Devotions Archive Archive: 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 Search Archive Print This Article West Side light Friday, December 30, 2016 Colossians 3:15-17 Be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol in 1843, six years after Queen Victoria began her nearly seventy year reign in England. Sanctification of the family, as portrayed by Dickens, would become a major tenet of Victorian thinking. Today we celebrate the holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. A week ago we celebrated family of a different kind at West Side Christian Church in Springfield. This year they threw out all the stops for six Christmas Eve services. Outside a set of giant spotlights circled and pierced the foggy night sky. Inside the interplay of music and singing and light and dark took our breath away. Our daughter in law Melissa hosted the service, which blended Second City comedy with warm remembrance. In a video Melissa remembered her childhood, when her mother nearly died of cancer and she discovered the power of light against the backdrop of darkness that threatened to take over her life. Melissa's four-year old daughter Aly played her mom in the video, entirely in silence. Her eyes spoke volumes. The service was anchored on a man sitting in a darkened cabin, reading to us about light. Lit only by a lantern, he read while twenty young women carried giant white balls of light down the aisles and left them at the altar. Bring your offering to Emmanuel. Paul's words for his Colossian family read well at weddings. Clothe yourselves with gentleness, humility and forgiveness. Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus. That should keep conflict to a minimum. We don't always do it well, but we can also always come back to it. In the name of the Lord Jesus. This week in Austin we grandparents are staying up in shifts with new baby Miles. My eyes are often heavy and muscles sore. But we feel more like a family than ever. Three generations of love and respect. Today is a good day to be blessed by Jesus, Mary and Joseph. And somehow pass it on. As you bless us, Lord, let us thank you and walk in your ways. You give us the fruit of your handiwork for food and drink, you set a banqueting table for us in the presence of our enemies, and invite us to dwell in your house forever. I want to say, YES, Lord. Yes! "; Add      Edit    Delete