Laughter, Exaltation and the Fullness of Joy!

New Year's blessings to you all! On this ninth day of Christmas, as school resumes and our schedules regain some order; let us not forget to carry laughter, exaltation, and the fullness of joy forward into 2013, Year of our Lord.

Isaac of Stella, a 16th century monastic reformer, provides the following blessing to start the new year:

May the Son of God who is already formed in you, grow in you-

so that for you, he will become immeasurable,

and that in you, he will become laughter, exaltation, and the fullness of joy,

which no one can take away.

What a wonderful image; that the Son of God will become within us laughter, exaltation, and the fullness of joy! As those called to embody Jesus' incarnation through our daily living, we are called to celebrate not only in season, but out of season.   Even in five-degree weather (which is what our thermometer registers today-burr!).

As Congress argues over whether or not to avoid a fiscal cliff... as a community in Connecticut begins to piece their life back together after the horrific shooting in an elementary school... as people in New York and New Jersey continue to clean up and rebuild in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy... we are called to celebrate not just in the absence of struggle or strife, but in the very midst of it. Desert Father Abba Poeman put it this way: The greater the hollow carved out in sorrow and grief, the more room for joy to dwell therein.

There is much to distract us from the joy that dwells therein. Yet Jesus came that his joy might be in us and that our joy might be full (see John 15:11). How then do we nurture such joy? How are we to continue to receive God into our hearts and lives? How do we celebrate the movement of the Holy Spirit in our midst?

Like the Magi, we too must seek out Jesus in daily living of our lives. Jesus, who enters our lives in the most unexpected of ways and places, calls us to be ready. With the Magi, now let us bring our gifts: the gold of our doxology; the frankincense of our meditation; the myrrh of our sacrifice. But, most of all, as lambs of his flock, let us bring the gift of our very selves.

Celebration is a holy habit that must be nurtured and practiced as we "rejoice always... and give thanks in all circumstances" (see II Thessalonians 5:16). Celebration of God is not something to be saved for Christmas and Easter, for birthdays and anniversaries, but a way of being to be woven into the fabric of our lives that the Son of God might indeed become "laughter, exaltation and the fullness of joy."

New Year's blessings to you all! I look forward to reconnecting in person in February. Your continued prayers for focus and inspiration are deeply appreciated.

With love in Christ,

Questions for Reflection

1. Where are you most prone to celebrate God? With others? In worship? In silence and solitude? In nature?
2. What does this tell you about how God made you?
3. Is there a part of you-an overly critical nature, seriousness, wounded-that gets in the way of your ability to celebrate God? How is God seeking to transform you in this area of your person and life?
4. Who do you know who really celebrates life and God? What can you learn from him or her?

Holy Habits for a New Year

Celebration is a way of engaging in actions that orient the spirit toward worship, praise, and thanksgiving. Delighting in all the attentions and never-changing presence of the Trinity fuels celebration. -Adele Ahlberg Calhoun, The Spiritual Disciplines Handbook

First Practice

Intentionally place yourself in the presence of God. Recall all of God's gifts, provisions, guidance and love around you. To celebrate God's grace with you, write a psalm-a song-of praise and thanksgiving... Or make a collage that represents your joy... Or write a poem of praise... Or play music and dance before the Lord...

Or memorize a verse of praise and repeat it throughout the coming days.

Second Practice

Familiarize yourself with the liturgical calendar as set forth in the Presbyterian Planning Calendar and our Book of Common Worship. Consider ways as a church-and with your family at home-that you can more intentionally celebrate the church year from Advent to Christmas to Epiphany to Baptism of Our Lord, to Lent to Easter (and Eastertide) to Pentecost to Trinity Sunday to Ordinary time to All Saints Sunday to Christ the King Sunday. Plan ways to celebrate as a congregation, a family and with friends.

Third Practice

Name all the people in your life who have given you joy. Ask God how you might celebrate them in a way that honors and encourages them.

Fourth Practice

Consider how God loves you. Read Zephaniah 3:17. Then be still and listen. How is God celebrating you? Celebrate the God who celebrates you. Intentionally ask for the gift of appreciating yourself the way God does.

Resource for Celebration

Celebration of Discipline, chapter 13,by Richard Foster