They can prepare for what we do, but they can’t prepare for who we are.—Dabo Swinney, Head Coach of the Clemson Tigers, talking with the team before the Ohio State game on December 28.

That’s who we are. That’s what we do. We finish. —Dabo Swinney after Clemson defeated Ohio State on December 28.

So which is it? Which is more important, what we do or who we are? People wrestle with this as evidenced by this series of quotes that surfaced in the late 1960s.

The last line is a series of nonsense syllables from Frank Sinatra’s version of “Strangers in the Night.” No one really knows the actual origin of the other versions, but the story of an owner posting the first line on his warehouse wall followed by others in his company posting the other two lines is true, according to quoteinvestigator.com.

A number of years ago, a friend of mine, reflecting on all the inspirational leadership biographies floating around observed, “You can’t do what they do unless you are what they are.”

Surely, who we are is important, but often that’s reflected by what we do.

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. (James 2.18, NIV, emphasis mine)

There’s a saying around Christmas or any other gift-giving time, “It’s the thought that counts.” Actually, with respect to “holy moments” or doing good for someone, it’s not the thought that counts, it’s the execution.

If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. (James 4.17, NIV)

You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world…Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5.13 – 16, NIV, emphasis mine)

I woke up the other day thinking about a portion of the old hymn “Lead on, O King Eternal,” written in 1887 by Earnest Shurtleff. 

The Kingdom comes not with a lot of noise but with deeds of love and mercy. This is exactly what Matthew Kelly had in mind when he wrote about “Holy Moments.”

The other day, when my next-door neighbor was out of town, I took a few minutes to blow the snow off his driveway. I would have wanted someone to do that for me. After the fact, I realized it was a holy moment. I’m not claiming that single act will usher my neighbors into the Kingdom, but maybe it will nudge them in the right direction.

By contrast, an out-of-town friend of mine called the other day, early in the morning, breathless with excitement about a new video series, full of “truth” about Genesis. I may be wrong, but such videos often produce “swords’ loud crashing” as we’re tempted to argue people into the Kingdom with the truth (or just make ourselves feel good because we know the truth).

I pray that I’ll do better in 2020 producing deeds of love and mercy. Join me?

Discover creative ways to encourage others and to motivate them toward acts of compassion, doing beautiful works as expressions of love. (Hebrews 10.24, Passion Translation)

Encourage the believers to be passionately devoted to beautiful works of righteousness by meeting the urgent needs of others and not be unfruitful. (Titus 3.14, Passion Translation)

On New Year’s Day, I perused my email and was overwhelmed with gloom and doom both from a (Christian) news summary and a newsletter from someone in ministry. I’m not often overwhelmed with anything, but I felt fear, apprehension… Suddenly I stopped and said to myself, “This is no way to start a day or a new year! Get back to your reading of the Christmas story.”

So I read Luke 2.22 – 38, the account of Jesus being taken by Mary and Joseph to the Temple for the mandatory purification ceremony, where they heard the testimonies of Simeon and Anna. 

[Simeon said, ] “My eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel…Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” (Luke 2.30 – 35, ESV)

And make no mistake, if there had been a “News of the Day” publication in Jerusalem or even a “Temple Tidbits” summary of the day’s activities, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus’ visit wouldn’t have made it. The purification was completely routine, something the priest on duty would have done hundreds of times while thinking of something else. The powers that be wouldn’t have noticed Simeon or “Crazy Old Anna.” We know about it because Luke in his thoroughness documented it.

The point I’m making to myself is that no matter how gloomy things look, God is at work, most likely under the radar. I need to be listening for his voice, watching for him at work, and participating with my own under-the-radar holy moments.

Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls a conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread. (Isaiah 8.12, 13, NIV)

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship. Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir. (Galatians 4.4 – 7, NIV)

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? (Isaiah 43.19, ESV)

As we write our goals and action steps for 2020, let’s remember to include surrounding ourselves with people who can help us grow.

I was researching Charles Jennens, the man who compiled the libretto for Handel’s Messiah, and I came across an article containing a quote from George Steevens who was not a fan of Jennens because Jennens had criticized some of Shakespeare’s work. Others have refuted Steevens’ perception of Jennens. 

The point of today’s blog is not whether the quote fairly applies to Jennens or not. The point is that the quote contains a valuable reminder for all of us. Ready?

The chief error of Mr. Jennens’s life consisted in his perpetual association with a set of men every way inferior to himself. By these means he lost all opportunities of improvement, but gained what he preferred to the highest gratifications of wisdom – flattery in excess. —George Steevens 

The warning is that if we associate only with a set of people inferior to ourselves, we lose all opportunities for improvement, and we trade gaining wisdom for gaining flattery. 

The ear that hears the rebukes of life will abide among the wise. He who disdains instruction despises his own soul, but he who heeds rebuke gets understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility. (Proverbs 15.31 – 33, NKJV)

I wrote soon after I was given an Apple Watch how it was motivating me to get more exercise. One of the ways it does that is by giving me monthly goals. I’m now seeing that there are two kinds of goals, and I’m debating which kind is more effective.

Some goals give me a target for the month: so many minutes of exercise, so much distance walked. So far these have been attainable especially with a bit of planning. I figure out what my targets are for each day, and I monitor my progress and get ahead when I can to make up for those days when I can’t do as much. This type of goal motivates me to do more than is required “just in case.”

This month’s goal is different: I have to keep up my daily minimums every day. Every day for the whole 31 days. There’s no incentive to do much more than the minimum since it won’t carry over. On the other hand, I’m not allowed to do less. Consistency is not just encouraged, it is demanded.

If we’re setting our own goals, which is better? When I started thinking about this, I thought I would say the second type since it demands consistency, and consistency is good. However, there’s no grace. What happens when I fail to meet my minimum? What’s my motivation to get back to it the next day? 

So as we set goals or make resolutions for the new year, I’m going to aim for actions that are attainable, maybe with a little extra effort, that inspire consistency, but are not so rigid that I quit if I miss a day.

Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord. (Proverbs 8.34, 35, ESV)

I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back. So let’s keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you’ll see it yet! (Philippians 3.12 – 15, MSG)

Please permit me one more Christmas meditation…

I wrote earlier about the baby Jesus himself being the sign to the shepherds; here’s some additional insight from Bruce Simmons, translator of The Passion Translation, from which I quote from time to time. Here’s his footnote from Luke 2.8 when the shepherds are introduced:

Many scholars believe that these could be the same fields where sacrificial flocks were kept for temple worship.

Bethlehem was only 6 miles from Jerusalem, hence a good place to raise lambs for sacrifice. But here’s the kicker—the note from verse 12 about the baby being the sign:

A baby lying in a feeding trough where animals were kept nearby, wrapped in strips of cloths, became a sign of the Man-Savior’s life on earth…The shepherds that night were possibly near Bethlehem at Migdal Eder, “the [watch] tower of the flock.” …It was at the lower floor of the watchtower (Migdal Eder) that the birthing of the Passover lambs would take place. Selected ewes that were about to give birth would be brought there. After the birth of the lambs, the priestly shepherds would wrap the lambs in cloth and lay them in a manger lined with soft hay to prevent them from hurting themselves, for Passover lambs must be unblemished with no bruise or broken bone. The miracle sign for these priestly shepherds would be a baby boy lying where the Passover lamb should be—in a manger, wrapped in strips of cloth.

I don’t think that needs more comment!

That night, in a field near Bethlehem, there were shepherds watching over their flocks. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared in radiant splendor before them, lighting up the field with the blazing glory of God, and the shepherds were terrified! But the angel reassured them, saying, “Don’t be afraid. For I have come to bring you good news, the most joyous news the world has ever heard! And it is for everyone everywhere! For today in Bethlehem a rescuer was born for you. He is the Lord Yahweh, the Messiah. You will recognize him by this miracle sign: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a feeding trough!” (Luke 2.8 – 11, Passion Translation)

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
Though you are little among the thousands of Judah,
Yet out of you shall come forth to Me
The One to be Ruler in Israel,
Whose goings forth are from of old,
From everlasting. (Micah 5.2, NKJV)

The prophet predicted that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Then God chose Mary to be the mother of Jesus, and she was from Nazareth! No problem…

During those days, the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, ordered that the first census be taken throughout his empire. (Quirinius was the governor of Syria at that time.) Everyone had to travel to his or her hometown to complete the mandatory census. So Joseph and his fiancé, Mary, left Nazareth, a village in Galilee, and journeyed to their hometown in Judea, to the village of Bethlehem, King David’s ancient home. They were required to register there, since they were both direct descendants of David. Mary was pregnant and nearly ready to give birth. (Luke 2.1 – 5, Passion Translation)

If you need someone to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem, why not get the Roman emperor to order it!

It’s as easy for God to steer a king’s heart for his purposes as it is for him to direct the course of a stream. (Proverbs 21.1, Passion Translation)

This is amazing. We serve a powerful God. Caesar Augustus thought he was god. And, as Andy Stanley said, if you told first-century believers, hiding in the catacombs, that within 300 years every building in Rome would have a cross on it in honor of Jesus, they would have thought you were crazy. 

God [is] the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords… (1 Timothy 6.15, ESV)

It’s not too late to think about the reality of the Christmas story from a warfare perspective. (I don’t make this stuff up; I just report it!)

Note that the first forecast of this warfare goes all the way back to Genesis 3, where God tells the serpent (Satan):

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” (Genesis 3.15, NKJV)

Jesus is the “seed of the woman,” and the “heel bruising” occurred at the cross where Satan won a “temporary” victory. The opening scene of Passion of the Christ ends with a powerful reminder of Genesis 3.15.

But before the cross was the birth, “the Christmas story,” and here it is from a warfare perspective in Revelation 12. 

Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. (Revelation 12.1 – 4, NKJV)

Remember King Herod and Mary, Joseph, and Jesus’ escape to Egypt?

Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. (Revelation 12.13, 14, NKJV)

I discovered this “back story” a few years ago, and I’m always happy to see that others discovered it too! Mike Metzger has written about the warfare eloquently, including why we don’t often hear this part of the story. I recommend his article, published December 23. 

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6.12, NKJV)

For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3.8, NKJV)

Boxing Day is December 26, and the term is of “uncertain origin” although it is generally associated with giving gifts to those who serve:

In Britain, it was a custom for tradesmen to collect “Christmas boxes” of money or presents on the first weekday after Christmas as thanks for good service throughout the year. This is mentioned in Samuel Pepys’diary entry for 19 December 1663. This custom is linked to an older British tradition where the servants of the wealthy were allowed the next day to visit their families since they would have to serve their masters on Christmas Day. The employers would give each servant a box to take home containing gifts, bonuses, and sometimes leftover food. (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing_Day)

With that definition, for most of us, Christmas Day is Boxing Day with all those presents! In our house, we always say we’re going to get the shopping done early, and even if some of it is done early, June is assessing up to the last minute if we have bought “enough” for our growing family (four adult children, eight grandchildren). 

Some trace Christmas gift-giving to the wise men, who, as I say as often as I can, were not at the manger on the night Jesus was born but saw him later at a house:

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2.10, 11, ESV, emphasis mine)

In this country, most of us are blessed to be able to give, and we give because we are blessed. We have the example of the Jewish people when they were delivered from genocide as told in the book of Esther. 

And Mordecai recorded these things and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, obliging them to keep the fourteenth day of the month Adar and also the fifteenth day of the same, year by year, as the days on which the Jews got relief from their enemies, and as the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and gifts to the poor. (Esther 9.20 – 22, ESV, emphasis mine)

Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift! (2 Corinthians 9.15, ESV)