Bursting and Dancing

Question to think about: How do you respond?

The result of the current "Arctic blast" is foreign to those of us who live in the Pacific Northwest. We are slated to have more snow on the ground on Christmas day than has ever been recorded. So . . . we are facing another challenging day . . . roads are closed . . . travelers are being delayed . . . and events are being canceled as more snow comes our way. Chaos and crankiness are more common than rare.

What can we learn about responding to the inconveniences of life?

Look at Mary . . . young . . . engaged . . . and suddenly pregnant. She could have seen the interruption of God in her life as a major inconvenience; however, her response allows us to see what occurs within an individual who seized the opportunity to fully participate with God:
And Mary said,

I'm bursting with God-news;
I'm dancing the song of my Savior God.
God took one good look at me, and look what happened—
I'm the most fortunate woman on earth!
What God has done for me will never be forgotten,
the God whose very name is holy, set apart from all others.
His mercy flows in wave after wave
on those who are in awe before him.
He bared his arm and showed his strength,
scattered the bluffing braggarts.
He knocked tyrants off their high horses,
pulled victims out of the mud.
The starving poor sat down to a banquet;
the callous rich were left out in the cold.
He embraced his chosen child, Israel;
he remembered and piled on the mercies, piled them high.
It's exactly what he promised,
beginning with Abraham and right up to now.
(Luke 1:46-55, The Message)

The Message delineates:
Mary as . . .
Bursting with God-news
Dancing the song of Savior God
Because
God's mercy flows wave after wave and is piled high.

At the end of the day, our life is not measured by the circumstances we face but how we manage our life.
Seize every opportunity to live well.
Manage circumstances with faith that God is working.
Refuse to be sucked into chaos or crankiness.
Burst with God-news . . . let your life reveal the presence of God in words and actions. (I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Galatians 2:20, NKV)
Dance the song of Savior God (Jerusalem will be told: "Don't be afraid. Dear Zion, don't despair. Your God is present among you, a strong Warrior there to save you/ Happy to have you back, he'll calm you with his love and delight you with his songs. Zephaniah 3:16-17).

Give up one thing (fast) until the New Year for more time and clarity with God . . . and burst with God-news and dance the song of Savior God.

Learning with you to burst and dance,
Shalom,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2008 All Rights Reserved)