Ongoing Creation

 

In the spirit of the season, our youth held a friendly competition. They worked in teams to create a nativity scene. Each team had the large pieces from a gingerbread house kit as a starting point, but everything else was up to their collective creativity. There were tables providing a wide array of building supplies. There were a variety of breakfast cereals. Candy selections ranged from M&Ms to Twizzlers to Peeps. There was coconut shavings and icing and animal crackers. It was quite the spread.

The room was filled with energy and laughter and much too much sugar. The teams raced against the clock to create their masterpiece. Then each nativity was placed on a table and numbered for inspection by the judge. While the group gathered for the evening devotional time, the hard work of evaluation and ranking was completed. It was a joyful night for all, youth and adults alike. The energy of creating, the camaraderie of working together and the joy of the season were a winning combination.

In the midst of this flurry of activity, I could not help but think of these words from my favorite Affirmation of Faith: “We believe in God, who has created and is creating.” The Christmas story is a creation story of sorts. In some mysterious and unfathomable way, the Creator becoming a creature. In the birth of a baby, a new way of knowing God is born. By the visit of the Magi we see that a new humanity has been created, one that rises above all the boundaries and barriers we build to separate us. Under the rule of Rome, a new kingdom is created; a kingdom where the power is love.

Let us all do a little creating on our own this season. Create some joy. Create some hope. Create some peace. It is within our power to do so. If we emulate the one born at Christmas and love God with all we are and have and love our neighbor as we love ourselves, we are a part of the ongoing work of creation. And that would be a great gift to both ourselves and to the world.

Peace.