Jacobs Thoughts and Doings

There is something quite special about the first snow of the season.  I think we can see this mystery in the picture out of our dining room window.  Got over 4 inches!  Nice snow, soon melted by the warmer weather.  This was last week.

Philip Brooks wrote about his horse­back jour­ney from Je­ru­sa­lem to Beth­le­hem, where he as­sist­ed with the mid­night ser­vice on Christ­mas Eve, 1865:

“I re­mem­ber stand­ing in the old church in Beth­le­hem, close to the spot where Je­sus was born, when the whole church was ring­ing hour after hour with splen­did hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voic­es I knew well, tell­ing each other of the Won­der­ful Night of the Sav­ior’s birth.”

Let me share with you two verses of the Brooks’ hymn, “O, Little Town of Bethlehem.”

How silently, how silently, the wondrous Gift is giv’n;
So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of His Heav’n.
No ear may hear His coming, but in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in.

O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us, we pray;
Cast out 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!

I hear the words, “enter in.”  This is our plea to Jesus.  He will not hesitate for a moment if we are truly his.  I am comforted by the assurance that Jesus does not move in and out!  He stays – forever, if we truly worship and obey Him!

That, my friend is the meaning of Christmas, nothing less.

My annual blood work reveals that my corpuscles are down, have been going down for the past few years.  I have an appointment with specialists on January 2 of 2018.  Looks like something is going on in the bone marrow.  I feel well and realize that I am almost 90 years old.  I am in the loving hands of the Lord and am thankful for medical people to do what they can.  Will be in touch next month.

Our prayers are with our Australian family.  Today we expect them, Jane included, for the holiday season, with little Finn of course.  Jane was there for about a month helping out with Finn as Zel returned to the classroom, and Dani to her research project.

This bonding of grandma and grandson is precious.  Who knows its importance!  We admire Jane for helping out these weeks.  She will have her stories, of course, when she arrives home tonight, in a snow storm, maybe.  We feel blessed beyond words.

This African violet blooms all year, I do believe, but the dazzling blossoms bless the eye on a cold day as winter approaches.  When there are no outdoor blossoms, this lovely flower takes on special meaning.

Approaching Christmas, I turned to the “Methodist Hymnal” for hymns that focus on the birth of Jesus Christ. There are 769 hymns in the book, first published in 1779.  How many nativity hymns did I find?  None, if I am not mistaken.  I am amazed that the authors seemingly did not feel that focusing much on the birth of Jesus was the center of the message.  How can this be since we in 2017 hear and sing a lot of Christmas carols?  Our present hymnal has twenty or so.

I believe the answer is that, while the birth of Jesus was hugely important, it is only the beginning of the story of our salvation.  The earth-shaking events were Jesus’ words and His Cross, Resurrection and Ascension.  Hymns embrace those events that shook the earth and opened heaven.  I think that is why there are so few hymns that concentrate on Christ’s birth as an event.

The issue is, did Jesus die so that I can live?  It is possible to be thankful that Jesus appeared as a baby without embracing him as my sin-bearer.

This little meditation should not make singing nativity hymns meaningless, it is good to praise God that Jesus, after years of promise, was born a babe in Bethlehem.  But as we join in the hymn-singing, let us be aware of the entire story – all the way to the Cross, Resurrection and sending the Holy Spirit.

Each Christmas season Anna Ruth carefully produces our annual peppernuts.  First rolling the dough, stacking them overnight, then into the oven for roasting.  The product is sweet, crisp and very seasonal.

As Christmas excitement builds, when our culture honors the baby Jesus, I am reminded of the whole story of Jesus saving us by his sacrificial death and surprising resurrection.

I was moved by this hymn this morning, translated for us by Charles Wesley. I felt drawn to these three verses of the hymn.  I need this reminder, always.

Could it be that I bear some responsibility for such a terrible deed, along with all us needy sinners?

Extended on a cursed tree,
Besmeared with dust, and sweat, and blood,
See there, the King of Glory see!
Sinks and expires the Son of God.

Who, who, my Savior, this hath done?
Who could Thy sacred body wound?
No guilt Thy spotless heart hath known,
No guile hath in Thy lips been found. 

I, I alone, have done the deed!
’Tis I Thy sacred flesh have torn;
My sins have caused Thee, Lord, to bleed,
Pointed the nail, and fixed the thorn.

Text by Paul Gerhardt, in German. (1607-1676)  Translated into English by Charles Wesley

I ponder the words, I…pointed the nail, and fixed the thorn.  The true meaning of Christmas!  For me!

Lisa brought home with her from her recent visit with family to Italy a lemon squeezer  made of olive wood.  She asked me to make one for Alan for Christmas.  No olive wood around here.

So, made one with a maple bowl and a fluted cherry center.

When Alan came for lunch last week, I had it on the counter where he saw it.  Oops.  Anyway, here it is.   I regret leaving the cat out of the bag, a bit.  But that is history.

Here is the finished piece, ready to juice lemons!

The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means “God with us”).

Matthew 1:23

Amazing!  God who is far off is with us!   Who can fully grasp the meaning of this promise, and who can live in its reality?  God wants to live with us, creatures he has made.  Now, we must decide if we want God to be with us, to be in us, in fact.  For all has been done to enable God to dwell in my heart, and yours, without reference to race, tribe or nation.  That is what happened at Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Jesus is Immanuel, God with us.   Many people believe in God but few experience him as the most powerful presence among them, right now, closer than our own breathing.  That thrills the soul, for sure.  That God should choose to dwell among those he created is as true as it is humbling.

God created us, He knows us thoroughly and He has opened the way for us to fling open the doors of our hearts to welcome him in, his rightful place.  I confess with my whole being that “God is with me.”  That is because of what Jesus did!  This morning I am made aware again that God loves me, is with me, and has prepared the way before me to adore Him for who he is and for what he does.