An Elder Pilgrim's Reflections

And Jesus increased  in wisdom and in stature,  and in divine and human favor.  (from Luke 2:41-52 ) If you were searching among a massive crowd for three days and couldn't find your 12 year-old son, what would you be thinking?  It probably wasn't a happy greeting when, after 3 days of anxious searching, Mary finds Jesus in the temple. She says, Where  have you been? What are you doing here ?   Jesus replies, "Well, where did you expect   to find me?" LUKE 2:35 describes Jesus as growing in wisdom and stature. "Growing in wisdom and stature" means having the ability to perceive God's kingdom and act on those perceptions. As the new year begins and as the tensions and divisions of our society continue, we will need to grow in wisdom and stature.  Surely today's tribulations increase our need to be building on the foundation of our faith for spiritual strength to perceive God's kingdom.  Perceiving God's kingdom begins with growing in our ...

And Mary said,  “My soul magnifies the Lord,  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." (You can read  Mary's Song   here) What I appreciate most about The Magnificat (Mary's Song) is its poetic form. Her song provides an unusual and surprising insight into the power and goodness of God. For me, Mary is a model of faith by completely accepting her part in God’s salvation plan. Her singing celebrates receiving that role in God's plan.  I particularly like the poetic form because, biblically, it represents singing and singing is powerful. Singing is powerful. It moves our souls. For example, Psalms, such as laments (see  Psalm 79 ), help cope with the difficult emotions of grief and fear while removing their crippling capacity. Songs of praise and thanksgiving (see  Psalm 34 ) unite us to God. And canticles, such as the Canticle of Simeon (see  Luke 2:29-32 ), describing courage, promise, and hopes as they become real. Singing is powerful. It has tr...

The Singing Daughters of Dingmans Ferry UMC Sing, Daughter Zion;     shout aloud, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,     Daughter Jerusalem! The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;     never again will you fear any harm. Zephaniah 3:14-15 When it comes right down to it, I think the most moving, significant part of a worship service is the singing.  Singing for me is a soul-conversation between God's people and God. It's in singing that our souls express their greatest joy, deepest longing, and most hurting pain.  For example, "O for a Thousand Tongues" sings of the greatest joy for God's redeeming Grace. While "Just as I am" is a song of longing for acceptance and the Lord's forgiveness. Right now, it seems to me, people are craving for some joy. The pandemic and its consequences have dragged on like a dirge. School shootings by children seem to constantly repeat.  How are we going to be glad and rejoice with all our hea...

Death Valley   ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled,     ...and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” See Luke 3:1-6 Does is sometimes feel to you like we're living in a wilderness? Not the hot, barren type like Death Valley. More like the wilderness faced by the Delaware Valley Board of Education.  At a recent Board Meeting a heated exchange took place between a Board member and an audience member accusing some school teachers of Gestapo-like tactics in enforcing mask-wearing. This provoked a response causing immediate adjournment of the meeting. Or the wilderness faced by a Board member who resigned due to death threats against himself and his family. This is a wilderness where violence seems to be the rule of the day. Here people wander in an injustice of scarcity, isolation, and hunger.  It doesn't take much for any of us to ask, "God, are you at work in this wilderness?" The wilderness place of vulne...