Imagine!

It has never been harder to encourage sustained spiritual
behaviors among people who are attracted to The Way Jesus
blazed. Your reading this devotional is a minority activity, probably
even among the members and friends of your church and
family—not that this series of reflections is the be-all and endall
of spiritual wisdom. They are an offering from your fellow
sojourners on The Way, to help focus your attention on the small
child of Bethlehem, the unknown young man of Nazareth, the
rejected preacher, the naked man on the cross, and all that came
before and after to the present moment of your reading.

Wow! Is it ever hard to cut through the clutter and noise and
info bits and videos and pics and whatnot and hooha! We find
it hard to sit still, quietly, intentionally, prayerfully, allowing
ourselves the holy luxury of spiritual perplexity in the manner
of Mary and a time for “pondering.” It requires seemingly enormous
energy to construct a spiritual discipline that returns us
to the heart of life each and every day. Our time consumed by
many trifles, we leave little in reserve for the things that matter
most of all hiding in plain sight but lacking the snap-crackle of
Instagram and Snapchat flicking across our consciousness like a
stone skipping on water.

Is it my imagination or is there an epidemic of adult ADHD
on the horizon? Enduring relationships require focus, energy,
commitment, attention, time—including spiritual relationships
with self, others, and God.

How can we ever find the wherewithal to leap into the
realm of God’s imagination, especially at this crazy-making time
of year? I am relieved to read that for all our haphazard attempts
at keeping our eye on the manger, Gabriel assures us that nothing
will be impossible with God.