Peace Hoped for and Made: #AdventWord Day 23

PEACE
It may not have been our smartest decision, but our family of six ventured to Philly’s Christmas Village last night. Yes, two days before Christmas we hit up City Hall and Macy’s to see the touted light shows. Let’s just say all was beautifully bright but definitely not calm. It was a mad house. Still, there were two sacred spaces that slowed the haste as people wrote their hopes and aspirations, wishes and a few prayers. One caught my attention: a call for peace in English, Italian, Spanish, and Russian. While possible to dismiss as cliche for the season, it is far better to lift up as a genuine and universal longing for what the Scriptures call shalom. Who needs more cynicism anyway?

Shalom is the crux of the biblical story and is far more than the absence of war and violence, conflict, and aggression. Shalom is the active realization of God’s dreams for the world, visions of wholeness and fairness, kindness and equity, reconciliation and when all have enough and the earth is in perfect rhythm. Shalom is when lions lay down with lambs and swords are forged into gardening tools. Shalom was embodied in the person and work of Jesus, who challenged all that stood in the way of universal welfare as he extended love and welcome to the most unlikely of neighbors. This Jesus then invited us to do and be about the same. After all, peace is a collective movement, actively made and pursued versus passively wished for as though someone else’s responsibility. So this Christmas, whenever you see prayers for peace, consider it a corporate and personal charge, command, and bold invitation to play your part. May peace be something you both hope for and intentionally make in even the most chaotic places and circumstances. Those who do so, Jesus said, are blessed and called the very children of God.

A Persistent and Audacious Child: #AdventWord Day 22

PERSIST

The name Mickey Mantle is not the greater of the two names engraved here, at least not for me. Actually, I wish that name was not on this lumber at all (curse those damn Yankees). The name in red and and all-caps, burned in by my dad when he was not much older than my two oldest are now- that name means something to me. This bat is likely the greatest Christmas gift my Dad could have given this year…or any year. The Louisville Slugger, which was carried with glove-on-end to the local sandlot fifty years ago, is the only piece of my dad’s childhood I have ever seen, let alone now own. The new heirloom points beyond itself and towards persistence and the ability to end cycles and carve new paths for new generations. I will be forever indebted for his courage and strength, love and faith. 

At Christmas, we are reminded of how the Spirit stubbornly persists throughout history for the sake of the wounded and the oft-forsaken. God’s preference is for those whose names are hardly known, who dwell in the shadows of power and prestige, and have had to to fight their way through cycles of oppression and loss. If I were to guess, God especially delights in persistent children who have the audacity to etch their own names just below the likes of Mickey Mantle. Actually, these red-letter names are likely where the eyes of God are drawn to first. They are the change makers whose witness impacts generation after generation.

Mary Not Only Knew, She Expected: #AdventWord Day 21

EXPECT

There are certain songs we expect at Christmas. Many are good; most are cliche. Don’t even get me started on “Mary, Did You Know?” 

Too late. 

Mary knew a great deal about what was coming in this One who now dwelled within her. She knew it so well she wrote a song about what she expected- with lyrics most church choirs hesitate to incorporate into their cantatas. She knew God had decidedly acted on behalf of the oppressed through this child gestating within her. She knew the abusive power structures were about to be humbled. She knew the rich were about to feel the tides turned. After nine months, the expectant Mary likely knew more about the child she would name Jesus than any other biblical writer. Yet, we often turn Mary’s mantra for this movement into trite spirituality. We theologically mansplain her refrain of resistance and do not expect it to stand on its own; we consult the likes of Paul or other New Testament writers as our interpretative lenses. We do not wrestle with the nuances of Mary to the same degree as other parts of the Bible. Not even close. That said, I wonder, what would it be like for Mary’s prophetic song to sing solo, to take hold of the platform it is due, and bring both the words of confrontation and comfort that could only come from the expecting Mother of God Incarnate? I wonder how this would shape the work and public witness of the church the other 11 months of the year? What would happen if her song became an expected Christmas anthem of resistance to our own powers on high, refusing to reduce Mary’s lyric any longer- not a single line? I don’t know definitively, but expect something radically different would be born.

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Closed or Open? #AdventWord Day 20

SIGN
(a palindromic poem, read top to bottom then bottom to top)

closed.
we are not
welcome space,
a sign to all
looking in,
outside
we are not
open.

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Ablaze for Goodness: #AdventWord Day 19

ABLAZE
Rabbi Abraham Heschel once wrote, “To us a single act of injustice--cheating in business, exploitation of the poor--is slight; to the prophets, a disaster. To us injustice is injurious to the welfare of the people; to the prophets it is a deathblow to existence: to us, an episode; to them, a catastrophe, a threat to the world.“ 

This is what happens when one is ablaze for God’s dreams for a world whole and good and fair and kind and gracious and merciful and slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. This empathy-driven passion not only sparked the prophets to speak, but also God to act and intervene into the human plight as one of us among us. This is the crux of the Advent and Christmas story, a God so ablaze for the world to be restored and reconciled that this God would rend the heavens and come down amidst catastrophe. This God is not so meek and mild, but ignited for the welfare and well-being of what was made good in the beginning. And it will be blazing with goodness again. May this be the hope that keeps us alight for the work ahead.

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Wash: #AdventWord Day 18

WASH

Bath-time with kiddos can be hell. Sure, it can also be a playful end to an otherwise chaotic day, possibly even calming for that kid who refuses to go to sleep. But don’t let the parent kitsch fool you; the liminal space between dinner and story, when you simply ask them to wash up, it can be like Creed versus Drago (look it up). 

The references throughout Scripture to being washed and made clean must go beyond the kitsch as well. This is likely why John the Baptist prefaced his baptismal “liturgy” with “you brood of vipers.” John knew the crowds had become so immersed in the rhythms of empire, the lures of power, and the temptations of acquisition that to undo such stench needed more than just a little water. The prophet from the wilderness also knew, if they were willing to share their coats, be generous with their resources, and see the humanity in those they passed by on military patrol, they would discover God’s dreams for the world breaking in through the One who would come after John. If they washed themselves of snake-ish deception, they would also find newness of life in this alternative movement called the kingdom of God. So don’t fight it, John said by the Jordan, turn towards and bathe in it.

On Ancestors and Heritage Discovered: #AdventWord Day 17

ANCESTOR

On February 25, 1965, Walter R. Heath passed away after a life of 80 years. Along with a fondness for baseball and always looking his Sunday best, Mr. Heath loved Jesus and served as a devoted member and ruling elder at Faith Presbyterian Church just outside of Baltimore, MD.

That's all I know about Walter R. Heath. Aside from one more detail, Elder Heath was my maternal great-great grandfather. He was also the only Presbyterian in my family, that is, until I was ordained fifty years (nearly to the day) after his death. 

God’s Spirit has a funny way of moving through our ancestors- just look at the genealogy of Jesus. Many of them were a hot mess; others were quite courageous. We learn a great deal about who we are through who has been before us, both the good and the ill; we even discern who we long to be as we either build upon witness or break cycles of previous generations. I have my share of family members who have done both, for which I am grateful. I pray the same holds true for my children. I also pray my work and witness is a good (Presbyterian) homage to Great-Great Grandpa Heath.

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To Sing Is to Be Human: #AdventWord Day 16

SING
Throughout history, organized movements of influence and change haved included song. When words are sung, they have the capacity to enter into the wide range of human experiences, challenge oppressive power structures, provoke the prophetic imagination, comfort the afflicted, and spark alternative visions for communities strained by generations of neglect and injustice. So it is no wonder Mary and Zechariah both sang upon the announcements of both Jesus and John’s conception. They were tapping into a cultural medium that transcended spoken and written words, because to sing is to be human and in rhythm with the holy. I think this is why we love watching and listening to kids sing so much this time of year; we are celebrating their simple and unrefined participation in the rhythm of what God is up to all around us. May we all have the eyes to see, ears to hear, and voices to sing just the same.

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Rejoicing as Resistance: #AdventWord Day 14

REJOICE

Birthdays are a pretty big deal in our house. We tend to gush a bit over the birthday kid, even when one is so close to Christmas. In the midst of a circus life, it is important to us to stop and REJOICE over the one among the many. 

The biblical story is full of calls to rejoice. The invitation to jubilation was beyond sentiment; to celebrate was to affirm no matter where they lived, who was in political power, or the threats posed by social and economic circumstances, God’s steadfast love abounded and would be with them. In this light, whether Mary or the shepherds, we are able to see their rejoicing as resistance to the fear, angst, and narratives of scarcity or oppression that regularly threatened God’s people. They refused to surrender celebration, because to rejoice was to defy despair, resist the grips of empire, and affirm again God’s everlasting promises. So this season, and every season, dare to shout “hosanna in the highest,” and do so as protest against whatever shadows or systems infringe upon God’s dreams for this beloved world.

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Not Quitting but Preparing to Lead: #AdventWord Day 14

PREPARE

There are days when I raise some pretty raw existential questions about this whole church experiment. I wonder, does what we what we offer alongside our neighbors and communities near and far make any difference at all? These are the days I am grateful for the work I do alongside seminarians. As we prepare one another for new approaches to ministry, creative enactments of the gospel, and intentional expressions of love and welcome, we affirm God is still invested in this broken yet beautiful organism called the church. Every time I talk with these budding leaders, hear their call stories, make space for their questions, and listen to their passions for intersecting the biblical story with the present realities swirling among us, I am reminded God has not given up on us for one second. The Spirit is still awakening people to follow Jesus. This gives me great hope; this helps me not to bail but take greater and bolder risks as we make even the smallest of preparations for God’s world we dare to believe will be made whole and good and right again.

Pruning Questions: #AdventWord Day 13

PRUNE

I certainly do not have a green thumb. What I do know, though, is if I do not prune these roses they will not be as full in the spring; their growth will be slowed. If I want the flowers to achieve their boldest and brightest potential, what is dead and dry should be cut away.

The agrarian metaphor is a good one for the season. Advent is a time to consider what it means for both individuals and faith communities to be pruned by the One who dwelled among us to shape us more into the likeness of God. It is a sacred time to ask, where can angst and fear, greed and divisive speech be cut away so contentment and love, generosity and welcome can bloom? Where can lust for power and thirst for control be snipped so equity and human dignity can grow boldly and beautifully? How can aggression and deceit be hacked so peace and truth telling can blossom? Will we dare allow busyness to be trimmed to make room for play, advocacy, or small acts of kindness offered to a neighbor...or an enemy? Will we let invasive bitterness to be thinned out just enough for grace and forgiveness to flourish? There are so many more pruning questions to ponder as we get our hands dirty and trust the Spirit to cultivate new life among us- even within and through us. Advent is a good time to ask them.

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Smooth Waters & Ripples of Goodness: #AdventWord Day 12

SMOOTH

The waters of the Delaware River ran calm and smooth yesterday morning. As I stood on its western bank in the city of Chester, there was a gentleness to the current as it reflected images of birds hovering above the flow. And I found myself caught a bit in the sacred serenity of the moment. 

Chester is not really known by outsiders as scenic or sacred. Most of the news stories run by local outlets are draped in despair, violence, poverty, addiction, hunger, and lack of opportunity. Yet, when you get to know local residents, community leaders, and movers and shakers in the neighborhood church, this is not the full story. Like a river running alongside the city, there are faithful ripples of goodness mobilized by residents who dare to smooth over the rocky realities of social and systemic brokenness through organized initiatives of empowerment. And if we have the eyes to see and ears to hear, as the birds linger over the Delaware, so does God’s Spirit over this city not forsaken. The same holds true for all our cities, neighborhoods, and nations, if we stop to take notice.

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#Rough Road to Redemption: AdventWord Day 11

ROUGH

These shoes have seen better days. They have carried me through numerous night runs, morning trainings, 5k races, trail courses, up and down hills, and the completion of my first half-marathon. Nearly 1,000 miles over the last year and now they are done. While I have learned to love running, the sport becoming a great outlet of self-care, there are plenty of occasions where I have to work up extra motivation to walk out my front door. There are more than enough rough routes when my legs do not cooperate and I am tempted to bail altogether- not sure if I can make it up that incline or finish the extra mile. Still, I offer whatever I have and press on to the end. 

We are fools if we believe the road to Bethelehem was easy. The coming of Christ was surrounded by conflict and confrontation, fear and uncertainty, oppression and horror, mystery and absurdity. If we pay attention, we discover many within the drama were tempted to quit altogether, to bail on the improbable and impossible. Yet, through their faithful endurance and trust in God’s promise to put the world to rights in this One named Immanuel, they encountered new beginnings. Yes, their road to redemption was rough, ours will likely be as well, but they carried on, aware God was with them every leg of the journey. The same holds true for us. So lace up and offer whatever you have to this movement of love, justice, and promised renewal of all creation.

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Who Grows Your Hops? AdventWord Day 10

GROW

From barley to hops, even your favorite IPA or stout requires growth and a process of harvesting. While not likely on your mind when enjoyed at a holiday party or solo fireside, there are real people that make the experience possible. This is even more true for the other brewed beverage- coffee and related beans. The same goes for our fruits and vegetables and more. Contrary to commercial consumerism, our food does not grow at thelocal grocery store. Instead, it are nurtured and nourished by those who often are not paid a fair wage and exploited in unjust labor conditions. Their stories are often unknown or left untold to ensure the cost of our hot roast or fresh fruit stays low, better said, the corporate profit margin stays high. 

So this Advent, say a prayer for all those who grow what you consume. Better yet, find a way to advocate for fair wages, trade, and working conditions that empower and sustain your neighbors who make your holiday food and drinks possible in the first place. #fairtrade #buylocal

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O Come All Ye Faithful and #Cry: AdventWord Day 9

CRY

I have an endless collection of these small books. Each of them holds my most personal writings, regular reflections that move from the general to the very particular. The pages are raw and sometimes profane; they are my thoughts and prayers and rants in their most real and honest forms. More than modest musings, they are a collective cry of hope mixed with despair, situated in a time and place known too well by me. Cliches have no place here. 

Advent is a time to cry out beyond the festive and religious platitudes. Advent is when we are dared to be raw and honest and maybe irreverent about our personal and social longings, our expectations for God to act in our darkest and most grief-stricken places. We do so reminded it was into this mess and in response to situated and brash cries of a people that God chose to come down and dwell as one of us, even to liberate us. So come all ye faithful...and cry a bit. 

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To Be Wild Is to Be Holy: AdventWord Day 8

Wild

This little one is fierce. She is wild and independent and reckless and unapologetic about her curiosity. At two years old, her wreckless approach to life is both a joy to witness and a handful to manage; it cannot be contained, merely supervised. 

While the craziness of our youngest makes life exhausting and occasionally dangerous, we dare not squash the zealous energy, for to be wild is to be holy, in rhythm with the movement of God’s Spirit. This Wild Spirit pushes limits, tests boundaries, and is unapologetic about moving beyond social constructs and privileged norms, to resurrect the improbable and impossible and extend the wide welcome of the gospel. Indeed, wildness is a marker of God’s kingdom come and will being done. So be wild, my little girl. Never let the rest of us temper your propensity to mirror your Maker. 

Horses as Alert & Woke Channels of God's Grace: AdventWord Day 7

ALERT

Horses are among the most attentive and alert of God’s creatures. As I have learned from my spouse’s work as an equine therapist, these large animals are hyper vigilant and able to pick up on tensions and fears, conflicts and apprehensions, even the kindness and goodness of their surroundings. It is said that horses can sense the human heartbeat four feet away. 

Yes, horses are woke, which makes them excellent partners in the art of human healing and therapy. In being so alert, although large and initially intimidating, horses become avenues of genuine compassion and companions in transformation. We have much to learn from these wondrous creatures. If our alertness can mirror at least a fraction of their attentiveness to others and the spaces around us, we just may be become similar channels of love and grace able to ease a wounded world.

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Sprout Again: AdventWord Reflection Day 6

SPROUT

life 
once again 
will sprout
though the ground
now cold
a thaw will come
what is dry
barren
will give way
to growth
what is not
will become
brand new
still we wait
hope
trust
care
for the ground
until it springs
afresh

See all reflections on my personal Advent Calendar: https://eb.adventword.org/author/GregKlimovitz/ 

When We Struggle to Be Light: AdventWord Day 5

LIGHT

The inevitable happens every year, you pull out strings of lights and bulbs are burned out that threaten the entire strand. You then are posed with two options: search for the dud and replace with a spare #light or toss them and cut your $3 loss. However, if you went all in last Christmas and bought the continuous LEDs, it is ok if one bulb does not shine. The rest of the lights continue to carry the current and illuminate the night, with the burned out bulb still a part of the strand.

If we are honest, this time of year we may not always feel so illuminated. We may dare challenge the lyrics of the sacred carol and scream, all is not calm; all is not bright! And we would be right to do so. We must make space for this Advent confession of despair and distress, when we struggle to be a light or hold on hope or trust in the promise that God is with us and for us. We may then find comfort in the truth that when we are not able to shine bright, the current of God’s love and grace continues to move through the work of others on the strand. May we cling to their light when ours is faint at best. Assured the day will come when we may be able to burn bright again.

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Wounded Light throughout the Night: #AdventWord Day 4

NIGHT

The thing about light is that it is somewhat dependent upon the night; the fullness of the glow is most evident in darkness. Yet each night I unplug the lights before headed for bed. For those who pass by our home in the late night and earliest of morning hours, our house is dark. The same is true for the whole neighborhood. We cut short the potential to experience brightness and share the light for any midnight traveler. 

I wonder, where is our light when the world is darkest? Do we see these as moments to shine bright or do we withdraw in our own fear or angst or insecurity about our ability to make any difference at all? Do we only light up in the safety of the day, when all is well and light is already in abundance and it risks us nothing? Are we unplugged in the depths of the night? 

This year I found a stray mini-tree light we bought years ago. It was missing a pole and no longer stands upright on its own. So I got myself some duct tape, rigged up a makeshift post, and stuck it in the corner of our front porch. This tree may be my new favorite of all our lights. While it is fragile and frail and imperfect and wounded and taped, it still shines in the night and reminds me of what it means to be human, to be Christian, to be bearers of the Light of the World in the darkest of nights.

So I am going to leave the little tree turned on a bit longer tonight. Maybe I will wait to unplug it in the morning.

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Advent as Tilt Shift and Radial Focus: Day 3 of #AdventWord

FOCUS

We no longer merely post pictures. We filter them. One of my favorite filters is the “tilt shift.” Whether linear or radial, you can bring into focus the primary object of your image without an expensive camera lens. The background, although not totally lost, is blurred in order to draw your attention to what is the most important subject of the digital shot. 

In a sense, Advent places a tilt shift on our life and the world around us. The four-week pilgrimage becomes a radial focus that draws the story of Jesus to the forefront of our imaginations. In the midst of the “fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world” (Luke 21:26), Advent dares us to filter our angst through the lens of the gospel and trust, along with those of ages past, just maybe God is with us still. 

Read more here:

https://social.adventword.org/focus-advent-as-tilt-shift-f…/

Kingdom of God Is Closer than It Appears: Day 2 of #AdventWord

WATCH

Objects in mirror are closer than they appear. Those eight words on a car's side view mirror are, without intention, quite prophetic. And in these days, they even bring a bit of comfort. God’s dreams for a world made new and right, when all things will be restored and reconciled, are actually closer than what may appear. In the midst of all the reasons we have to despair and cry out, how long, O Lord, if we have the eyes to see and the ears to hear the signs of the kingdom are sprouting up around us. 

And God’s Spirit is daring us to remain awake and alert- to watch for these witnesses of God’s kingdom come on earth as in heaven.

We are to watch for the small acts of kindness and bold movements of protest that resist powers bent on injustice. We are to watch for organized efforts to end various manifestations of violence and how the faithful gather across all walls of division to worship and form community. We are to watch for welcome extended to those who have been barred from such community for far too long and when resources are shared with those who do not have enough. 

We are to watch for all this and far more. We are also to engage, for in so doing we draw all the nearer to God’s promises and everlasting hope.

“Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 21)

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Journey with Children as Evergreens of Hope: #AdventWord Day 1

Beginning my annual digital discipline for Advent with AdventWord. Check out this public and interactive social media Advent calendar that invites you to post daily images and reflect on sacred words for the four week pilgrimage to Christmas. 

JOURNEY

Youth and children, in many ways, are evergreens of hope, forever sprouting up in each and every age. On the journey of faith, they dare older generations to trust they just may have the new trimmings of possibilities and decor of the gospel able to speak into our time and place in ways we may have never previously imagined. In their collective questions and curiosities, passions and inquisitive hearts and minds, they drag with them a sense of wonder about how the world can and should and just may become more whole and good and fair and kind. Young people even invite us along on the new leg of the journey, nevertheless reminding us they are equipped and called to lead- even in and especially because of their youthfulness. And this is the beauty of the Christmas story, a little child should lead them, be it Mary or young shepherds, even the Christ child. Dare we begin our Advent journey with a commitment to trust the wisdom and playfulness of the youngest among us, to follow their leading, and in this way light up the world. 

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