Editorial: Joy, unspeakable, and Full of Glory!

Translated: The inward experience, beyond words enough to fully explain, saturated with a sense of Higher reality!

The third and fourth weeks of Advent, commemorated on the next two coming Sundays, are focused on the inward experience of Joy and Love from God made possible by Jesus' birth here on earth. Without God giving, without Christ coming, there would be no atonement, aka. no substitutionary death by Jesus for us, so no opportunity to accept His gift of exchange and be made truly free from the pain of spiritual darkness; once and for all.

However, if one accepts this simply as an intellectual idea, it doesn't bring the proper exchange. Yet, allowing the entrance and occupation of Christ's own life is the great gift which does the job. Of course, living interactively in what this provides, well... there's Joy in them thaar hills!

This 'Season of Giving' is distinctly marked by two responses in people. Some indulge in: comparing themselves with others, dwelling on expectations not arrived at, or reflecting on promises broken. In this inner rehearsal, they are allowing themselves to be drawn into, what John Bunyan described as, the “slough of despond,” in his allegorical classic story, Pilgrim's Progress. It is an expression of the 'muck and mire' we can walk into, when we live without awareness of something greater than our circumstances.

Jesus is not only aware of the absolute overcoming existence, He lives in it and is that. This is shared, as we let Him influence our hearts. It's not a work or effect we accumulate by our efforts, but rather, it is a result of resting in and integrating with Christ, as He shares His triumphant life in ours.

This life is sheer JOY. Not giddiness, mind you; Joy, an abiding stabilizing assurance from Him, about Him, and consequently about our lives. Paradoxically, the Bible describes it like this, in 2 Corinthians 9:15, “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” (International Standard Version) ISV, and in 1 Peter 8b it says, “you believe in him, and so you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,” (New English Translation) NET. This Joy is past our ability to put into words. Yet, the Bible also says this about God's own Joy, in Nehemiah 8:10, “And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” (English Standard Version) ESV He wants to actually, provide inner strength, from His own being's inner experience, ironically, through our response of humility and appreciation of Him.

Appreciation toward God is an inward act of worship, or ascribing worth-ship. It's recognizing the deep value, of who He is and what He has done by coming as Jesus, and expressing that to God. The Shepherds innately responded to the Christ child, as the one and only true God. They were overwhelmed by the visit of the messenger angels singing about His reality, in Luke 2:10-11, “The angel said, Have no fear; for truly, I give you good news of great joy which will be for all the people: For on this day, in the town of David, a Saviour has come to birth, who is Christ the Lord.” (Bible in Basic English) BBE Even though this was a more powerful experience than anyone had known, they had no inner struggle. There was no impulse to consider their unworthiness, only the Joy supplied by His own presence. No rehearsal of errors, no sense of foreboding and slinking away, only the overwhelming pervading presence of Joy from God, lifting them into a completely different awareness.

God is offering something different for humanity. These shepherds were changed by it in the moment, and as they went back to care for their flocks, they shared what had happened with everybody. Luke 2:20 Their lives were lit with the candle of the Lord's own Joy. That is why this third candle, lit on this coming Sunday, the 14th, is known as the Shepherd Candle in the Advent liturgy.

The world can't compete, not on the level of Reality. In a massive attempt of denial, trying to turn a Turkish Monk (Saint Nicholas) into a magical master elf, it tries to preoccupy with tinsel, lights, overflowing boxes of distraction. Sprinkle this with a world travelling flight of reindeer, putting Canada Post to shame, as they pull a sleigh around the globe, in overnight delivery, for everyone! Just saying it, presents exhaustion. Let's just catch our breath.

This is why so many feel like an onlooker at this time of year, not able to relate to the aspect of Joy shared by so many others, in their genuine response to Christ's birth. Eternal Joy, which can arrive in our personal existence right now, as we accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour, is indescribable. To be able to know it, it must be experienced, like in the Shepherds; lives.

Next-ly, in the service on Sunday, the 21st, there will be the lighting of the fourth candle, representing Christ's Love. This Love was the driving force behind His coming from a place of perfection, heaven, to our world of troubles. He came to offer us the gift of His transformative Love, if we will let it in.

This is a song written through me, in December of 2004, expressing the Love, God carries for us, and how He moved to enable us to receive this gift to free our souls.

A Long Time.

Verse 1

Long time we had wintered, in the cold as sinners,

Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

All the plans had crumbled and the Shepherds stumbled,

Long Time, Long Time, Long Time. With no way to see the end of it in sight,

and with no dignity we ploughed on through the night,

for a Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

Refrain 1

And in the warmth of living tenderness,

and the power of all that is..

as his virtue flows in openness,

the ones who come before Him,

fill themselves with all His present bliss.

Resting in this gentle chalice-heart...

is a Love that's not been met.

He rules reality in every part,

the word of truth in every breath.

Verse 2

Long time we had hidden whispered and forbidden,

Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

And in the depths and feeling, confusion led and reeling

Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

And nothing we could do could set the sinner free

and if I tell the truth we'd leave our souls to bleed,

for a Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

Refrain 2

Through the darkness only one could see,

crystal-clear by heaven's light,

Looking onward from eternity,

the one who made compassion,

longed within it's fashion to make things right.

And Heaven stirred as He then rose to leave,

the Living Word to give His Life,

The royal sceptre of eternity,

left His power and His might.

Verse 3

And then some Angels came from glory,

to tell us of the plan of God,

and there they sang the ancient story, 'bout a kingdom up above...

and a saviour and His all prevailing LOVE,

speakin of a child in Bethlehem...

who had come to earth that day

that he was born to be the heart of man...

and he would take our sins away,

... it was the plan for a Long Time, Long Time, Long Time.

Copyright © Todd Michael Green, Dec. 11th, 2004

Whatever extraneous 'accoutrements' you may share in your Christmas time together, let's make sure they don't distract from the real reason we have Christmas. Let Christ, in Christmas, remind you of the incredible Hope He came as, the Peace He alone can provide in the heart of each of us, the Joy beyond description you can know by allowing Him in, and the Love of His heart embracing and healing yours this gathering time.

Happy Seasoning.