“God of the Details”

Luke 1:57-66
Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.
On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.” Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John.” And all of them were amazed. Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue freed, and he began to speak, praising God. Fear came over all their neighbors, and all these things were talked about throughout the entire hill country of Judea. All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child become?” For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.

I am a sucker for a good story. I’ve always been a big reader, in part because I love to be transported to a different world through stories. Nowadays, I enjoy all sorts of media– from movies to TV shows to books if they have a story that can reel me in. The best authors, I think, are the ones who lay the seeds of the plot that has yet to unfold. The first time you read it, you miss all the sly and secret breadcrumbs that they were dropping but upon re-reading, it almost feels obvious because of all the tiny details that were there all along. It’s why I love the gospel of Luke so much and why I’m excited to be diving into the story of the birth of John the Baptist and the amazement of his parents, neighbors, and relatives. 

This series is called, “How does a weary world rejoice?” and once we start looking for it, it’s easy to see the weariness all over this Advent narrative. For there is certainly a profound weariness in a woman in the ninth month of her “geriatric pregnancy”, as Elizabeth was. I imagine her relatives and neighbors holding their breath, not quite ready to rejoice at the miracle of her pregnancy until a healthy baby is born. It’s understandable– childbirth was the number one cause of death for women in the world until the 20th century and many, many infants died at birth at that time. And so they do not rejoice until that baby is born and they can be sure there is something to celebrate. The frustrations for poor Elizabeth do not let up because, of course, no one believes her when she says the baby’s name will be John. They write her off completely because it doesn’t make sense to them and how on earth could a woman be right about such an usual name for their family line? And every woman sighs in weary solidarity.

But then, the story shifts and wonder enters the narrative. Wonder and amazement are a repeated motif in Luke’s telling of the Advent and Christmas story. The people of Bethlehem are amazed when they hear the Shepherd’s testimony and Mary and Joseph are amazed after receiving Simeon’s blessing at the temple after Jesus’ birth. But first, it is the friends and family of Zechariah and Elizabeth who are amazed. They are amazed that Zechariah agrees with his wife’s strange choice of name and they are amazed and afraid when Zechariah is finally able to speak again. This amazement stops them in their tracks and changes their entire perception of what has just occurred. This is not just a baby boy born to parents who everyone thought were too old to have a child. This is something they can’t understand or explain. “What then will this child become?” It’s a big question, isn’t it? One that they know they won’t get an answer to. And if they were to see the future, they’d probably be too overwhelmed to comprend that this little bundle of joy would someday become a man shouting in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord!” 

This week, we lit the candle of Joy, which can be elusive in our weariness. We can’t snap our fingers and go from weariness to joy at the drop of a hat. Something has to come in between and that “thing” can be allowing ourselves to be amazed. That language is Intentional because amazement is a choice. We can go about our days seeing the exact same things as someone else, and have utterly different experiences of what we have seen. One of the unexpected joys of this season for me has been watching Jack experience what feels like his first Christmas all over again. I knew his first Christmas last year would be exciting for us, but I didn't expect this year to have the same effect on us bJack, like every other toddler is amazed at Christmas.. He is amazed at Christmas trees and Christmas lights. He is amazed at ornaments and candy canes and Santa Claus in the dark mornings when we come downstairs and turn on the lights to the Christmas tree jackstands still has a statue for once, just looking with amazement at this tree in his house.Seeing Christmas through Jack's eyes. Remind me what an amazing season this really is. Children are a gift to all of us in that way. With so many things that are new to them it is easy for them to be amazed at the things that we have since agoGrown accustomed to, and maybe even weary of.

We don't need a small child in our life to find amazement. We can be amazed if we go looking for it. Amazement for me is so easily found in nature. I love a good sunset or sunrise, but my favorite time is the alpenglow. The alpenglow is a period during sunset when the sun casts a red glow on a snowy mountain. We can see the alpenglow on Mount Rainier on a clear day from Tacoma. When I lived in Mount Shasta, I had a perfect view of the mountain from my living room, and the alpenglow was always my favorite time of day. No matter how often I got to see it, if I had the chance, I’d sit on my couch and just watch until it faded away. We are fortunate to live in the northwest where nature’s beauty is all around us. We have the choice to either go about our day with our heads down– focused on whatever we have next on our to-do lists or we can slow down just enough to be amazed by the smell after it has just rained. To be amazed at the patterns from the frost on the leaves. To look at the sprawling infrastructure that forms our cities and instead of being frustrated that we’re sitting in traffic, choose to be amazed at what humans can build and achieve when they work hard together. 

Amazement can be a balm for our weary souls. It doesn't take away from the life that we live. Amazement doesn't pretend like the problems of our world and our lives aren't real and present. But moments of wonder and amazement can give us relief and bring us towards joy. It lightens our heavy hearts. So what inspires wonder and amazement in you? It might not be the same as me and that's all right. 

I was talking to my mentor this week about the sermon and she said someone once told her if you want to know what causes someone to be amazed just look at what is on their camera roll on their phone. Look at what they take pictures of, and what brings them joy because they can't help the capture it. If you look at my phone, I am sure none of you would be surprised to see many many pictures of my child, of sunsets, of mountains, and of the mundane moment that make up a life I don’t want miss. I know for a fact that if you look at arts camera, you'll see pictures of squirrels and lakes and ducks that are migrating. I bet if you look at Renea's phone, you see photos of fabrics, watches, and finished quilts. I wonder what I might see on yours.What is it that makes you want to stop pull out your camera to snap a picture because you love it? When I was growing up, my dad insisted on taking a picture of our family wherever we went. Sometimes he'd ask someone to take it, but more often than not it was a tripod and the self timer. As a teenager, I was annoyed by this, but it didn't take long for me to see what a gift he had given us. We have dozens if not over 100 photos of my family on our travels around the country and around the world. On Thanksgiving day in the backyard or a simple Saturday at the park. Now I see that my dad was taking these pictures because we are what brought him joy.

If you hear anything from me today, hear this– look for wonder and amazement this week. If you are weary and wondering how you could enter into joy, start with keeping your eyes open to be amazed. Allow yourself to slow down long enough to be an observer and let that observation lead you toward joy.