Epiphany

Epiphany

This devotional moves from the birth of Jesus and Christmas into the season of Epiphany and looks forward to the continuing story of Jesus’ life.  Whether we are young or old, we can look forward to hearing the old, old story of Jesus.  

 

THOUGHT:

While attempting to prepare/create this weeks’ devotional; I experienced an “Epiphany.”  Now, if you will indulge me for a moment, it really was not just AN “epiphany” (a sudden, intuitive perception or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something) but a recognition of the season we are presently celebrating.

In Methodism, the Epiphany season runs from Epiphany Day until Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. The word “epiphany,” from the Greek word “epiphania,” means appearance or manifestation. White and green are the liturgical colors. The colors seem compliant with the season – colors of new beginnings. We have only just celebrated the Birth of Jesus at Christmas and we are in the “spring” of Jesus’ life before we are faced with the completion of his life at the Crucifixion.

In Youth and Children’s Sunday School classes, the kids will be learning about Jesus as a boy in the temple, John the Baptist, the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, etc. It is a time to relish the purity of Jesus’ Birth but also to follow the subsequent story in the Christian narrative of the many amazing, nay, miraculous events performed by Jesus, the Son of God.

Lent will bring a more reflective time for our spirits, but I must admit I relish this present season to celebrate all that Jesus means to us. I recall the song “I Love to Tell the Story,” that we, as Christians, sing with such gusto on Sunday mornings.

I Love to Tell the Story

I love to tell the story Of unseen things above
Of Jesus and his glory Of Jesus and his love

I love to tell the story Because I know ’tis true
It satisfies my longings As nothing else can do

I love to tell the story ‘Twill be my theme in glory
To tell the old, old story Of Jesus and his love

I love to tell the story For those who know it best
Seem hungering and thirsting To hear it like the rest

And when, in scenes of glory I sing the new, new song
‘Twill be the old, old story That I have loved so long

I love to tell the story ‘Twill be my theme in glory
To tell the old, old story Of Jesus and his love

To tell the old, old story Of Jesus and his love

This song helps us to recognize the “His”tory of Jesus. We anticipate the next part of His Journey each week. When we hear a reference to one of the stories from the pulpit, we sit up a little straighter, ready to hear a story that although we have heard it before, we never tire of hearing it again. This is our time to honor Jesus, celebrate His Kingship, and recognize ourselves in the story. Are we someone in need of healing, as Jesus healed countless? Are we someone who is fearful but are comforted by the love of the children when they approach Jesus? Are we someone who thinks their sins cannot be forgiven, yet revel in the story of The Good Shepherd or The Prodigal Son? Are we someone who thinks we are “all that and a bag of chips” but are reminded of the importance of humility when we hear the story of the Widows’ Mite? Are we haughty enough to think that we do not need God but are instinctually driven to the story of The Ten Lepers? The list goes on and on. If you are not familiar with the Jesus story, it is a refreshing story that demonstrates that all are saved with only the faith of a mustard seed. If you are familiar with the stories, they tend to reinforce your faith and plant you in the “good soil,” eager to hear a different view or insight that you may have never noticed before. Whatever our longings, it, the Jesus narrative, satisfies us. It quenches the hunger and thirst that cannot be satiated otherwise.

 So, join me in relishing this season. Listen to the “…old, old story” – whether for the first time or the millionth time. Listen to it with fervor. Taste the sweet words. Imagine the sights. Hear the message. See how the story unfurled. I, for one, LOVE to tell the story.

PRAYER:

God, Father of all, Jesus our Brother…  Let us sit by you, eyes agaze upon you. Tell us the story again. Bring us in with familiar words. Pull us into the story that we long for. Envelope us with the story of your Kingdom, Your Miracles, and Your Unconditional Love. This world can only give us fleeting snippets of stories that have little depth and that flit away as quickly and invisibly as a breeze. Yet, we know that Your Story fills Spirits as no other can and nests in our hearts forever.

AMEN.

 

 

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