Morning Coffee ~ Making Plans

In my Advent devotion of today, Max Lucado wrote “Joseph….made the big decision of discipleship.  He placed God’s plan ahead of his own.”

This is IT!  Discipleship in 8 words or less: place God’s plan ahead of my own.  In theory it sounds so easy.  Simply rearrange my plans so that God’s are first on my list.  The rest will then fall into place.

But there’s the rub; what are my plans? Do I even have a list of plans?  That would assume that I’ve have actually decided where I am headed and have sealed it in ink.

However that is so not where I am right now – but not for lack of trying.  I want plans.  I want big plans.  I want my life to have direction and meaning and purpose.  And this desire consumes my days.  It’s the first thing I think when I awake in the morning and it’s the last thought on my mind when I finally fall asleep.  What should I be doing?  And I run from pillar to post seeking an answer.

But maybe that’s the real problem. I am working too hard at seeking my own plan.  Maybe the answer is as simple as these words indicate:  place God’s plan ahead - ahead of all things.  Simply place God at the beginning of each day and at the end of each day.  Then - and only then - will His plan for me be made clear.

Time to warm my cup and as I bring my day into better focus.
Merry Christmas!

First Sunday in Advent - Waiting

"The spiritual life is a life in which we wait, actively present to the moment, trusting that new things will happen to us, new things that are far beyond our own imagination, fantasy, or prediction."

Henri Nouwen

Watch for the Light

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Beginning to Prepare

It’s hard not to begin to plan for the upcoming Christmas season; the stores have been sporting decorations for weeks and retail radio and TV ads already have a decidedly Holiday theme. So I’m sure I’m not alone in my beginning to prepare.  This past week I found two things to use during this season of Christmas. The first is book for Advent devotions - Watch for the Light.

This is the Product Description:

“From Johann Christoph Arnold to Dorothy Day, from Madeline L'Engle to Karl Barth, from Saint Thomas Aquinas to Meister Eckhart, this unparalleled anthology offers wisdom beauty and spiritual nourishment from a wide spectrum of classic and contemporary sources.”

“Containing a selection for each day of the Christmas season, from the last week of November through the first week of January, Watch for the Light can be read through times of leisure or as a guide to daily devotions. Either way it will give new meaning to the phrase ‘holiday preparations.’"

I’m really looking forward to reading and meditating on these various writings and writers.

Secondly, a visit to our favorite thrift store yielded this little treasure. I already have several of these small plastic ornaments from the sixties. So it was fun to find another for my collection. I love the little details – right down to the “Gloria” banner held by the angel.

I think it might be time to bring out the others to enjoy, too.
Merry Christmas!

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