Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” [John 8:12 (ESV)]
I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness. [John 12:46 (ESV)]
Hundreds of years ago, when Las Posadas was first celebrated, people gathered piñon pine branches into square piles to burn small vigil fires called luminaria to light the way for the Peregrinos as they searched for lodging. On Christmas Eve, bonfires were lit along the roads and in the church yard to guide people to midnight mass. Just as Las Posadas moved into the southwestern states as the Spanish and Mexicans came northward, so did the luminaria. When inexpensive flat-bottom paper bags appeared on the Santa Fe Trail in the 1870s, people started folding down the bag tops, anchoring the bag with a few handfuls of sand, and setting a small candle inside. Better than using precious fire wood, these luminaria (also called farolitos) became the popular tradition that continues in the southwest today.
While I probably won’t be part of any Las Posadas celebrations when I’m in New Mexico next week, I will see plenty of luminaria, even though many of those who set them out know nothing of Las Posadas. Although some of those lanterns will be made of hard plastic and powered by electricity rather than candles, the warm glow of their flickering lights illuminate the walkways, sidewalks, driveways and flat roof tops throughout the state each December.
For those who celebrate Las Posadas, the luminaria serve to light Joseph and Mary’s way as they seek lodging. For others, luminaria guide the way to Christmas Eve worship, are a way of welcoming the Christ child into their homes, or remind them of the star of Bethlehem. Sadly, for many more, their luminaria are lit simply to guide Santa’s gift-laden sleigh to their houses.
Wherever we are this Christmas season, we’re sure to encounter holiday light displays. Whether they’re luminaria, projection spotlights, mini-string or large colored bulb lights, let their brightness remind us that Jesus is the Light of the World. When Christ’s light came into the world, it did more than illuminate our sins. It brought us salvation by guiding mankind out of the darkness of sin and death and into the light of Christ! Jesus called us to lead others into His light but we mustn’t stop at merely pointing the way to Christ. Jesus calls us to be the light—to be His luminaria and provide light for others.
The light of Christ shines brightest in dark and troubled times—and these are dark and troubled times. On a dark night, one individual paper bag holding a flickering candle in it isn’t very impressive and it certainly doesn’t shed much light. Collectively, however, hundreds of luminaria are an impressive sight. Darkness can never overpower God’s light but His light can overpower the world’s darkness. Let us be the world’s luminaria, not just at Christmas, but all year long!
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. [Martin Luther King, Jr.]
Apparently speechless when Jesus washed their feet, John records no one objecting to His doing so until Jesus came to Peter. After protesting that Jesus never would never wash his feet, the Lord warned the disciple that unless he allowed Jesus to wash him, Peter wouldn’t belong to Him. Eager to show his devotion to Jesus, Peter then enthusiastically offered the rest of his body for cleansing. Jesus explained that, because Peter already bathed, only his feet needed washing, while adding that not all of those present were clean. Since we know the rest of the story, we know He was referring to Judas. The reference to Judas not being clean, however, tells us that this exchange is about more than washing the filth of Judah’s roads off the disciple’s feet. Since Jesus wasn’t giving a hygiene lesson, what did He mean?
We’re hosting family and friends for Thanksgiving dinner and I’m still planning the menu. One guest won’t eat anything green, another doesn’t eat seafood, one dislikes turkey, and two are vegetarians. While I’m still working on appetizers, salad, main course and sides, dessert is a given. Between the sweets our guests are bringing and my pecan pumpkin pie topped with caramel sauce and whipped cream, even the pickiest eater will be happy! I probably could please everyone with just desserts!
When explaining to some of John the Baptist’s followers why His disciples didn’t fast, along with the illustration of patching an old garment, Jesus compared His new way with winemaking. While many of us have sewn patches on clothing, few of us are experienced winemakers. Nevertheless, we know that today’s vintners ferment their wine in oak, stainless, concrete, or clay barrels rather than wineskins. Our only experience with wineskins may hearken back to college football games and ski trips when some fellows carried a wineskin filled with an alcoholic beverage hidden under their coats.
You have stripped off the old human nature, complete with its patterns of behaviour, and you have put on the new one – which is being renewed in the image of the creator, bringing you into possession of new knowledge. In this new humanity there is no question of ‘Greek and Jew’, or ‘circumcised and uncircumcised’, of ‘barbarian, Scythian’, or ‘slave and free’. The king is everything and in everything! [Colossians 3: 9-11 (NTE)]
My in-laws were great ones for giving theme parties. When they hosted a “Backwards Party,” guests entered through the back door, wore their clothes backwards (which my mother-in-law admitted made it difficult for the men), and ate dessert before dinner. At another get-together, attendees came dressed as children, received jump ropes and jacks, pulled taffy, and played games like “Mother May I?” and “Pin the Tail on the Donkey.” My introduction to their parties was in 1966 when they turned their house into a Prohibition era speakeasy and guests needed a password to enter. Women dressed as flappers while the men wore fedoras, vests, and spats. Another party had the theme, “Come as You Wish You Had Been.” My mother-in-law, dressed in shorts with a whistle around her neck, came as the PE teacher she once dreamed of becoming and my father-in-law dressed as the train conductor he once aspired to be. Other attendees dressed as ballerinas, weight lifters, princesses, cowboys, or baseball players.
Devotions of the Heart 