Advent Devotions
All are invited as we Make Room this Advent season.
Living Christmas Card
Today’s author is Prince of Peace‘s Music Coordinator and member, Milt Warkentien.
Here we are a day after Christmas, and a couple of questions you’ve probably faced are:
Did you get enough to eat?
Did you get everything you wanted?
Well, here’s another question to face:
Did you stop to appreciate what this season is all about?
The Christmas season brings hope to the world with the birth of Jesus, but what does that mean for us today?
If you’re like me, you’re probably wondering why so much caring is done during this season and not all thru the year.
If you’re like me, you’re probably wondering why there is so much hate in the world.
If you’re like me, you’re probably wondering how to be God’s Light in a world filled with so much darkness.
If you’re like me, you’re probably missing some very important people in your life.
Christmas is a time for great joy, but it can also bring sadness, loneliness, despair, etc.
What are you feeling this Christmas Season?
Have you taken time to ask your friends and family if they’re ok?
Have you taken time to ask yourself if you’re ok?
So many questions in a Season that’s supposed to bring us, hope, love, joy and peace. Are you filled with these feelings, or are you feeling more of sadness, loneliness and despair?
On December 7th, Kim Wetteland and the worship band did two songs that talk about living with “Christmas” in our hearts all year long, my song “Living Christmas Card” and “Heaven Everywhere” by F. Battistelli/ B. Glover. They were the Anthem and the Postlude on December 7th, if you want to go back and listen to Kim and the worship band do them, but I’m leaving you with Francesca Battistelli doing “Heaven Everywhere”.
My prayer is that we all try to be God’s light and love in a world filled with too much darkness and hate. May we all be “Living Christmas Cards” in 2026.
Previously…
Interconnectedness
I am one who feels God’s presence more deeply in nature, whether I’m hiking or gardening, looking at grand vistas or noticing small pollinators or new buds. I often think of some of the wisdom shared by Robin Wall Kimmerer, botanist and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation in her book, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants. She so eloquently brings these very different worldviews together to show us what we can learn from nature. A book well worth meditating on.
Call to Justice
On Sunday, when we realized Dr. Kelly might not be coming to the adult forum, Toni Sveom stepped in to share her excitement about a book she is in the middle of reading, The Cost of Free Land by Rebecca Clarren, an award-winning journalist, writing about her Jewish family’s settling in western South Dakota after fleeing Russian pogroms.
Repentance and Healing
In his Friday devotion, “Embracing Reconciliation,” Pastor Peter quoted Dr. Kelly’s website: “Her work primarily focuses on systemic theology, with a unique approach to Lakota Spirituality and how it can inform Christianity and instill healing.” With that in mind, I’d like to share part of the “INDIGENOUS PEOPLE’S CELEBRATION, A Service of Indigenous People,” written and compiled by Kelly when she was a Doctoral student at Luther Seminary and active member of the American Indian/Alaska Native Lutheran Association Inc board of directors.
From Gratitude to Hope
In the soft glow of Thanksgiving’s warmth, our hearts resonate with the echoes of gratitude and generosity. We’ve woven threads of love into the tapestry of community, creating a vibrant mosaic of shared blessings. Yet, as the autumn leaves surrender to the inevitable chill, we find ourselves standing at the threshold of a new season — Advent.