An Elder Pilgrim's Reflections

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor  on the lowly state of his servant..." (from  Luke 1:39-45 ) When I sing songs of praise to God while in the shower, I hope God isn't listening., but looking with favor on his lowly servant. God knows, we need some songs of hope. Mary lived in a more honorable time that was much different from the stressed-out society we experience today. Today we experience a Christmas market mentality, continuous traumatic news, sex-abuse scandals, divisiveness, and a sense of chaos. So, yes, God knows we need some songs of hope. One song of hope is God's promises affirmed in others which is happening when Mary makes the journey to Elizabeth. A second song of hope is God’s constant mercy. As Mary’s song moves from personal, she sings of what God has done in the lives of people around her from “generation to generation” and “forever”. Whatever mercy God is doin...

"Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” And the crowds asked him, “What, then, should we do?” (From Luke 3:7-18 ) During fellowship time after worship, the conversation at my table turned to drones. Folks began to drone on about drones. "Why don't they just shoot them down?     With apologies to Longfellow:         "I shot the drone in the air,         It fell to earth, I know not where." "Why don't they just tell us what they are? The FBI and DHS stated they believe most of the drone sightings are cases of “mistaken identity." Most of the public are misidentifying small, legally operating manned aircraft, or commercial airliners, as drones which may actually be commercial drones. The sightings create a sense of urgency, and anxiety.  What should we do? This is the same question people asked John the Baptist after he warned the...

As it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight.” (from  Luke 3:1-6 )   The last place I want to be during the Black Friday Season is the wilderness of Walmart. The long paths to the check-out registers are definitely not straight as people usually wait patiently to purchase their presents. The Season continues with Cyber Monday and intensifies until reaching “Last Minute Shopping”. Our practice is to shop small business on-line, most of which we have visited at one time or another. There’s a backstory to Black Friday. Around 1951, "Black Friday" came to be used by Philadelphia police to describe the crowds and traffic congestion when the Christmas shopping season began. There’s also a backstory to John the Baptizer’s appearance at the Jordan River. According to Malachi, a prophet filled with the Holy Spirit will appear filled with a message of re...

Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” (from  Luke 21:25-36 ) In 1963 Bob Dylan wrote "The Times They Are a-Changin'" during a time when the civil rights movement was underway and demonstrations against the war in Vietnam were gearing up. It would become the anthem of his generation. Dylan wrote the ballad as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of hope during the changes of the times. Now, more than 60 years later, it throbs with new meaning. Today our world is flooded with uncertainty, injustice, conflict, indifference, pain, judgment, and condemnation of anyone who thinks differently. A word of hope and redemption is greatly needed. This is nothing new, that’s why the prophets wrote about a “Day of the Lord” when the Lord decisively intervenes to redeem God’s people. On the “Day of the Lord” the...