A spark lit a fire and it won’t burn out...

"For to us a child is born... and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father... Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6

Here in Iowa we are bunkering down for a blizzard... some good old snow just in time for Christmas... on my way to the doctor I think I heard "White Christmas" about 10 times on the radio... I guess there will be some happy people who will get their wish... I think it's kind of funny... the idea of a white Christmas... fluffy snow covering the ground... fresh, clean, white, and pure.

With the holiday season comes the oh so wonderful Christmas Break... and that's what brings me here to this moment. In my last post, I talked about God winks... and tonight I think God is bringing me a pretty big wink. This evening I lit a candle in my room and as I was staring at its glow I just loved how pretty it looked... so I went and found some more to light. Then I looked at my room and just loved the twinkle all around... I sat down to do my devotional and I no more than opened my Jesus Calling book and then God winked.

All in one moment a song a friend sent me a little while back came on my itunes, the sound of the snow starting to fall joined in, and the glow of the candles went with the beat. I read the verse on the pages in front of me... Isaiah 9:6... many of us have heard it many times... but I don't know if I have ever really soaked it in before... after I read the verse I looked up and what I saw is what is in the picture above. Wink.

So as I have been sitting here praying, thinking, and praying some more... there is one clear message I think God is saying through this...

Isn't every Christmas a 'white' Christmas? If we really think about it... that's the purpose... that's the reason for the season... It's not just "unto us a child is born..." it's what that child grew up to do... He died for our sins and gave us a fresh, clean, white, and pure start... sound familiar? Kind of like the snow covering the ground... God sent His only son on Christmas night to cover us in His love... in His peace. Now... that song that came on... woah, major wink. The lyrics to that song are some simple but powerful words...

I won’t wait, no, I won’t wait for heaven

‘cause I believe heaven’s coming my way.
While I’m alive I’ll be gettin’ on with livin’ like

You’re comin’ my way
Comin’ my way
And I’ll be comin’ Your way
Comin’ Your way

I can’t wait to meet You in the middle.
Up in the air to welcome You home
and on the way we’ll be gettin’ things ready
‘cause

You’re comin’ my way
Comin’ my way
And I’ll be comin’ Your way
Comin’ Your way

O, I once was lost
And now I’m found
It’s like...
A spark lit a fire and it won’t burn out.
A spark lit a fire and it won’t burn out.
A spark lit a fire, now it won’t burn out.
Oh, it’ll never burn out.

How great is that song!? It is beautiful and it really just says the Christmas story to me in such a powerful way! He came our way... and He still is... He is still the Prince of Peace... He is still covering each of us in forgiveness and fresh, clean, white, and pure new starts...

He started that spark that will never burn out... no matter what happens in this world, no matter what evil happens... light wins. His spark lit a fire and now it won't burn out... it will never burn out.

Moments...

I've thought a lot about this in the past few months... about those moments you experience... the ones that really hit you... in both small and big ways...

Moments can take your breath away... they can make your heart skip a couple beats... they can change your life. 

If any of you have ever flown you know that feeling of inertia every time you take off and land... your body kind of sticks to the back of your seat as you move faster and faster and then suddenly the wheels lift off the ground and you're in the air... flying... but what I really like is when you can feel your body's gravity pulling you back to earth... you can feel the plane getting closer to the ground and then... touch down... I love those moments of impact... when it all hits you. 

This whole semester I have been trying to listen to what God is saying... what He is trying to tell me... and on more than one occasion He has brought me to some huge but subtle moments. In a small group a couple months ago we talked about God winks... what some people might call coincidences... but I believe they are God winks. When He is showing you something or trying to tell you something and you just aren't getting it... He sends you a wink. Have you ever read the book of Ruth and noticed how over and over again it says, "It just so happened..." or "As it turned out..."

You see the Bible delivers some pretty clear messages... but then it is also full of God winks too... small little details that someone points out to you or you notice as you're reading that just really hit the nail on the head.... and those little details just deliver the message that God has been trying to send to you... but this time it was in a small wink. 

So in the book of Ruth we find that Naomi has lost her husband and two sons, she has told her two daughter-in-laws to return home to their families... but Ruth doesn't. She stays with Naomi and she sticks it out. So Naomi and Ruth are working to get food and such and Naomi sends Ruth to this field of a relative to get grain... well, "As it turned out she was working in the field of Boaz" and that moment changed Ruth's life forever... Ruth and Boaz end up married, Naomi is overjoyed Ruth has found a new husband and home, and the rest is history... 

So you see I think sometimes we really pray for God to send us HUGE moments that knock us off our feet... when really we should be praising Him for the winks He sends us... Kind of like Ruth... she could have prayed for God to send her a new husband right away when Mahlon, her first husband, died. She could have left Naomi and gone back home... but she didn't ... she wasn't thinking about herself and what she wanted... and then God brought her that wink... that moment in Boaz' field... that moment of impact. 

So today.. take some time to reflect on what God has been showing you... maybe some of the things you have been missing... the winks that have been subtle... and praise Him for those moments of impact.