(Jesus said):”This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that they lay down their life for their friends.”(John 15:12-13)
(Peter wrote): “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”  (Romans 12:21)

We have all read and heard and thought about the terrible events in Connecticut, as well as here in Iowa, and the world certainly appears to be a cruel and ugly place.  Yet here we have God’s word telling us Jesus’ words to love one another, and Peter flatly stating that we should overcome evil with good.  It’s a struggle to find the faith and strength to see the possibility of love and goodness in this world.

But think of what we are looking forward to in the next few days.  We celebrate in story and song the birth of a baby to a carpenter and a very young mother (a teen mom?!)  After a long, hard journey, far from home and family, their baby is born in a smelly, drafty stable.  Then the story takes an even  stranger turn, as a bunch of wild-eyed shepherds come racing in, insisting they had been told to go to Bethlehem by a choir of angels singing from the heavens.  And later, three exotic, scholarly men from the east arrive, talking about a star guiding them to the King of the Jews. These unlikely events are our introduction to Jesus, the Son of God who went on to teach, to preach, and to change the world.

Luke tells us that Mary “kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.” We’re all doing some pondering these days, and this Advent our preparation for Christmas may be a little more thoughtful and have a little more depth.  And then out of the darkness, the star appears, and we sing, “Joy to the world, the Lord is come!”

Your friend in Christ,

Mary Rogers