And we are writing this that our joy may be complete.
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him is no darkness at all.
If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth;
but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. ( 1 John 1:4-7 )
Don’t you just hate them?
The little things you say and do that come straight out of a dark place.
Little lies. Little evasions. Little furies. Little bits of dirty fluff that come from jealousy and pride and wounded feelings.
Wait … hold it! … stop! It’s Christmas! Why are we talking about such things?
I once heard someone say, “That’s what Advent is for, that we can make straight paths for our feet!’” We know those paths get straightened every day and at every opportunity, road crews ever on the alert, but I do want the blessings of Advent, even if they pinch.
How many lies will you or I have told before the New Year? Small ones, certainly, but little sentences less than true. Horrors!
It’s really comforting to remember that in the Lord our God there is light and no darkness at all. If He forgot our names – that’s funny! – He wouldn’t lie and cover up and pretend He knew us if He ran into us at the mall. He doesn’t have any pride to protect. He just IS GOD. If we gave Him a sweater three sizes too small, I think He would reach out and touch us and smile into our eyes, and nothing would matter any more.
There’s more! We just ARE HIS. He is JUST GOD, ALL GOD, ONLY GOD and we are JUST HIS, ALL HIS, HIS ALONE. That’s what we ought to be protecting us this Advent season, not our pride.
I’m going to try it. I may not make it through the day, much less the season, but as He gives me grace I’m going to deal truly and not out of my pride. Look out! If you see me on the street, please don’t ask me how I like your new jeans or your new hair! Just kidding! But, YIKES! What if I didn’t, really? What if you didn’t like mine? It doesn’t matter – I like you!
If I didn’t … but I do … If I didn’t, I’d fix that instead of having to lie about it.
We could do what Jesus did, if we didn’t like each other. We could just love one another instead.
But I do … I like you and love you.
Dividing Light and Darkness
Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, 1509
Marketplace Monastics 