Better Days
December 24, 2005
Luke 2:1-20
We’ve been gathering in this place, around a wreath, talking about the increasing dark for a month now. All in hopes of arriving here this night. All in hopes of arriving in this holy sacred hour, here, in the dark, filled with expectation and grateful for the coming of the light, the rising of the star, the blessing of God breaking into our lives, right here, right now, tonight.
So, Where have you come from tonight? How was the journey? Did you come through the dark night? Was it difficult to see? Were you guided? Did you have a map? Were you drawn to this place? Was the house empty? Was the car full of stuff, all the stuff you own? Barely room for you? Did you come from a big mess? Dishes, wrapping papers, fighting families, not enough money, food, clothes? Did you come from a great party with joy, laughter, food, celebration, friends and family? Where did you come from tonight?
And, how did you get here? Did you drive here with your family? Did you come in a car alone? Maybe you took the bus? Did you walk around the corner? Were you drawn here? Did you come out of obligation or Tradition? Did you come, curious, ready, wondering? Did you come because you absolutely just had to be here, it’s your practice, it’s your touchstone? How did you get here?
Well, the phenomenally, unbelieveably good news tonight, is that tonight’s the night the world begins again. We believe, as part of the Jesus movement, that it doesn’t matter how you got here tonight, or where you’ve come from or even why it is that you’ve come…Tonight, we believe as Christians, the world begins again and the chance is right here that we might find better days! Just for showing up and getting present. We just might find better days, all wrapped up in this opportunity tonight, to do over. That’s right, this is the night we celebrate. We celebrate new beginnings, new life, new hope, new promise…That God can break into our lives any time, anywhere, for anyone. This night we celebrate how our loving, creative God can choose a whole new beginning at any time! And, that we ourselves can make the same choice at any time, in any place, for any reason, God will be there ready to do a new thing.
Tonight we come together to celebrate that in all of the unexpected places. Like those places in our lives that have filled us with shame. Like those places that have bound and tied us up, keeping us from the glory God intends for us. Like those places that humiliate and scare us. Like those places that showcase the worst of ourselves, God is completely willing, to break into our lives there. God can and does see the light in us, even there, there in the dark. Even when we feel lost and alone. Even when we feel unacceptable and dirty. Even when we feel overwhelmed and shut down. God, God is calling, calling to each of us from within, that the light is there, the hope is here, That tonight, tonight we begin the do over. We begin again, completely capable of starting over, forgiven for where we’ve been, who we’ve been, and invited to a do over, starting now.
We celebrate this crazy story of an unwed, pregnant woman partnered with an older, established man, displaced from their home, that we might just see ourselves somewhere in there. That if God can choose that no place, perhaps we might just believe, that God can choose our place. God might be open to: stables, caves, homes, malls, coffeehouses, cars, offices, pools, churches. That if God might choose that unlikely pair, God might just choose us: pregnant teens, men and women, refugees, homeless drifters, suburban soccer moms, single people, teachers, lawyers, tax collectors, police officers, families, young, old, retired, working, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered; God just might choose us. We celebrate that God has come into our midst. That God has given us this beautiful story of Joseph, Mary and Jesus to remind us that God just could have been in a scene like that. That God can move in this odd, pregnant, not married, traveling family and if God can move in this family, God can also move in your family, in my family, and in all families, in all situations, that God can show up in our lives and transform our experience of living even here, in the middle of the night, in the cold and dark. That God can and does show up giving us hope of better days. Giving us a pathway to better days.
But, even more importantly, we gather this night, around the glowing advent wreath and the stable with baby Jesus in the middle, we gather together to remind ourselves that God is here. And, that God could be here, here in one of the ten million more that could save this gift of life, love, peace and hope. That God is so awesome and amazing that God can move in a stable, in a cave, in a home, in a hospital, in the street, in the back of a car…or right here in our lives. We come to this place each year. We come, right back here around metaphors filled with angels, stables, strangers, ordinary people, the young, the old, the Gentile, the Jew, the weak, the strong to find ourselves. To remind ourselves, that we CAN begin again.
Tonight, we come here, we come here to celebrate the do over. We come here to begin again. We come here to proclaim we are all forgiven. It doesn’t matter where we’ve been, who we’ve been, what we’ve done tonight, we can begin again! That is the Christmas message. Tonight, this night all is forgiven in this new life. Let it go. If it’s death dealing. If it’s keeping you in the dark. If it’s holding you back from growth. If it’s shutting you away. If it’s keeping you from being who you’ve been created to be, let it go. Tonight is the night it’s all done to begin again. It’s your turn to sing. It’s your turn to grow. It’s your turn for love! Tonight we are all fresh, new, filled with promise, untied, unleashed, ready to take this chance. To do something new. And, to sing, filled with the promise, that this new, fresh day, is just for each one of us. Hallelujah, God is here! The Better Days begin now, here with you and your commitment to let this new life, this new light, this new peace, this overwhelming love radiate in your life. God is with us. God is with us here. God is with us in this living. Let’s let go of where we’ve come from, where we’ve been and let’s begin again tonight creating better days for all from this day forward! Hallelujah! God is here! Let us pray.