The Twelve Days of Christmas

Rev. Kristi Denham
Congregational Church of Belmont
December 25, 2008 - January 6, 2009

-Continued-

December 30 ~ On the Sixth Day of Christmas My True Love Sent to Me Six Geese a-Laying ~ Six Days of Creation.

“And God said that it is good.” As children created in God’s image we have been charged with the stewardship and care of God’s holy world. We are co-creators in a world that calls us to compassion and service. Too often we have taken for granted the Six Geese a-Laying that keep producing more and more for our delight.
We are in danger of using them up.

Monotheism, a belief in one true God, was a revolutionary concept when it was first suggested by the Hebrew people. It was meant to be a unifying principle acknowledging the sacred presence in all reality. It became a source of conflict as the old idea of many Gods gave way to “My God is Bigger than Yours.”

Our minds are just too small to comprehend the immense possibility that our Creator truly inhabits all of reality, that the One True God lives within all people, all creatures, all suns and moons and galaxies. Those who cling to literal understandings of the six days of creation are holding to a limited vision of an unlimited and loving God.

May we open our eyes this day to the abundance of God’s love and beauty poured out on all creation. May we see the sacred in all things. May we be blessed by our open-hearted awareness.

December 31~ On the Seventh Day of Christmas My True Love Sent to Me Seven Swans a-Swimming ~ Sevenfold Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.

Seven Swans a-Swimming, seven gifts, each one a blessing to those who receive the gift and even more to those who are helped by those with the gift.  Paul named these gifts of the Spirit in his letter to the church in Rome (Romans 12:6-8). Those with the gift of prophesy are blessed with courage and find themselves often challenged to “preach with their bags packed.” They know that we too often “shoot the messenger.” But they continue to use their gifts and we are thankful, if only in hindsight, for what they have given us.

Those with the gift of service draw us into community, challenge us to stand up for our faith and give us example by their actions. They inspire us to humbly do what God calls us to do. The greatest among us will be as servants.

The gift of teaching has too often been described as a one-way enterprise. We best teach who are most open to learning from one another. There are those who love to study and share what they have learned. We expect of them some discipline and wisdom. We are all students of the Christ Spirit and have much to teach each other. And there are those among us who are truly gifted teachers.

The gift of exhortation is essential to a healthy community of faith. Those who see a need unvoiced, a concern unexpressed, who are courageous enough to speak to that issue are vital to the life of faith. We may not always agree with their observations but we would be sadly devoid of energy and life if we did not have those among us gifted with the strength of character to exhort us to do better, to remember our principles, to live up to our calling as children of God.

The gift of contribution is perhaps the quietest gift but without it our families would falter, our lights would go out, our bread would not be baked, our children would go unclothed. Each of us has this gift and can contribute in some way to the needs of others. We can contribute our time, our resources, our talents, our prayers to the life of the community and in this way all are strengthened to do the work of the church.

The gift of leadership is a tricky one. Those who are called to serve through this gift are challenged to lead with humility and wisdom. They must know when to let go and when to stand firm. They must encourage all to find their inner sense of leadership, to take their own lead even as we work together in community. Jesus challenged the hierarchical order of his day and included women and the poor in his community of equals. The only head of the church was Christ himself.
But functioning communities required some structure and leaders were sought and some came forward of their own. They then desired too much power and the hierarchy of the church developed. In the United Church of Christ we have a long history of challenging that old hierarchical structure. Our leaders are but trusted servants. They do not limit our freedom or define our path. We work with them and they with us.

The gift of mercy is given to all, though some are abundantly blessed with this capacity to care for others. Love is God’s true name and mercy is its trademark. May we be embraced by the mercy of God even as we cultivate the gifts God has bestowed upon us to the service of Christ’s church and world.

January 1~ On the Eighth Day of Christmas My True Love Sent to Me
Eight Maids a-Milking ~ The Eight Beatitudes.

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
(Gospel of Matthew 5:3-10 )

A thousand sermons can be preached in response to each of these blessings. They fly in the face of the understandings of the rich and powerful.  Yet they speak to our hearts and challenge us to grow into our best selves. May the wisdom of these words of Jesus stay with us each day of the year ahead.

January 2 ~ On the Ninth Day of Christmas My True Love Sent to Me Nine Ladies Dancing ~ The Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control.

In my first year of internship as a seminary student I was assigned the task of visiting with the only centenarian in our church. She was a quiet little woman and at first I was as shy as she was so our conversations were very limited and simple. But she shared with me this beautiful list of the fruits of the Spirit as her favorite biblical passage and I began to see how she lived them her whole life.

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”  (Galatians 5:22)

If we take each word separately and quietly meditate on its power and meaning we will have set ourselves on an excellent track for the day ahead. As the years have passed I have found that each word has been a deepening challenge in my life. The more I learn, the more I realize I have to learn. 

When I was young the concept of self-control seemed most out of reach to me.

Now my understanding of love has shifted. It has always been easy to love my family and friends, although liking them sometimes wasn’t so easy. But to love my enemies, the call of the gospels, now that has been difficult.

To cultivate joy even as I walk through the ups and downs of daily life is a challenge I long to fulfill.

To live by the practice of the presence of the Prince of Peace, to be the peace I long to see in the world, continues to be a discipline.

Patience, Paul’s first definition of love, is only learned by waiting and I have never fully embraced that reality. But I am learning.

Kindness is rewarded with kindness. Random acts can transform the world.

Generosity comes easy sometimes and others I find myself burdened with greed and a sense of lack that is not worthy of God’s abundant blessings.

Faithfulness is a gift from God, born of the Spirit, renewed in all the little choices we make each day.

Gentleness is powerful beyond our imagining. A gentle man transformed our world. He stood silent in the presence of cruel empire and taught us all the noble truth of gentle presence.

Jesus understood self-control and through the practice of his presence I am learning it too.

May your days ahead be filled with these simple fruits of the Spirit that you may grow in depth and purpose to fulfill your birthright as a child of God.

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