White Christmas

Actually, it has been a white several days after Christmas. Casey, our 22 year-old daughter, and I shoveled six inches of snow around 12:00 noon on Wednesday, December 26, then another 3" at around 4:00 p.m.

 

Two stories come out of the snowstorm.

 

Our snowblower has been in the shop for close to a month. Having used the machine less than a dozen times, this is the second time that it has been in the shop for extended periods. It has a gas leak that no one seems to be able to repair, but it is not safe to use. It just so happens that the fellow who was attempting to repair the snowblower owns a truck with a plow. Because he has my snowblower in his shop, and because he felt badly for his failure to repair it, he came over and plowed a part of our driveway.

 

While dealing with the initial snowfall, Casey and I were assisted by a man who was traveling the neighborhood with his industrial-sized snowblower. He had done several neighboring sidewalks. On seeing us shoveling, he came over and asked if he might save us a little time. Casey and I were several hours into the labor, so we were thankful for the help. I never learned his name and have no way to repay his kindness, except to pass it on to others.

 

I saw others helping neighbors and strangers. Every act of assistance was simply an additional Christmas gift, honoring the spirit of the season. While there was no mention of Jesus in the course of either act of kindness that I personally witnessed during the snowstorm, the generosity and compassion demonstrated were directly in line with the reason for which Jesus had been born.

 

I am reminded also of the woman in New York City who paid $200 to purchase and obviously stolen dog from a fellow whom she suspected to be a criminal. She then took the dog to a vet, who used the embedded chip to return the dog to the owner from which it had been stolen. That was $200 well spent!

 

There are a million such stories.

 

Maybe it is time that we begin to focus on them, instead of telling the tales of theft and violence that seem so prevalent. Perhaps, if we told of kindness and generosity, the telling would foster further acts of compassion. Maybe that is precisely the way to celebrate Christmas, practicing random acts of kindness and telling stories about the acts of others. Maybe that is a good way to progress toward God's kingdom on earth.

 

See You Sunday!

 

 

Sandy Hook

Last Friday, the nation was stunned by yet another senseless act of mass violence, this time at an Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. A 20 year-old gunman, wearing a bullet proof vest and brandishing at least three weapons - one an automatic assault rifle - and bearing literally hundreds of rounds of ammunition, broke a glass door and began a rampage that left 26 dead. The young man obviously intended even more death, but was stopped by those who were first on the devastating scene. In a final act of cowardice, Adam Lanza took his own life.

 

It is now Tuesday of the following week. My disbelief and sorrow has turned to anger. Perhaps unfairly, I am outraged.

 

I am angry at Adam Lanza. He looked innocent children in the face and shot them repeatedly with ammunition that was intended to do maximum damage. He shot some as many as eleven times. He chose these days, approaching Christmas, to engage is unspeakable and intolerable violence. He killed administrators and teachers who sacrificed their own lives to protect the children who had been entrusted to their care.

 

I understand that Adam Lanza suffered from some emotional and mental defect. I understand that he was psychologically damaged. My anger at him may be unfair. It may be better placed with those who allowed him to function, untreated, as a part of society. But Mr. Lanza armed himself intentionally. He put on a kevlar vest to protect himself. Instead of facing the ramifications of his acts, Adam Lanza, as authorities approached, took his own life. He make conscious decisions. He made plans. He intended destruction and devastation. His acts infuriate me.

 

I am angry, too, at his mother, Nancy Lanza. By all accounts, she was a gun enthusiast, who wanted to protect herself and her family. Mrs. Lanza did not act responsibly with her weapons, however. She made it possible that her troubled son might have access to them. ( In a majority of the events of mass-killings, perpetrators used weapons that were either registered to others or purchased illegally.) Mrs. Lanza failed to protect the public from her exercise of individual rights. To do so in unconscionable.

 

I am angry with those who have made the incident about gun control, arguing on both sides of the political debate. I am even angrier with those who have claimed that the event arose out of lack of prayer in public schools. Nothing is more ridiculous! I am even angry with the President, who said, during his address, that "God has called these children home." What? You have got to be kidding me! God did not call these children home. They were killed by a madman. This was an evil event. God did not allow it as part of some divine plan, and the God I know simply grieves with us, is present to us, and remains with us, even in these devastating times.

 

I know that there are other steps in the process of grieving. Right now, I am just angry. Adam Lanza has affected us all this Christmas season. Maybe God can bring my anger to praise. Perhaps God can overcome in me the tendency to blame. Maybe God can help me find some peace.

 

See You Sunday! 

It's Christmas!

It is an interesting phenomenon. Over the past few years, it seems as though Christmas begins for me during the week following Shiloh's Christmas musical. Don't misunderstand, I have completed the vast majority of my Christmas shopping, the house is decorated, and I am all but ready for the Christmas celebrations. Some of these tasks were completed weeks ago.

 

But it has not yet felt like Christmas.

 

Do you know what I mean?

 

There is something, deep down inside, that either does or does not feel like Christmas. To this point, Christmas has been a list of to-do's. It has been an addendum to my already impossible calendar. Things that I have to get done. People that I need to see. Places that I need to go. Cards to buy and mail. Decorations to hang. Lights to adjust. Parties to attend. Presents that I need to get. Clothes to plan and prepare. The list goes on and on.

 

To feel like Christmas, however, requires none of these things, I suppose. Maybe the lights and decorations and presents and carols get in the way of the real Christmas season. Now, I am not just referring to "Jesus as the reason for the season." I mean to suggest, instead, that there is something deep within each of us that resonates with the foundational experience of Christmas. At it's core, Christmas represents the onset of God's work among us. It represents God's love for God's people. This love is universal in nature and character. It is not just for those who rightly believe or rightly practice, or who believe exclusively that "Jesus is the reason for the season."

 

Perhaps the feeling comes with Shiloh's Christmas musical. Maybe it is from the Shiloh staff Christmas party, which has just happened to fall, over the last few years, on the weekend on the musical. It may be the more than 70 families that Shiloh is able to help this Christmas season, as an outcome of our annual golf outing. It may be the 120-some bags of food that Shiloh collected for the local food pantries, or the Heifer Project International Ark that Shiloh will, once again this year, provide for needy families and communities around the globe.

 

Whatever the case, I feel the love of God being poured out for all people this Christmas season. The feeling is palpable and overt. I hope you see it. I hope you feel it. I hope that you can join me in being a part of its planting in the world.

 

Merry Christmas! See you Sunday!    

The Christmas Musical, "Come and See"

This coming Sunday, December 9, Shiloh Church offers its annual Christmas Musical, "Come and See." The Musical will be presented at both 10:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. and will feature Shiloh's joint choirs, handbells, an all-volunteer orchestra, the congregation's new pipe organ console, sacred and secular selections, and a good time for all.

 

Shiloh's music department operates under the direction of Mr. Mark Barnhill. Mark is assisted by Martha Kirkland and Linda Peterson. Shiloh's organist is Rev. Aaron Sheaffer, who has served at Shiloh for several decades. The Pastoral staff is comprised of Rev. Dick Van Tine, Pastor Jay McMillen and myself, Rev. Carl E. Robinson. The office staff consists of Business Manager, Judy Peck, Administrative Assistant, Ashley Pack, and a host of volunteers. Our building and grounds staff includes Facility Manager, Sid Manley, and Custodian, Ken Todd. Decorations have been coordinated under the direction of volunteer, Connie Neef, who also happens to serve on Shiloh's Worship Committee.

 

Another interesting feature of this year's musical will be a reception that takes place immediately following each of the two presentations. Thanks to Shiloh's Hospitality Team, participants and audience of the musical can meet and greet, while sharing light refreshments in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Glenna Higgins is assisted by JoAnne Orihood, who, together, shape Shiloh's Hospitality team.

 

Come and join Shiloh Church at its annual Christmas musical. Start your holiday celebrations with us. "Come and See" the magical message of the birth of Christ Jesus. The musical will be presented this coming Sunday, December 9, at both 10:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.

 

See you Sunday!