Dcn Susan Erickson

For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.  (Micah 4: 2-5)

Dear Siblings in Christ,

Happy Nativity of our Lord! I pray that this day will be a peaceful one in which you glimpse the light of Christ coming into the world. And I pray that if you do sense that light, you will share it in some way (there are so many ways) with those around you—friends, family, those you meet, perhaps even people far away.

Because it doesn’t seem as if many people are seeing the light of Christ just now. The prophet Micah’s vision of a world in which “nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” seems just that: a centuries-old vision that evaporates when we shut our Bibles.  

So maybe instead we need to keep our Bibles open, and the eyes of our hearts. When I lived in Madison, Wisconsin, I used to see a United Church of Christ bumper sticker around town: “God is still speaking.” I believe that bumper sticker.

God is speaking on this day through the coming of Christ: we not only celebrate the birth of Jesus two thousand years ago, we ask Him to come to us today, December 25, 2023, in the midst of a dark world. Though many may walk in the name of tribalism or materialism or vengeance, it seems to me that as Christians we have made a different choice. We have chosen to “walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.” And by patiently walking in that way of love and peace and self-giving we can carry on Micah’s vision despite everything. So that more people can be part of the Kingdom in which “all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees.”

“The Lord of hosts has spoken” and is speaking still. In response let us lift up our voices in praise and peace. 

Faithfully,

—Dcn Susan