04 December 2011

Humility at Advent

Today i sat in church, my non-denominational church, that doesn't do Advent, or sing Advent (or Christmas) songs, except at the Christmas Eve service, whose worship team i don't particularly enjoy, with a new-ish pastor whose preaching isn't particularly my style; i sat there grudgingly, thinking all of these things, and more.

we sang
I'm giving You my heart, all that is within
I lay it all down, for the sake of You my King

I'm giving You my dreams, laying down my rights
I'm giving up my pride, for the promise of new life

And I surrender all to You, all to You
And I surrender all to You, all to You 
(Surrender by Justin McRoberts)
she asked
Do we really mean it?
And He whispered
I want your heart.

Jesus humbled Himself to come to earth and live, work, walk, and die among us
Mary was humble
Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her...
And Mary said:
      “ My soul magnifies the Lord,
       And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
       For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
      For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
~Luke 1:38, 46-48
Joseph, too
Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name JESUS.
~Matthew 1:24-25
The King of kings was wrapped in humble cloth and laid in a humble manger
So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
~Luke 2:6-7
My heart was the Bethlehem Inn, and there was no room for Him, because it was overcrowded with my convention on what His Advent should look like, sound like, feel like, be.  

Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom i am the foremost.

~1 Timothy 1:15
Oh, come to my heart, Lord Jesus;
There is room in my heart for Thee!

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4 comments:

Trish @ A House Upon The Rock said...

Isn't it amazing how quickly He can whisper to our hearts when we struggle with life.

Thank you for sharing your heart with us.

Blessings,
Trish

larkswing said...

Oh my! What a beautiful post! I was reading it while listening to music post above, and chills. Been there, thought that. Thank you for church on this Tuesday morning!

Laura O in AK said...

It always amazes me how powerful a whisper to our hearts can be.

Humility is something that is hard for some of us to attain. I think I heard a pastor once say that the man who calls himself humble is far from it.

Oh to be like Mary and Joseph and follow God's will without fighting it!

mamatigerj said...

Trish, Lailani, and Laura,

Thank you for your kind words of encouragement! They have been a blessing to me, and I pray that God blesses each of you.

~juanita