Day five of Advent - December 1

“For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” (Luke 19:10)

I worked at the library today and just before lunch time the fire and sprinkler alarms went off. There was no water, just flashing lights and that horrible horn every second. Not knowing what was going on, we evacuated all the patrons and locked the front doors to keep anyone from coming back into the building. Then we on the staff settled down to wait for the fire and police departments to come…..and to get the alarms and strobe lights turned off. Two hours later, the alarm company finally showed up and was able to deactivate the system which gave us blessed quietness. However, since the building was basically unprotected from any fire and sprinkler alarms, we could not reopen to the public.

Even though signs were posted on the front doors advising people of this, there were still many, many angry people upset because they could not come in to do whatever they needed to do. After about three hours, we were still closed and the mobs were literally growing even angrier. Their day and their plans were interrupted and we were the only ones around to face them. As for me, I was hiding in the kid’s room supply closet with earplugs and a stick.

When Christ was born, a lot of disruptions of daily routines began. The Pharisees and their (often) over zealous enforcement of the religious laws began to crumble. This angered them to the point they wanted to kill Jesus. The family lives of the disciples changed when these men chose to leave homes and jobs to follow Jesus. Suppose your husband or father popped the news at supper one evening that he was leaving to follow some guy who really had some good ideas about how to live well? Think of how the knowledge of Jesus’ heritage must have disrupted the normal family life of Mary, Joseph and the other children?

How does Christ disrupt my daily life? If He doesn’t disrupt it in some way, then…well…perhaps I need to re-examine my relationship. Having Jesus in my life should show a stark difference to those in the world around. In my actions at work and home. In my language. In my choices of television and movies (Ouch!). Yes, I’m talking about me here, but you just might see a bit of you, too. Christ came to be the great disrupter of the world. Are you being a disrupter for His sake? I pray for your strength each day to make a difference for Jesus.

Blessed be the Name of the Lord!