22nd Annual Live Nativity

Join us tomorrow and Sunday, Dec . 10 & 11 for our annual Live Nativity, 4:30 - 8:00 pm
Admission is FREE!  Refreshments are served.  We are handicap accessible.

Every 15 minutes or so, a continuous reading of the Nativity story is revealed beneath a deep starry night sky over a stable in Bethlehem.  Angels will announce the birth of the Savior.  Shepherds and kings will travel to Bethlehem to find the new infant king.  What will you find there?

It’s easy to feel lost at this time of year.  Aside from being overwhelmed by all the secularism that drowns out the whole reason we celebrate Christmas at all, recent years have battered our sense of direction, leaving us wondering if we are on the right path, feeling lost.

But… Because we are children of God, we have been given the greatest gift of all time - the gift of Jesus, God’s Son, our Savior.  Because of this gift, we have hope.  And that hope shines like a Star over a stable in Bethlehem.

In the stable, you will find what your heart seeks.  In an infant king, God’s Son born in a stable, we meet the Good Shepherd who guides our ways and shows us the path to a relationship with God that is full of peace and joy and love.  In this stable we find that we are not lost, but found, loved and cherished…because we, too, are children of God, the sheep of His fold.

The wise men appeared to King Herod and asked, “Where is He who has been born King? For we saw His star and have come to worship Him.”   Even the wise men were searching for something…someone…that would answer their prayers and guide their paths.  They found Him in the stable.

At Easter, we look within the empty tomb, feeling lost, knowing that our Lord has died.  But the angels ask, “Whom do you seek?  He is not here, He is risen!”  In the Easter Resurrection our feeling of being lost is replaced with the joy of being found, claimed by God and deemed worthy of His love.

Be like sheep, follow the sound of your Shepherd’s voice and wander into the stable.  Grasp the gift within… the love of God incarnate in His Son, Jesus, Immanuel, God with us.  Our God is a God of abundance, and there is love and hope enough for all the lost and all the found.  

See you in the stable.   Baaaa-baaaa-baaa.

St. Andrew Lutheran Church
335 Reynolds Ave.
Parsippany, NJ  07054
(973) 887-6713

Toys R Us Celebrates Epiphany

How about that?! I open my e-mail today and there is an e-mail advertisement from Toys R Us promoting Three Kings Day, January 6. I don’t know whether to love it or scream. Doesn’t the commercialism of Christmas end with Santa coming down the chimney? Or is Toys R Us trying to help us see more deeply into the holiday and just using their fortuitous link to “gifts” to promote Epiphany?

I’d like to think that Toys R Us executives are trying to draw our attention to the last part of the Nativity story when twelve days after Christmas we celebrate the arrival of the three Magi (or Kings or Wisemen, whatever you wish to call them) to see the new born King, Jesus. As we know, they brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Pardon my skepticism, but I’m betting it is a last ditch effort to plump up holiday sales. God help us if after the excesses of December 25 we need to do it all over again on January 6.

Many people do celebrate Three Kings Day on January 6. The Church calls this the day of Epiphany. Personally, I try to leave all my Christmas decorations and the tree up until after this first day of Epiphany. Since I was actually really into it this year, I’m guessing it all might stay up until my daughter returns to college on January 10, just so I can keep the joy of having her home all done up with lights and sparkle. (That is as long as the tree doesn’t become a fire hazard. We cut a fresh one a week before Christmas, so it potentially should make it that long.)

A friend of mine sends her nieces small gifts from their aunt on Three Kings Day, so in a way there is a place for gifts on this day if the meaning is not lost in the excess.

I love celebrating the day of Epiphany in church. It is almost guaranteed that we will sing “We Three Kings,” one of my favorite songs. I love the idea of three learned, wealthy, influential, and political magicians/kings/wise men/studiers of prophecy recognizing that a KING has been born in a stable, and upon finding that scene would still bow before him and leave their pricey, kingly gifts with this lowly, impoverished carpenter and his wife, in trust for the day when the King would have need of them. Perhaps the gold financed Joseph and the family's flight into Egypt to escape the massacre of infants by King Herod. Perhaps the frankincense and myrrh were saved by Mary and used in Jesus' burial in the tomb. Truly gifts for a King, how wise these sages were.

Where do you weigh in on this topic? Post a comment below….I’d love to hear your thoughts. Want to see the ad? Click here: http://view.ed4.net/v/MYW5U3/L7YD3/EX2202N/6QE3AS/MAILACTION=1&FORMAT=H?csm=175986804&csc=1258316&csa=172756598&csu=1259351&camp=CME:20101227_Em_TRUCOM_Accessories_Gift_Card

And come back to read more about Epiphany from Pastor Fred on January 6.

Telling Our Story

St. Andrew’s Live Nativity is THE big event for our congregation. It involves most all of the congregation in one way or another. Whether people bake cookies for our many guests, donate food for our working/acting crew, play a Biblical character role, greet guests, or direct parking, there is something for everyone. Everyone understands this and everyone pitches in. We couldn’t run the event over two days and seven hours if everyone wasn’t on board for this ministry.

It seems like a lot of work, doesn’t it? It’s not like we make any money on it; we offer it for FREE. (Hey, they say the best things in life are free, so I guess we’re one of the best things!) So why do we do it? We do it because this is our Christmas gift to our community. We do it because telling the story of the Good News of Jesus’ birth, our Savior come to earth, is how we tell OUR story. You might think “oh, it’s the same story every year,” and while that’s true, it is also amazing to me how every year the story still holds new meaning for all of us, and for our guests. We have many guests who just don’t feel like Christmas is on its way until they visit our Live Nativity, year after year. While we’re telling the Greatest Story Ever Told, we’re also telling OUR story…the story of a community of people that are committed to sharing this story with our neighbors and having a lot of fun together while doing it. It’s got to be fun… because we’re together doing the thing God has called us to do…tell the story.

It’s also great when the newspapers pick up on our fun and help us tell the story. Thank you to the Parsippany Life newspaper for running an article in advance of our Live Nativity, helping to advertise a collection of food for the Parsippany Emergency Food Pantry. Thank you to the Daily Record for visiting our Live Nativity and reporting on the story we are telling.

Check it out: http://parsippany.injersey.com/2010/12/22/st-andrew-luthern-church-stages-live-nativity-event/

Come for Christmas Eve:
4:00 pm Children’s Service (26 minutes)
8:30 & 10:30 pm Traditional Candlelight Services with Holy Communion

St. Andrew Lutheran Church
335 Reynolds Avenue
Parsippany, NJ 07054
(973) 887-6713
For directions: http://www.elcaandy.org/directions.asp

Fourth Sunday in Advent

Light four candles to watch for Messiah;
let the light banish darkness.
He is coming, tell the glad tidings.
Let your lights be shining!
(reprinted under OneLicense.net license # A700392)

Let your lights be shining!

Sunday was the fourth Sunday in Advent….all the candles are lit on the Advent wreath and we light up the dark night sky in hopes of seeing the Messiah’s arrival. Won’t we be surprised to find him in a manger, robed in the flesh of an infant, dependant upon a virgin mother and carpenter step-father!

Imagine the surprise of the shepherds and the Magi who traveled to see the newborn King and Messiah.

Imagine what Jesus must have felt - God immortal made mortal, God omnipotent made dependent, God of healing suffering the pains of childbirth, God of abundance suffering the pangs of hunger, God of love separated from the King of Love by the sins of human disobedience, God of wisdom confined to the young mind of an infant in a race of people with minds limited to the scope of their experience.

What an awesome God we have to have taken on our frailty so that we can know, that he knows our suffering, worries, joys and sorrows. In a humble manger, in a tiny stable, in a little town called Bethlehem, the Light of the World burst forth into our lives…let the light banish darkness. Now it’s up to us to tell the Good News….let your lights be shining!

Join us for Christmas Eve worship:
4:00 pm - Children’s Service (26 minutes)
8:30 & 10:30 pm – Traditional Candlelight Service of Holy Communion

St. Andrew Lutheran Church
335 Reynolds Ave., Parsippany, NJ 07054
(973) 887-6713
Directions: http://www.elcaandy.org/directions.asp

The Prince of Peace

Jesus is called the Prince of Peace. What is the role of this prince? How shall we relate to Him?

There is a beautiful song I first heard during a workshop to introduce the Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal called Ososo, ososo (Come Now, O Prince of Peace) by Geonyong Lee, ELW #247.

Ososo, ososo (Come Now, O Prince of Peace)
Text & music by Geonyong Lee ©, translation Marion Pope

Come now, O Prince of peace, make us one body. Come, O Lord Jesus, reconcile your people.
Come now, O God of love, make us one body. Come, O Lord Jesus, reconcile your people.
Come now and set us free, O God, our Savior. Come, O Lord Jesus, reconcile all nations.
Come, Hope of unity, make us one body. Come, O Lord Jesus, reconcile all nations.

It is somewhat haunting in its melody but so beautiful when combined with the words that plead for Jesus to “reconcile your people” and “reconcile all nations.” The first time I heard it I was in the company of about 200 Lutheran pastors and ministers of music, so of course everyone broke into the appropriate choral parts. I nearly cried with emotion at the beautiful sound that filled the worship space with this human plea to our Savior, the Prince of Peace.

If there was ever a song to define Jesus’ role as the Prince of Peace, I think this might be it. We plead with the Prince of Peace to make us one body [in Christ], set us free [from sin], and reconcile all peoples and nations. Imagine what the world would be like if this could be so!

The ELW hymnal places this song in the Advent section. Rightly so, but I also know that this is a timeless hymn well worth singing any day of the year. In its simplicity, it can easily become one of those mantra-type songs, like many Taize songs, that get stuck in your head. There is a lot worse stuff to have running around in your head, why not try this tune?

Join us for Christmas Eve worship:
4:00 pm Children’s Service
8:30 & 10:30 pm – Traditional Candlelight Services of Holy Communion

St. Andrew Lutheran Church
335 Reynolds Ave., Parsippany, NJ 07054
(973) 887-6713
Directions: http://www.elcaandy.org/directions.asp

Peace

Peace…it’s an interesting word when you think about it. You hear and see it a lot at this time of year. It is a ubiquitous word in Christmas greetings and cards. We use it each Sunday when we greet one another at “the time of the peace.” So what do we mean when we use it? Are we wishing for world peace…the absence of strife and war between countries and peoples? Are we wishing for a calm and tranquil soul within us? Are we searching for a quiet place away from all the noise?

True world peace would be quite something to experience, and would have far reaching implications that I’m not sure our current world systems could handle. World peace between nations and peoples would require a completely different way of using and sharing the earth’s resources, as populations would explode in our pursuit of less destructive politics and economics. I think we human beings may be too broken to affect that kind of peace. So in that sense, I believe that only in heaven can we attain that far-reaching goal. (Not that we shouldn’t try to move in that direction, because you never know…nothing is impossible for God.)

However, I do believe that we can attain that peace that Jesus gives us. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you,” He says in John 14:27. “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” In these words, which follow the earlier promise of the Holy Spirit, we are promised that Jesus has given us the ability to know peace…freedom from fear and a troubled heart. How many times does Jesus say in the Gospels to “trust in me?”

Have you ever felt so burdened down and your life seemed anything but peaceful? Of course you have. Have you ever just looked into your heart and offered those concerns up to God and said, “God, this is more than I can handle alone. I’m putting all this in your care because I know that you know what is good for me.” If you have ever done this (and truly meant it), did your heart not feel more at peace? When I actually do this, it truly does work for me. My problems are not gone, but my heart is more at peace and I can face the day knowing that someone who really cares for me, who really knows the ultimate game plan even when I don’t, has my back.

We have the ability to know peace and to wish that for others. When we let God into our hearts, and give our troubles and cares over to Him, God’s peace will fill our hearts where previously fear and worry resided. Because God encased Himself in human flesh and humbled his kingship into a dependant, impoverished infant we know that He understands all our worries, cares and sorrows. Because He conquered death and rose to a new life, we know that He is powerful enough to carry our burdens for us and walk with us, along side us, as we travel the paths of our lives to the destination He has planned for us.

So the next time you send a Christmas greeting card that says “Peace!” or wish someone “The peace of the Lord be with you” you can feel confident in knowing that your wishes are truly attainable. What a wonderful Christmas gift to give!

Peace!

3rd Sunday in Advent

The King is coming….

Light three candles to watch for Messiah,
Let the light banish darkness
Lift your heads and lift high the gateway
For the King of glory.
(reprinted under OneLicense.net license # A700392)

184 people came to St. Andrew yesterday to see our 21st annual Live Nativity. If you were one of those who came to our Bethlehem hillside to witness the gift of a Father’s love, please share this with others who might like to visit us today. We again will present our Live Nativity today from 4:30 until 8:00 pm.

Why do we do it? If you’ve seen it, you can imagine the load of work that goes into set up, preparation, the event itself, and of course, cleaning it up. So why? We offer this Live Nativity as St. Andrew’s gift to our community. For 21 years we have offered this gift of love and have become known as “the church that does the Live Nativity.” Not only does it help center our guests on the true meaning of Christmas, we have a lot of fun together making it happen. St. Andrew is a place where everyone is welcome and true to that calling, when it comes to the Live Nativity, there is a job for everyone to showcase his or her talents and gifts. This ministry is a whole congregational labor of love. Come share our joy and hear the story of how a Father’s love changed the world.

Live Nativity
Dec. 12
4:30 – 8:00 pm
15 minute continuous narrative readings of the Nativtiy story
Admission is free! Refreshments are served.
Each small group receives a free hand-crafted ornament gift.

St. Andrew Lutheran Church
335 Reynolds Ave.
Parsippany, NJ 07054
(973) 887-6713
For directions:
http://www.elcaandy.org/directions.asp

Getting ready..

I'm in the midst of finishing up the crafting of about 300 ornaments for our annual Live Nativity and I've been thinking about Joseph (our featured Nativity character this year) and his relationship with Jesus. It must have been somewhat strange for Joseph to raise Jesus, the Son of God, King of Heaven and earth. I can envision it now, "Now son, I know that you want that pet lizard to live forever but things just have a normal course of life, and it's time for that thing to die now, so you have to let it go." To which a young Jesus might have said, "But dad, I can make it live!" Now how do you argue with that when your son is the Messiah?

Joseph was a faithful servant of God. By agreeing to marry Mary after learning of her pregnancy even though he had not been intimate with her, he secured a safe childhood for Jesus. He fulfilled the role of "father" by loving Jesus...protecting him by fleeing to Egypt when it was dangerous in Israel, searching for Jesus and fearful for his safety while they were in Jerusalem and he was found in dialogue with the elders in the temple, teaching him the ways of carpentry so that he could make his way in the world until God called upon him to begin his ministry at the age of 30. In all these things Joseph showed his faithfulness to God and his love for Jesus, adopting Jesus as his own son. Joseph answered God's call for him to love the child God was giving to him, even though not his own.

Thank God for men like Joseph who hear God's call and are willing to father the children around them, even if they are not their own, so that the children would know love...so that the children would know the face of God in these men.

P.S. .... A special thank you to all the people, especially Sandy, who helped prepare and assemble our Live Nativity ornament for this year. If you'd like to receive your hand-crafted "Joseph" come to our Live Nativity on Dec. 11 or 12, doors are open 4:30 - 8:00 pm.

A Servant's Heart

Will you say “YES!” to God?

This is the time of year when it is so very easy to get caught up in all the trappings of holiday craziness. The desire to find the perfect gifts, make the perfect cookies, send the perfect Christmas cards, attend the right parties…all these things can easily push their way to the forefront of our minds, pushing those less tangible Christmas experiences to the recesses of our thoughts.

I imagine that Mary also thought the last thing she had time to do while planning her wedding to Joseph was to sit down and have a chat with the angel Gabriel. Yet, Mary said “Yes” to God. She risked everything … her marriage, her safety, her ties to family and community, her life. Biblical descriptions of angels, and the reaction of people to them, make me think that it would have been impossible to refuse Gabriel’s proposition anyway, but somehow Mary found the courage to say, “Yes.” Gabriel appears saying, “Do not be afraid!” Luke 1:30-31. Mary answers with, “Behold the servant of the Lord, may it be as He has proclaimed.” Luke 1:38

Keeping the things that are truly important in the front and center of our minds isn’t always easy to do when we are buffeted by worldly cares day in and day out. The thing we often fail to remember is that it is exactly those times, when we say “Yes” to God, that our lives become full of meaning, and our hearts and minds are filled with peace. This is what God desires from us, that we say “Yes” to Him and allow His love to fill our lives. God’s love is limitless and a free gift for those who accept it. When we welcome God into our lives, we can not help but share his abundant love with others. It is the nature God’s love that it should not end with us.

This Christmas, take a moment to reflect upon the ways God is asking you to say “Yes” to Him. Instead of grumbling about picking up a gift for a donation, try to shift your thoughts to the joy you will bring to a child. Instead of grousing about paying a holiday visit to your in-laws, adopt an attitude of gratitude that you have family with which to share the holiday and do not have to spend it alone. Worship. Fellowship. Relax. Enjoy each other. Share God’s love. Say “Yes” to God.