This morning we begin our journey in the season of wonder, a season of wonder where we're called to open the doors of our hearts each and every week. In this season, I'm going to invite you to open the doors of your hearts to God's plan for this season and for the days beyond that. Open the doors of your hearts to God's plan.
Opening a door can be a life changing experience. If you don't think so, just imagine, if you would, those who have opened the door and seen Publisher's Printing House on the other side. I love those commercials because they open the door and there will be someone standing there and maybe in a robe with their hair up in a towel going oh, my goodness, and then in a little bit, the next time you see them, they're standing in their living room and they look like they just came out of Sear's catalog. You wonder how things change so quick, but they do.
For them, because of that knock on the door, because they chose to open it, their predictable life will never be the same.
I think that's what happened with Mary in the gospel. For Mary, the knock on the door came from an angel. And I really relate to Mary's story because I see myself in that story. If the angel came to me and knocked on the the door of my heart, I would have the same reaction. Mary has this tentative cooperation going here. Maybe even a little bit of fear thrown in. When the angel comes, she says, who am I to receive such a gift? Or why are you here to speak to me? And also she has that tentativeness similar to like when your pastor calls you and says hey, would you do me a favor? You think, oh, what am I volunteering for?
But that is what God does. God lays the plans for our lives at the doorstep and gives us the choice, the opportunity, to open the door or to stay behind it. Maybe out of fear, maybe out of disinterest, maybe out of selfishness. But the choice is ours.
And so what I want to do is invite you during this season to open the door of your heart to God's plan for you, because when we do that, this can be a season of wonder.
Now, I know some of you when you mention the Christmas season, you are already beginning to dread this month, dread the things that lay before us. Because, for you, Christmas is not all that much fun. Christmas is actually a painful experience because of the memories it brings and because of the feelings it stirs up inside. Maybe those are memories of Christmases past when a drunken father went on a rage. Or maybe they are memories of a grandfather who was inappropriately intimate with you. Or maybe your memory is of a Christmas time when the family gathered around the table and you wondered why they didn't start throwing food at each other because they were fighting so fiercely. Or maybe Christmas is a reminder that your families are no longer together, that divorce has pulled them apart. Or maybe this Christmas is a time of greater longing because someone you used to share it with is no longer here.
And, so, before long, December has a new meaning for you. It really becomes December burr because it's cold and lonely. But the thing we must remember is that during this time of the year, God blesses us to be a blessing. We are blessed to be a blessing. And so God's plan is going to involve other people.
I remember a Christmas time 10 or 12 years ago, maybe even a few more than that, when I came to church one Sunday morning and I saw Lenny. Lenny was a gentleman who had height and stature similar to Andy. He was a very tall man. But because of his physical challenges and his constant battle with alcoholism, he was on disability. I always had a place in my heart for Lenny because I could see, in the midst of his struggles, there was a simplicity about his faith that was genuine and sure.
And, so, when I saw Lenny standing off to the corner, I didn't think anything of it because often he would be off to the side. People would kind of neglect him or leave him to his own self. But this time Lenny had a very sad look on his face. So, I went up to him and I said, so, Lenny, what's going on with you today? And he said, well, I have a son which I didn't know and he said my son died in the Navy in active duty and this week I received in the mail his flag. And he said I have been looking all over for one of those boxes that you put the flag in so I can keep it clean and keep it straightened and then I would set it on my shelf. He says, I looked everywhere for them and I can't find them. Well, about twelve years ago you couldn't find them. Nowadays they are in about every mail order catalog you get in the mail. The ones with the glass front.
So I went on a search and I finally found a funeral home that would order the box for me. They were 65 dollars at the time, which was pretty high. So I went ahead and ordered one. I didn't tell my wife I spent the money. And I certainly didn't tell her that I express mailed it for another 15. But it came in 3 days. I went down to the funeral home and got the box. Then I took it over to Lenny's apartment. He lived in a very small, one bedroom apartment in one of these low income high rises. I wouldn't suggest anybody go there after dark. And I went there out of the chance that he would be there because Lenny didn't have a phone. And I knocked on the door and he answered. And I said, Lenny, I have something for you. Call it a Christmas present. But I know it's something you've been looking for. And I reached into the bag that I had and I pulled out the box that I had gotten, and Lenny, without saying a word, took the box and turned around, walked over to the counter and he carefully put the flag in there. It just fit perfect. And he closed the lid on it and then he set it up on the only shelf actually the only thing hanging on his walls in that apartment was one shelf. He set it up on the shelf. And he came back over to me and that was the only time I ever saw Lenny cry. And all he said to me was, "I think I need to be alone now." And I said, you bet, Lenny. I'll see you Sunday. And I left.
We are blessed to be a blessing to others. So don't be surprised if God's plan for this season for you includes other people. Now, I know many of you are not much different than myself, that when you talk about finding God in this season, it's kind of like trying to find Waldo in one of those pictures. Any Waldo fans? I love it. But you can't just open up the picture and pick him out right away, you have to really look. You have to be intentional. You have to spend sometime with it. If we want to find a season of wonder, we need to do the same. We need to spend some time looking to see what God's plan for us is this year. So I'm going to offer a couple suggestions for you. Many of you are going receive Christmas cards. I read last year, it said 92 percent of all people sent at least one Christmas card. So as you receive those Christmas cards, maybe one idea might be that, as you receive them and open them in the mail, I would encourage you to pray for each one of them by name. Just pray for them. Or maybe if you have a custom where, as you gather for your meal as a family, especially if you have children involved, how about you take those cards and hand them out around the table and everybody takes turns opening the cards. And, as you open the cards, you tell everyone who it's from as you read the cards, and then share what it is you remember about them, or how you know them, or what is it that's distinctive about them. And if there is a picture, see if everybody can guess the names of everybody in the picture. And then when you're done, pray for all of them as you go through the cards. Or maybe do this. My wife and I have done this in the past. We'll do this again. On Sunday, put out a guest book so that everybody that comes to your home, whether expected or unexpected, ask them to sign it, and then pray for them by name as they are in the book and see where God might lead you at this time of the year. Incidentally, Lenny came to our open house.
When we hear God's plan, when we open the door willingly and reach out to participate in it, we discover that we are blessed to be blessed. We are blessed to be a blessing to people in ways that we won't even imagine. But when we do that, it will be a season of wonder. You will see a season rich with the love and the grace of God. So please, think about the people in your lives this week, pray for them, and see where God might be calling you to reach out to them and be their Christmas blessing this year. God help us to see his plan and to accept his plan for this Christmas time. Amen.