conjectural navel gazing; jesus in lint form

anticipation at advent

You know, my brother flies in from Utah today. I know I have not mentioned this before today. It has been a careless oversight on my part. I have been obsessed with all the papers and the like that have been on my plate. I am incredibly excited abouot his visit. I think this is the first time that he and I will have spent three days together in a long, long while if not ever. He is a great guy. I think we will have a blast.

In other news:

I have this old book that I think belonged to my grandmother, Let's Keep Christmas by Peter Marshall. I have been trying, unsuccessfully, to find the text online so everyone can read it. I love this sermon. It was published in the early 50's after Marshall had died. He was a renowned preacher who died young at the age of 49. Here is just a quote. It is nice to know that nothing is new under the sun.

The illustrator was Barbara Cooney. She died in '00. I posted two of her illustrations. I cannot find a site with the illustrations from Marshall's book. They are lovely as well. I have always admired her work.

Your Christmas is not commercialized unless you have commercialized it.

Let's not succumb to the sophistication that complains: "Christmas belongs only to the children." That shows that you have never understaood Christmas at all, for the older you get the more it means, if you know what it means. Christmas, though forever young, grows old along with us.

Have you been saying, "I just can't seem to feel the Christmas spirit this year"? That's too bad. As a confession of lack of faith, it is rather significant.

You are saying that you feel no joy that Jesus came into the world...
You are confessing that His presence in the world is not a reality to you...
Maybe you need all the more to read the Christmas story over again, need to sit down with the Gospel of Luke and think about it.

I'll leave you guys with that. I think a book of Peter Marshall's sermons needs to be on my Christmas list. He was outstanding.

My friend Sarah in San Francisco sent this.

I am off to run errands and stuff. I have an 11:00 meeting with Doug and Carol at the church...more seminarian/ordination process stuff I am certain. Y'all play well. I will try to post some tomorrow. My brother and I leave for VA on Sunday.

Peace.

Posted by tripp at December 18, 2003 09:45 AM