Pastoral Notes for Sunday, December 22, 2019

One of the things I look forward to during Christmas is dusting off the tried-and-true Advent books in my library and then adding a few new ones to my collection. Though my time for reading was limited more than usual this year, I managed to get through two small works and a few really good blog posts. For your reading pleasure, I’ve posted a few highlights below. Let these short snippets minister to your heart as together we make room for Jesus arrival.  

“For it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.”—Charles Dickens

“The Christmas story clearly shows that the hope of the universe is a person. Hope was what the angels sang about. Hope lay in the manger. Hope caused Mary to wonder in her heart. It was hope that the shepherds came to worship. Hope was presented with gifts from the Magi who had traveled so far. The Advent story is a hope story because it chronicles the coming to earth of the One who is hope, Jesus.”—Paul David Tripp

“God is now on earth, and man in heaven; on every side all things commingle.”—St. John Chrysostom

“The whole life of Christ was a continual passion; others die martyrs, but Christ was born a martyr. He found a Golgotha even in Bethlehem, where he was born; for, to his tenderness then, the straws were almost as sharp as the thorns after; and the manger as uneasy at first, as his cross at last. His birth and his death were but one continual act, and his Christmas Day and his Good Friday are but the evening and morning of one and the same day.”—John Donne  

“Now, newborn,

In wide-eyed wonder,

He gazes up at creation.

His hand that hurled the world

Holds tight his mother’s finger.

Holy light, spills across her face

And she weeps,

Silent wondering tears

To know she holds the one

Who has so long held her.”—Joan Rae Mills

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, December 15, 2019

I’m a sucker for Christmas, and it’s always been the case. I am one of those weirdos that looks forward to climbing the stairs to the attic the day after Thanksgiving to retrieve the Christmas decorations. I love picking out a tree, tacking up the garland, hanging the stockings by the chimney with care all while listening to Bing Crosby sing “White Christmas.”

I’ve tried to figure out why I’m so smitten with Christmas. I used to think it was just the buzz and sparkle of it all. To be sure, that’s part of it. I’ve come to realize, however, that something deeper, purer is at work, something childlike and innocent. More than any other time of the year, Christmas wakes up my imagination to the reality of the truth of things.

The phrase “wakes up my imagination to the reality of the truth of things” may seem like a strange way to put it, because we don’t usually think of the imagination as the vehicle for communicating what is true. Fairy tales, fiction, child’s play – that’s the stuff of imagination, right? Well, yes, it is, but the imagination is much more than that, too. It’s endowed with a deeper magic we might say—that is, the ability of mind to see the unseen, to visualize the real but invisible.

This may be surprising to hear but the capacity to imagine lies at the very core of Christianity. As the writer of Hebrew reminds us, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). The capacity for faith requires the ability to envision what we can’t see. And the ability to envision what can’t be seen is the work of the imagination. If you think about it, it makes perfect sense. How else could we know and love a God whom no one has or can see (1 Timothy 6:16) if we don’t have the capacity to see with our “mind’s eye” what is true and real but hidden from sight?

What this means is that tending our imaginations is an important spiritual practice for a strong and vibrant faith. God wants our imaginations to be healthy and holy, and for that to happen, we must learn to care for them—to fill our minds with “…whatever is true whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise…” (Philippians 4:8). With the Spirit’s help this Christmas, let’s commit to pluck up the weeds of cynicism, unbelief, and despair. Let’s let the holy enchantment of the Christmas season to take hold of our hearts, as we’re swept up into the wonder of the story of the gospel all over again.

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, December 8, 2019

One of the traditions of the Christmas season at Cornerstone is our annual Service of Lessons & Carols. For those new to our midst or unfamiliar with the history behind this glorious service, a little background might be in order. The service began in 1918 at King’s College Cambridge led by Eric Milner-White, who was Dean of King’s College at the time. The opening service was received with such great acclaim that it became an annual tradition at King’s College and is today one of the most beloved Christmas services throughout the world.  

Throughout the years, the service has, for the most part, remained the same. Minor revisions were made in 1919 involving rearrangements of the lessons. And every year there are adaptations of music and carols, though the service has always opened with one of my favorite hymns, “Once in Royal David’s City.”

The BBC first broadcasted the service in 1928 and, with the exception of 1930; the service has been broadcasted every year since. It was even broadcasted during World War II when the stain glass windows of the cathedral and the heat source were removed from the building for security reasons. During those dark and tumultuous days for the world, the service of Lessons of Carols provided a gospel reminder of hope and peace. 

When the broadcast extended oversees in the mid 1930’s, its popularity quickly spread worldwide. As the popularity of the service grew, churches around the globe began to adapt the service for their own corporate use.

If you’ve never attended a Lessons & Carols service, you’re in for a real treat on December 15. Through Scriptural lessons and carols, we will course through the unfolding of gospel of Jesus Christ from Old to New Testament. What Dean Milner-White called, “the development of the loving purposes of God through the windows and words of the Bible.”   

The choir and musicians have been preparing faithfully to make this a memorable night of worship. Please do not miss this opportunity to prepare your heart for Christmas! Moreover, there’s often an increased openness toward spiritual matters during the holiday seasons, so don’t forget to invite unbelieving family, friends, and neighbors to join you for the service. This a great opportunity to introduce those you love to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, December 1, 2019

As is our custom at Cornerstone, we are taking time in December leading up to Christmas to prepare our hearts for Christ’s coming. This year we will explore the mystery of the incarnation by turning our attention to the beginning of St. John’s Gospel. To help you prepare for worship each week, I’ve posted the Scripture readings and titles for each Sunday in December below.

 The One True Light 

·             Dec. 1, “In the Beginning, Christmas” (John 1:1-4)

·             Dec. 8, “Let There Be Light” (John 1:5-13)

·             Dec. 15, “The Making of the God-Man” (John 1:14)

·             Dec. 22, “Full of Grace and Truth” (John 1:14-18)

·             Dec. 29, “Behold the Lamb of God” (John 1:19-34)

 As we course through Advent, my prayer is that we will learn the godly discipline of eagerly waiting for the long-in-coming Savior. For by looking back and remembering His first advent, we prepare ourselves for His second advent and grow in anticipation of His return.

And when Christmas (finally) arrives, my prayer is that we will rejoice in the incarnation with the joy it deserves. Let’s not be shy about our merriment, brothers and sisters. Let’s rejoice with good food and drink, with singing and laughter. Let the good news take hold of you this Christmas and celebrate in a way that matches the good news of great joy that is for all people.

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, November 24, 2019

Today we remember with gratefulness the anniversary of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church. On November 20, 2011, we became a member church of the Presbyterian Church of America. As I reminisced a bit this week, I couldn’t help but smile. The Lord has been so good to us! As I told a pastor friend recently, the lines truly have truly fallen in pleasant places for us (Psalm 16:6).

 On a personal note, let me say what an honor and joy it is to be your pastor. Thank you, thank you for the privilege it is to serve in this role, and for your willingness to put up with me year after year. (You are a longsuffering people!) I am so very grateful to call Cornerstone my church home, and I look to the years ahead with hope and expectation.

In God’s kind providence, our congregational birthday falls on the same week as our annual thanksgiving worship service. Today in worship you’ll notice thanksgiving themes in our Scripture readings and hymnody. You’ll also get the blessing of hearing a couple of saints offer testimonies of thanksgiving for the work of God in their life this year. But maybe most special of all is having our children’s choirs participate in service. Is there anything sweeter than have the voices of our covenant children leading us to the throne of grace? On that note, let me publicly express my gratefulness for David & Sue Steffens and Jessica Michaud for faithful labors in leading the children’s choirs. They’ve done such a great job.

Before I go, let me give you a brief Cornerstone financial update on the behalf of our Finance Committee. As a reminder, our fiscal year runs from July to June, so we’re about six weeks away from the halfway point. We’re thankful, as always, that our God continues to provide for our needs. We do, however, want you to know that we’re currently running behind projected giving for the year. We are trusting our ever-generous God bring us through this season, praying specifically that the current gap begins to close a bit as the end of the calendar year approaches. Would you join us in that prayer! Further, let me encourage you to continue (or begin!) giving faithfully to the work of the church, and, if feasible, consider giving a special gift before the end of the year to help us close the gap. Let’s press forward together in cheerful giving as we enter our ninth year as a church!