Oh Come Let Us Adore Him

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 I was in my car a lot today, first for work and later driving Precious to and from Sioux Falls for volleyball.  Several times the radio station told me there are only 6 days until Christmas.  That is both fun and stressful is it not?  I am looking forward to spending time with family and friends and worshipping the Savior, turning my face to Him to remember what all the hullabaloo is for....it's for Jesus, not for us or for our kids.  The classic song Oh Come All ye Faithful tells us to come, let us adore Him...adore is a big word.  Adore means to worship, love greatly, honor highly and idolize...and to like very much...and to love with one's entire heart and soul, to regard with deep respect and affection...

If I am to come and adore Jesus, I can't just passively wrap some gifts and bake some cookies....I can't even just show up for all the concerts and programs and parties....adore is a verb.  It requires action.  It demands intention and effort.  I find myself in this tug of war between being exhausted by all the doing that is a part of Christmas, especially when we are down to 6 days left, and then the pull of the coming and adoring part of Christmas.....

1.We can adore Him in the quiet and prayerful place. We can rest and pause and notice.  We can and we should.  

2.We can adore Him in the gathering time with friends and family.   We can even pray for the Christmas miracles, like reconciliation in family members who are estranged.....especially if we ask for that Christmas miracle in Jesus' name.  We can and we should.

3.We can adore Him in the respect and affection of created things like birds and wildlife and newborn babies and fresh snow.  I saw a huge buck of a deer driving home tonight with an impressive rack.  He was standing in regal authority in the darkness alongside the rode as I rounded a corner on a dark blacktop road out in the country....he was munching on seed or something that had blown off a truck and he was safe because it was after dark and the hunters had all gone home.  I appreciated this deer and respected his space on my path tonight.  Even if we like hunting, we can honor Jesus in nature.  We can and we should.  

4.We can adore Jesus as we enjoy our kids and their Christmas programs.  We had a blast watching our youngest 2 kids in a program last night and all the big kids complied with my request and showed up to watch it.  We can.  And we should.  

5.We can adore Him by liking the Christmas holiday very much and getting excited about the gift-giving and the food and the games and the traditions and the rituals and we can and we should.  

6.We can adore Him with deep respect and affection.  As I was travelling today in my car, I was listening to the radio and the familiar Christmas songs.  It was cold today and the snow on the ground was crunchy and crisp and smooth.  The trees were bare and revealed nests where the birds of winter live.  Pheasants scavaged in the fields for grain and seeds....winter is beautiful and brutal.  Life is also beautiful and brutal.  Every day is both.  I was considering today, as I thought about these days we are living in, how hard and hopeless it seems sometimes.  Suicides, mental illness, human trafficking, war, poverty, injustice, racism, indifference, and so much selfishness....and then the Lord spoke to my heart and told me that he knew December of 2022 would feel like this.  He knew all this would be happening and it hurt his heart so much to know that the souls He gave life to would suffer.....and so he send JESUS.  He sent Jesus for us.....so that we would have a way out and so that we could let the world know about Him.  Jesus is the Way Out.  Only Jesus.  So lets decide on these last 6 days before we celebrate His birth, to do what we can to let the world know.....we can.  And we should.    

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