Saying Yes

“If in your heart you make a manger for his birth,
Then God will once again become a child on earth.”  --Ana Hernandez

No one tells you when you have your firstborn child that one of the hardest things you will do is to say “No.”  It’s not in the Bible, but can’t you just picture what it was like when baby Jesus grew into a toddler?    Young mother Mary said, “No, Jesus, don’t crawl near the edge of that rock!”  “No, Jesus, don’t stick your hand in that hole—it may be a scorpion’s nest.’  And when Jesus got older: “No, it’s time for you to go to bed. . .No, you’ve had enough sweets. . .No, you’ve had enough screen-time. . .No, Jesus, I don’t care how many of your  friends have an i-Pod.  That doesn’t mean you need one.”
Saying “no” is necessary at times.  That’s not just true for parents, but for all of us.  “No” may be about safety, clarity and health.  But, steeling your heart to repeatedly say “no” may actually become a habit.  It can be easier to just say “no” than to really hear and consider what’s being asked.  “No” can become the easy course, not requiring much of our heart or thought.  And, I think that in many ways, we live in a culture of “no.”  It seems like where we are right now, as a nation, is reactive and defensive.
Maybe it’s always more true in a time of uncertainty.  And that’s the time we are in:  personally, nationally and globally.  As 2010 winds up, we seem to parallel the world of Luke’s gospel.  We are looking for joy when economic concerns are oppressive.  The government's attempts to jump-start the economy have not been successful enough.  We are bone-weary of war.  Some of us are dealing with health concerns.  Some with loss that has shaken everything up!  And in a time like that, we are tempted to hunker down, clam up, protect and guard. 
It doesn’t matter if you are Democrat, Republican or Independent; there was something exciting in 2008 when so many people were saying, “Yes, we can!”  That feels like a long time ago. . .

And in a world full of negative messages and reflexive opposition, the hope that is born this night  allows us to say Yes to people, Yes to invitations to serve,  Yes to giving, Yes to new ideas, when logic would dictate a No.
 
Author Madeleine L’Engle wrote, about Christmas:
  “This is an irrational season, when Love blooms, bright and wild.  Had Mary been filled with reason, there would have been no room for the child.”


One of Mary’s titles in Orthodox Christianity--is Theotokos—God-bearer.  At our best, the church is a kind of Theotokos to the world.  This season inspires us all to bring God into a world of need by sharing warm dinners and warm coats – appropriate ways to honor a child whose family had no place to stay!

Medieval mystic Meister Eckhart said:  “We are all meant to be mothers of God.  For God is always needing to be born. . . What good is it to me, if Mary gave birth to the son of God fourteen hundred years ago and I do not also give birth to the son of God in my time and in my culture?”

Once we say “yes” to God—it means going beyond our comfort zones.  It means moving out, pushing into new territory.  It means letting go of old hurts and allowing forgiveness to tenderize our hearts.  It means letting go of the tight rein on our feelings and putting ourselves in the paths of strangers, unclenching our fists and extending ourselves.  It means changing our minds, thinking new thoughts.  It sometimes requires risk.

    Some of you know—from hard experience-- that this beautiful, historic building isn’t completely walker or wheelchair accessible . . . We want to be welcoming to all, and yet we are constantly challenged by the physical structure.  In early 2008, before the economy was visible faltering, we began planning our capital campaign, to raise the funds to make Westminster fully accessible.  Then, we ran straight into the Great Recession.  Some would say, despite reason, we kept going, because we know how great the need is.  Here’s what I’ve noticed:   every time someone says “yes” by their commitment of time, money, creativity, it feels like God is at work!  We’ve not reached the goal yet, to break ground.  But we’ve already given birth to something new in our community.  I’ve seen it happen over and over:  in volunteers who say “yes” to sharing food with the homeless.  To those willing to put their values into action at work, to those who volunteer teach, to host a community meal, to sing, to create art, to chair a committee or board. . .When we say “yes” to one another, we realize our connection to one another, and we make God visible.

We are God-bearers, with Mary, when we say “yes” to compassion.   God is made visible when we offer a hearty “Come in!” to those who doubt their welcome. 


    The carol says,  “. . .be born in us, today.”

What would your life be like-- if each day, your answer to life, to compassion, to service—was “yes!”  How would your relationships be different?  How would your time be different?  How can you, in your work, in your friendships and family, in your encounters with strangers—how can you make God visible?

What would change in our community if the Prince of Peace were born in our time and our culture?  What would the world be like, then?