is a much needed directive word for church congregations and their related ministries.

It saddens me to witness how our culture’s focus on individualism is so rapidly diminishing God’s call for all mankind to be primarily focused on mutuality, a shared pilgrimage of caring for one another, providing for one another, and being accountable to one another.

Myron Augsburger’s definitions of love in community, help us to “walk our talk,” that is, to act out our Christian beliefs regarding community in the way we care and provide for others. It is about transforming our work and worship into Christian ministry.

The question for each of us to ask ourselves is, how am I today and every day nurturing a community spirit of concern for others in my home, work, and church relationships.

“Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:8-9).

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – February 19, 2020
http://www.geigler13.wordpress.com
Ray M. Geigley

The story is told of a little boy being overheard talking to himself as he strode through his backyard, baseball cap in place and toting a ball and bat.  “I’m the greatest baseball player in the world” he said proudly.  Then he tossed the ball in the air, swung and missed.  Undaunted, he picked up the ball, threw it into the air and said”I’m the greatest player ever!”  He swung at the ball again, and again he missed.  He paused a moment to examine bat and ball carefully.  Then once again he threw the ball into the air and said “I’m the greatest baseball player who ever lived.”  He swung the bat hard and again missed the ball.  “Wow!” he exclaimed.  “What a pitcher!”

That boy felt good about who he was, and with unwavering self-confidence believed in himself.

Dr. James Dobson has said that the greatest gift parents can give their children is a healthy self-esteem.  He states that if children don’t think positively about themselves, they will be unmotivated, lacking energy and enthusiasm for life.  He believes that it is critical for children, with their emerging personality, to gain a strong sense of self-worth and self-confidence.

I believe this to be true, but I also believe that this same sense of self-worth is critical for our emotional health and happiness throughout life, and especially during the latter years of life.  As children, our sense of self-worth comes first from parents who constantly affirm who we are and what we accomplish.  Then throughout every stage of life that follows, our sense of self-worth is sustained by frequent affirmation from those around us.

However, it is equally important if not more so, to regularly find ways to affirm our self-worth.  When we acknowledge our worth as children of God, we acknowledge and honor God.  Self-worth means self-respect, and both are rooted in who we are as God’s special and unique children.

The apostle Paul writes “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.  The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.  And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.  Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”  (Romans 8:14-17).

And John writes in his first letter “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!  And that is what we are!”  (1 John 3:1).

God condemns foolish pride, but self-worth that flows from a knowledge of our precious value as a child of the all-knowing and all-loving Father God glorifies the God who created us.

On the other hand, the loss of self-worth is tragic.  Losing one’s sense of self-worth can shake our faith in God.  Godly self-worth is the gift God implanted in us when he created us in our mother’s womb, and losing it is like losing God.  And so, rediscovering this gracious gift of self-worth is like finding God again, for it is the heart-beat of human dignity.

Self-worth and self-confidence generally grows stronger as we age and mature, because as adults we find purpose and a sense of self-worth through what we “do” – that is, our work and achievements.

Furthermore, our society generally measures our worth by what we “do” rather than on “who” we are.  That is, we are valuable if we are doing something important and the greater the importance the greater our value.  And so we tend to base our self-worth on our “doing” rather than on our “being.”  This is contrary to the way God measures our value.

For that reason I think it is important for us to frequently rediscover and reaffirm our worth based on “who we are” as unique human beings, children of God whom he most dearly loves.  And it is equally important that we be more diligent in verbally affirming those with whom we together live, work and worship.

We must not, we dare not give up the struggle to maintain our own sense of self-worth, nor should we ever diminish our efforts to encourage and enhance the self-worth of others, both the young and the aging, for as long as God gives them a heart-beat.

“How precious to me are your thoughts, God!  How vast is the sum of them!  Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand – when I awake, I am still with you.”  (Psalm 139:17-18).

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – February 12, 2020

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

I concluded my previous blog, “Numbering Our Days” by reminding ourselves that each day is a gift of time entrusted to us by God to manage and use for his glory and our neighbor’s good.

When Jesus’ was asked “which is the greatest commandment in the Law, Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  … And the second is like it:  Love your neighbor as yourself.”  (Matthew 22:36-39).

So, when I read that the prophet Isaiah visited King Hezekiah during his illness and told him, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.” (2 Kings 20:1), I hear him referencing relationships, both with God and with others.

Yes, there are some very important legal and material things that we should be doing toward planning for our departure, toward putting our house in order before we die.

Faithful Christian stewards acknowledge that God owns all and has given us everything we possess with the responsibility to manage and dispose of our wealth and things in a way that pleases him.   And so we give appropriate and adequate written direction regarding the distribution of our material wealth, such as a “legal will.”

We also give appropriate and adequate direction regarding our physical care if and when we cannot make such decisions, by writing a “living will and advance directive.” 

And it is equally important to give direction regarding our funeral service and the disposal of our body.  Such written directions are an opportunity for us to make our final public declaration of faith in God’s goodness and love.  And it is always a most welcomed gift to every surviving spouse and family.

In writing about departing from this earthly life, Billy Graham encourages us to consider how well are we prepared.  “Before we embark on our final trip, have we left our earthly home in a state of chaos or a condition of order?”

Nevertheless, I believe the most important and most urgent thing we need to do in putting our house in order has to do with our relationships, both with God and with others.

In her book, “Border Crossing” Katie Funk Wiebe writes, “God’s purpose for the older adult is to complete the life cycle, to bind the generations together, to hand over the faith.”

What is my relationship with God?  Is there need for confession and recommitment to his lordship in my life?  What are my relationships with family, neighbors, and co-workers?  Is there need for reconciliation?  Are there words I need to say and things I need to do for reconciliation to happen?

To put our house in order is about honestly examining ourselves, our attitudes and actions, and seriously consider what is of value and worthwhile to us, and what is not.  What kind of spiritual legacy will we pass on to the next generation?  What life values will they receive from us?  Are those values rooted in material wealth or spiritual realities?  How will my children and grandchildren, friends and neighbors remember me?

To put our house in order is about reassessing our conversations and conduct, and asking ourselves whether or not we are growing in our Christian faith and behavior.  Am I becoming a more mature, well-rounded person, or am I becoming more selfish and childish?  Am I becoming more caring or more callous, more forgiving or more vengeful, more tolerant or more critical, more generous or more self-centered?

To put our house in order is about looking back over our years and feeling good about the ways we served the Lord, knowing that our life was about making the world a better place in which to live.  It’s about seeing our life’s conversations and conduct bringing forth spiritual fruit in the lives of our children and grandchildren, as well as neighbors and friends in their commitment to the Lordship of Christ.

What spiritual legacy will we pass on to the next generation?  What will be our crowning joy? The apostle Paul gave this testimony as the time of his death approached.  “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – February 5, 2020

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

In the beginning God created TIME. He then placed things into space and TIME. Then he created MAN and placed man in TIME as a subject of TIME to live in TIME.

This is to say that God created TIME and gives it to each human being as a daily gift, heartbeat by heartbeat. And someday, during one heartbeat moment, the same God who created TIME, works in TIME, and placed you in TIME is going to say, “That’s it. There will be no more TIME.”

During the past 80 years mankind’s average lifespan has increased by an additional 20-30 years. Unfortunately, many persons have not prepared themselves to fully enjoy these years of extended life, and so wake each morning without purpose and with a diminished sense of self-worth. They awaken each morning with no vision, no purpose, and little enthusiasm for living. Their days are just one long boring “rocking chair” wait for death. How sad!

Yes, each one of us will die. Life on this earth will come to an end. How will God call time, ending my life on earth? There are many possible ways. When will God call time? Only He knows. How much time do I have left? Only God knows. How do I prepare for that end moment and the latter years of life that precede that moment? That’s the focus of this presentation.

One of the comments I hear frequently as a chaplain and pastor is this, “I didn’t expect to live this long” or “I never thought I would get to be this old.” In those words I hear the confession, I wasn’t prepared for this. What should I be doing now?

What we do with our daily gift of TIME very directly shapes how we will age physically, socially, and spiritually; and determines what kind of person we will become in our latter years. To prepare for growing old gracefully and gratefully must begin before the time of retirement.

Today, not tomorrow, is given to us for the purpose of fully enjoying a meaningful present, while also preparing for our retirement. This early preparation is important not only for sufficient financial resources, but also for adequate emotional and spiritual resources to carry us through to the end of this life and into eternal life.

The Psalmist prays, “Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting my life is.” (39:4). And again, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (90:12).

Joni Eareckson Tada writes, “…of all the things to be counted, this is the hardest – to number our days. We number everything else so easily. We know how much money we have in our purse and how many dollars in the bank. Farmers number their sheep and cattle. Restaurants number the meals served in a week. Teachers check off attendance records. Gardeners can tell you how many tomato plants are in the backyard.

Yet we find it hard to number something so precious as our days. Perhaps that’s because we see our days stretching on and on. They seem infinite and so there is no need, we think, to number them. Things we fail to account for, we waste. That’s why it is wise to ask God to teach us to consider each day separate from the next, distinct in its purpose, unique in the way it is to be lived.” (Diamonds in the Dust, 1993, Sept. 14).

Contrary to popular thought, we do not live on borrowed time but on entrusted time. Each day is the gift of time that God has given us. Today is the day we hold in our hands to manage and use for God’s glory and our neighbor’s good.

As Bill and Gloria Gaither sing so beautifully – “We have this moment to hold in our hands, and to touch as it slips through our fingers like sand. Yesterday’s gone and tomorrow may never come, but we have this moment today.”

What do you want to accomplish before your TIME in this world of TIME is ended? How do you want people to remember you? I invite you to join me in striving to use our gift of TIME in 2020 to make a difference in the lives of those around us, that is, to be blessed as we bless others. We are never too old to live and work in God’s kingdom on earth. Let’s do it!

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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – January 22, 2020
http://www.geigler13.wordpress.com
Ray M. Geigley

Have you ever wished you could see into the future and know every significant detail of the rest of your life’s journey?  Wouldn’t that knowledge make things easier?  It’s evident that many people think it would.  For that reason, many look to astrology, one of the ancient methods of predicting the future, which continues to be a popular resource for looking ahead.

Both biblical and secular history has proven that reliance on astrology for guidance can be extremely addictive and dangerous.  Such reliance on mostly human and often misleading false predictions can easily take control of our mind and planning.  More importantly, it weakens our ability to make intelligent, rational choices that are undergirded by Godly wisdom and trusting faith in his purposes for us.

In any looking ahead and planning, we usually do not anticipate storms.  But the reality is that storms, both in weather and life experience, frequently terrorize our beautiful and comfortable world, upsetting our plans and hopes, and causing us major disruption and loss.  Storms often create life-threatening situations and challenge our survival.  All storms amplify our human limitations and need for God’s help.

I remember a weather storm experience while traveling the Ohio Turnpike into Indiana.  It had been raining fairly heavy but as we crossed the state line from Ohio to Indiana, the rain and wind picked up speed suddenly and dramatically, making it extremely difficult to see ahead even with the wipers at full speed.  Some vehicles were pulling off the road as best they could, but I thought that decision to be more dangerous than to keep moving forward on the roadway.  And so, at much slower speed and with eyes intensely focused ahead I kept driving forward through the storm until it had passed and the sun glistened on the wet farmlands.

Driving through a rain or snow storm is no leisurely sightseeing tour of the countryside.  It is an intense, serious concentration on the road directly ahead, searching out it twists and turns, and looking to avoid any hazards or obstacles that could bring our forward progress to an end in wreckage.

The same is true in our spiritual journey.  We need to always keep our eyes clearly focused and our ears keenly attuned to God’s presence, who is both out ahead of us preparing the way for our safe travel and also by our side giving direction. This is especially critical when we are experiencing one of life’s inevitable storms.

 I think we prepare for this by giving serious, careful, and daily attention to God’s Word and God’s Spirit in our entire life journey of relationships, discussions and decision-making.  God spoke this word of authority and promise through the prophet Isaiah (48:17) – This is what the Lord says – your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:  “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.”

I think this biblical model of living by faith and trusting God is much like driving a car at night.  You can see only as far ahead as the headlights shine, and yet you are able to reach your destination by continuing to travel the short distance the headlights make visible.

When we make plans to travel any lengthy distance at night, we don’t insist in seeing all the things that may disrupt, delay, or detour our travel before we begin.  We simply set out trusting our headlights to make visible any problems that lie ahead in time for us to make appropriate response.

So it is with Christian living.  We live each day trusting God to reveal enough of his plan and path for us to make appropriate decisions.  God has promised, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.”  (Psalm 32:8).

We live and walk by faith, not needing to see the whole trip, but trusting God to lead us moment by moment.  God used a blind person, Helen Keller, to put this truth into a song for us.

All the way my Savior leads me; What have I to ask beside?
Can I doubt His tender mercy, Who thro’ life has been my Guide?
Heave’nly peace, divinest comfort, Here by faith in Him to dwell!
For I know, what-e’er befall me, Jesus doeth all things well.

All the way my Savior leads me; Cheers each winding path I tread,
Gives me grace for ev’ry trial, Feeds me with the living bread.
Tho’ my weary steps may falter, And my soul a-thirst may be,
Gushing from the Rock before me, Lo! A spring of joy I see.

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – January 15, 2020

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

God’s people have returned from Babylonian captivity to again live in their homeland and to rebuild Jerusalem.  There is great joy in there liberation from captivity and the freedom to return to their homeland.

But their homecoming is not pretty and peaceful.  There is much disappointment and difficulty.  A large part of Jerusalem has been destroyed.  Foreign people claim the grazing land, and only a small remnant of the twelve tribes of Israel have returned with them.

In the midst of this situation and prayer of lament, Isaiah issues a call to his people to remember God and what he has done for them in the past.   But he also urges them to remember and rejoice in what God has promised to do for them in the future.

To “remember” is an important word of encouragement in the Bible.  Before the Hebrews crossed the Jordan River into the Promised Land, Moses urged them to “remember” who was giving them the land.  And throughout the history of God’s people, the prophets and the psalm writers urged the people to “remember” God’s actions and benefits in their behalf, as well as his promises for their future.

To “remember” is not just a looking back, it is also a looking forward.  Remembering the past is a blessed treasure and resource that undergirds and keeps alive our present hope. And it also reminds and reconnects us to God’s ongoing redemptive love and purposes for us in the future.

In reading Isaiah 63:7-9, we discover that in spite of their difficult circumstances, Isaiah is thankful for the goodness of God in verse 7, the grace of God in verse 8, and the presence of God in verse 9.

Regarding the goodness of God, Isaiah says, “I will tell of the kindnesses of the Lord, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the Lord has done for us – yes, the many good things he has done for the house of Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses.”

Regarding the grace of God, Isaiah says, “He said, ‘Surely they are my people, children who will be true to me’; so he became their Savior.”

Isaiah wants Israel to remember that God had adopted them as his very own people and became their Savior.  He did not do this because the Hebrews were the biggest and the best, but only because of his grace and love.

How long has it been since you thanked God for being your Savior?  We do not deserve salvation; we received it only because of God’s grace.  Think of where you would be, and what you would be, without God, and then thank him for the eternal difference he has made in your life and future.

Regarding the presence of God, Isaiah says, “In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them.  In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”

Isaiah wants Israel to remember that in all of their sufferings and distress, God did more than just send angels.  God himself came to them to be present and participate in their sufferings.  Isaiah reminds his people that it was this presence of God that saved them, or made them well, complete, and whole, which are the most inclusive meanings of salvation.

In this verse, Isaiah paints a beautiful word portrait of the empathetic love of God.  He wants us to visualize ourselves as crying children being picked up (redeemed) from unpleasant, painful, and hopeless circumstances and (carried) with strong arms that enfold us with comforting protection and provision.

According to the psalmist, this is God being “our refuge and strength, an ever- present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1).  He hurts when we hurt – he helps, protects, and provides for us – and he even picks us up and carries us.  Most certainly, I believe that all of us have experienced this providential hand of God at work in our lives in some way during the past year.

You and I are alive this morning because of God’s goodness, grace, and presence in our lives the past year. As we enter into a new year and face the known and unknown challenges of 2020, let us pause to “remember” and give God thankful praise for his sustaining grace in the year past and petition him for enabling grace in the year ahead.

I invite you to pray the words of Fanny Crosby in her 1882 hymn, “God of Our Strength.”

God of our strength, enthroned above, the source of life, the fount of love,                                        O let devotion’s sacred flame / our souls awake to praise thy name.

God of our strength, from day to day / direct our thoughts and guide our way.                              Oh, may our hearts united be / in sweet communion, Lord, with thee.

God of our strength, on thee we call. God of our hope, our light, our all,                                          Thy name we praise, they love adore, our rock, our shield, forevermore.

(Chorus) God of our strength, we wait on thee, our sure defense forever be.

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – January 8, 2020

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

Former President Jimmy Carter graduated from the Naval Academy and served as an officer on a nuclear-powered submarine.  But before he was able to assume that position, he had to have a personal interview with Admiral Hyman Rickover, who is considered to be the father of the nuclear navy.

Jimmy Carter says that the interview made him very nervous; knowing how much was at stake and that only the best, most disciplined officers were chosen to serve in this prestigious role.  As he stood before Admiral Rickover, it was soon obvious to Carter that the wise admiral knew more about nearly every subject discussed than he did.

Finally, Rickover came to the last question on his list – “Where did you finish in your class, young man?”  Please with his accomplishments and thrilled to finally be presented a question he was sure of, Carter informed the Admiral that he had finished 59^th out of a student body numbering 820.  Then he waited for a commendation from the old sailor – but it never came.

In telling the story later, Jimmy Carter said that the question that broke the uncomfortable silence between the two men was, “Did you always do your best?”  Carter thought a moment and then cleared his throat and hesitantly replied, “No sir, I did not.”  At that point, Rickover turned he chair around, signaling the interview was over, and asked, “Why not?”

That is a good question to ask ourselves at the beginning of a new year.  How do we evaluate what we have done during the past year?  Would we say it was poor, so-so, adequate, good, very good, or outstanding?

In the past year, have we always done our best?  Probably not.  And if not, why not?  Have any of our conversations and actions caused unnecessary pain.  Probably so.  If so, why?

The beginning of a new year offers us a time to reflect on our past, regret our mistakes, contemplate the future, and make resolutions.  I believe that most people, including me, want to do and be better in the New Year.

Many years ago, Louisa Fletcher Tarkington, wrote a perceptive poem entitled, “The Land of Beginning Again.”  It begins and ends with a verse which is almost a universal wish.

I wish there were some wonderful place

Called the land of beginning again

Where all our mistakes,

And all our heartaches,

And all of our poor selfish grief,

Could be dropped like a shabby

Old coat at the door,

And never be put on again.

There seems to always be something about the past that often troubles us, even if it is nothing more than the nagging belief that we could do better if we had another go at it.

Mistakes and regrets of the past can and often do become heavy emotional baggage for many people.  The baggage is real and cannot be easily waved aside, for it is the consequence of mistaken judgments and unwise decisions that have left scars, and sometimes, painful open wounds in our relationships.

However, the Bible is filled with the possibility of forgiveness and new beginnings.  This is God’s good news to us.  The angel’s message to the shepherds is forever new.  “I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today … a Savior has been born to you.”

Whatever mistakes and regrets that may still be lying out there in our past, whatever relationships remain painfully wounded and in need of healing, God’s “Savior Jesus” can help us gather them all into a prayer of repentance, forgiveness, and new beginnings.  The ability to forgive and to be forgiven is always ours for the asking.  Jesus himself invites us to “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7).

Instead of fretting over the past, take hold of forgiveness, and move forward through God’s open door of a new year and a new beginning toward more Christ-like excellence in all of our conversations and activities.

I hope you will join me in making the decision and effort to walk into the new year of 2020 with a new commitment to be the person God created us to be.  And may all your days be happy and blessed.  Amen!

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – January 1, 2020

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”  (Lk. 2:8-11).

The angel’s sudden and unexpected appearance terrified the shepherds.  But the angel quickly reassured them that the special message he was bringing to them was “good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”

Have you ever been frightened by an unexpected event?  Try to imagine yourself being one of the shepherds that night.  Sitting on a hillside, under a starlit sky, with the sheep settled and sleeping, all is quiet; all is calm, as it should be and normally is.  But then suddenly the hillside is awakened by a brilliant, glorious light, and a magnificent angel appears.  Yes, I too, would have been terrified.

The sudden burst of light and the appearance of an angel to a bunch of laborers in a field was certainly an unexpected surprise.  But even more so, was the angel’s message, “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”

And, as if that wasn’t a big enough surprise, the angel said, “You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”  Imagine their troubling thoughts.  A Savior, the promised Messiah and Lord, born in a smelly stable built for animals, and using the feed trough as a crib.  How could this be happening that way?  Should not a Savior be born in a royal palace and lying in a magnificent crib?

Indeed, the angel’s “good news” message is filled with unexpected surprises.  In fact, just about everything regarding Jesus’ birth is an unexpected surprise.  Think about it.  Is not Jesus’ birth really the most surprising and amazing gift of all time, coming to us from God?  Is not his gift of “a Savior” the most marvelous and greatest gift we could ever receive?  Is not this the reason we celebrate Christmas with gift-giving, always reminding ourselves of God’s amazing gift to us.

Yes, Christmas is about God coming to us as “Savior” in the person of Jesus to rescue us from the death grip of evil and sinfulness, and give us forgiveness, peace, joy, love, and life forever.  Christmas is about Immanuel, “God with us.” 

What a wonder-filled, life-giving gift is given us in Jesus’ birth.  It is the miracle of Incarnation – God becoming human, and as “Savior” choosing to live among us.  Oh, what glorious wonder, heaven and earth coming together, as God comes down to dwell with his people to redeem and save them.

How incredible the gift, the long-awaited Messiah, the Lord himself, wrapped in the swaddling clothes of a helpless baby, fully human and fully divine, coming to rescue and reconcile broken humanity and restore the peace and joy of God’s good world.  Truly “good news that will cause great joy for all the people.”

Even though many refuse to believe it, Christmas is God’s answer to our brokenness.  Christmas is the good news that God wants to do something about our failures and fears, our pain and confusion.  He wants to forgive, heal, and restore us to wholeness as his beloved people.

As darkness and doubts cloud your thoughts and spirit this Christmas Day, hear the message of the heavenly angel, “Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (Lk. 2:10-11).

It is Christmas morning and possibly too late to buy the perfect Christmas present for a friend or family member. But it is not too late for you to accept the amazing gift of love that God is offering you — the gift of Jesus as your Savior, Messiah and Lord.

Let us pray.                                                                                                                                                               “O holy Child of Bethlehem, Descend on us, we pray.  Cast our sin, and enter in; Be born in us today.  We hear the Christmas angels / The great glad tidings tell.  O come to us; abide with us, Our Lord, Emmanuel.”

• “Healing Rays of Righteousness” – December 25, 2019
• www.geigler13.wordpress.com
• Ray M. Geigley

Picture a young Jewish girl, living in the lush green hills of Galilee, far from the bustle of Jerusalem.  She knows the Scriptures.  She prays for God to send the Messiah to re-establish his rule.  She longs for Israel to again be a light to the nations.  But never in her wildest dreams does she imagine how God will answer her prayers.

Even more, this young girl, Mary, has something far more immediate on her mind.  She is engaged to be married and soon to leave the protection of her father’s home and begin a new life with Joseph.

By night, she imagines how she will arrange her furniture and decorate her house.  How fortunate she is that her beloved Joseph is a carpenter and can make what they cannot afford to buy.  By day, with needle and thread, she works her dreams into linen cloth.

Then in the midst of her joyous anticipation, preparations, and prayers, she receives a frightening visitation from an angel who says, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!  The Lord is with you.”  And Mary is greatly troubled.

Even though we have heard this same story many times before, and even though the plot doesn’t change from year to year and we are very familiar with the details, yet each Christmas we lean forward with anticipation, because we believe that somehow this story is about us.

What if the angel’s message to Mary, “The Lord is with you” is God’s message to us?  We desire to see God, but do we know how and where to look?  Do we know how to open space in our busy and cluttered lives for the indwelling presence of God?

“The Lord is with you.”  That simple, startling statement came to Mary as surprise and promise.  Most likely we have read and heard these words so often that the element of “surprise” has completely evaporated from them.  Yet that is precisely the glorious message of Christmas.  Not only is there a God, but that God comes very near to us in the most unexpected places and circumstances as “surprise.”

To believe that God is above us as the almighty, all-sufficient, sovereign God is one thing.  But to believe that God is the sovereign, loving God with us, that he is God near us, the intimate God who understands us, that my friend, is the best news of all.

For the eternal, all-powerful, high and holy God to come down into human life is a most marvelous and amazing thing.  God’s coming to us in human flesh tells us that he is not like the philosopher king in Thomas Carlyle’s classic writing, Sartos Resortus, who gazes out of his attic window.  Down below him stretch the dark streets of despair where half a million human beings are herded and crowded together.  The joyful and the sorrowful, people dying and people being born, some praying and others cursing, women laughing and others weeping.  And looking down from his attic window, the philosopher king concludes, “But I – I sit above it all.  I am alone with the stars.”

No, that is not our God.  The God who came to us in Jesus is deeply involved in our human situation.  God became what we are, in order that we might become what he is.  He wants his face of love, peace, and joy to dwell in us and be reflected from our lives.

And when man reached the end of his long struggle to find peace, forgiveness and salvation, it was God who “became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14).

Christmas is God’s answer to our brokenness and sin.  Christmas is the good news that God wants to do something about our failures and fears.  Christmas is about God coming to us, indwelling us to forgive, heal, and restore us to a wholeness of love, peace, and joy.

There is not a more beautiful picture of God’s Father-love than that which shows him as our companion in our many experiences of sin, sickness, sorrow, and the often difficult daily routine of work.  There are no more comforting, reassuring words than to hear, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!  The Lord is with you.” 

Be still, my soul and listen to the angel speak.  And also listen to the last recorded words of Jesus, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20).

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – December 18, 2019

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley

If you are like me, you sometimes wake up at 2:00 a.m. and cannot get back to sleep.  Let’s suppose that the next time that happens you go to the kitchen, turn on the light, and find an angel standing there and calls you by name.  What would you say?  What do you think the angel would say?

Luke’s Christmas story begins with a similar situation involving a man named Zachariah.  In chapter one, verse five, we read that both Zachariah and his wife, Elizabeth, were from priestly stock, a fact that was highly valued among the Jews.  Verses six and seven tell us that “Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly.  But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.”

Although both of them were “righteous” they were suffering the ultimate disappointment and humiliation.  For most Jews, eternal life and immortality was understood to come through their children.  Through them one lived on forever.  Thus no children meant no immortality, no eternal life.

It was during Zachariah’ great moment of burning incense before God that an angel appeared to him.  Verse twelve says that Zachariah “was startled and was gripped with fear.”  Very likely I would have responded in like manner.  But then comes the almost unbelievable good news.  The angel said, “Do not be afraid, Zachariah; your prayer has been heard.  Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call John.”

Zachariah is gripped by fear and stuttering with disbelief and doubt. But why?  Had he given up believing that God would answer his fervent prayers?  Had he been praying without conviction?  After the many years of praying for a child, had he given in to the feeling that he and his wife are now too old for such a prayer to be answered.  Yes, even a very righteous man or woman can pray with very little sense of expectation.

I heard the story of a man in his nineties who went to his doctor with knee trouble, and the doctor said, “At your age, what do you expect?”  The man replied, “I expect you to fix this knee.  My other knee is the same age, and it works fine.”

Whatever age we may be, we can slip into disbelief BY thinking that answers to our prayers become restricted or limited because of our age.  This story tells us that Zachariah’s age was not a factor in God’s ability to carry out his purposes.

What if an angel appeared in front of you right now and said to you, “Your prayer has been heard.”  How would you react, and what would such an experience mean to you?  What would be the “too good to be true” news in your life?  Have you given up believing that God can still make it happen, like Zachariah did?

As we grow older and maybe wearied by unanswered prayers, we are tempted to give up believing God can make it happen. Or, we may find it difficult to believe that God still has plans for us to be a participant in his great “good news” work.  Or, we may become impatient in praying and waiting for God to act and decide to take things into our own hands to help God out, like Abraham did.

Whatever the excuse or reason, we will pay a price for our unbelief, just as did Zachariah.  He received very good news in the angel’s message “your prayer is heard,” but because of his unbelief, he could not speak this “good news” blessing to his family and the assembled worshipers, until after the promised birth of his son happened.

What would be the “too good to be true” news in your life?  Have you given up believing that God can still make it happen?  May the beloved scriptures and carols of Jesus’ birth of this Christmas season reawaken your faith and trust in the One who hears and answers our prayers.

“The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel.  I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.”  (Luke 1:19).

“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – December 11, 2019

www.geigler13.wordpress.com

Ray M. Geigley