Unveiled?

Inspiration for the title:

"I saw well why the gods do not speak to us openly, nor let us answer. Till that word can be dug out of us, why should they hear the babble that we think we mean? How can they meet us face to face till we have faces?"
-C.S. Lewis, Till We Have Faces

(definitely recommend this if you've never read it before)

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled faces, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."
-II Corinthians 3:17-18

it's a beautiful image :)

Tis the season...

Hello, world.

Thanksgiving is over, and it's full speed ahead to Christmas. I love Christmas, but for some reason I'm not feeling it this year. The lights, the hustle and bustle, the red and green, the minty Starbucks drinks, even the music...it all feels so shallow. I don't want mere holiday cheer this year. I want to find Jesus in the middle of all this.

It's occurred to me lately, that of all the Persons of the Trinity, I am least acquainted with Jesus. I know the Father as my Creator and Sustainer, and the Spirit as my Strength, Comfort, and Source of joy, but I still have this picture of Jesus not much different than one of those felt-board figures. Kind of one-dimensional and cartoon-y with that goofy beard (as if He was blonde and blue-eyed, anyway). I'll blame all those Bible story videos we watched growing up. He just does not seem like someone with whom I could sit down to coffee and discuss the world and theology and love and things that matter. Yet He really was. And is. And my perception is beginning to change.

In fact, Jesus was hungry. And thirsty. And tired. He needed time away. He had to deal with parents. And siblings. And learning a trade. And waiting on the Father's timing. He was let down by people. Even His best friends. And He hurt deep down in his heart. Jesus was fully human.

Yet, He was and is so much more. He is insanely intelligent. He knows all the mysteries of our world and of our human condition. He felt deeply compassionate towards people. He reached out to the outcasts of society. He knew God the Father intimately and invites us into this relationship of joyful gift-giving. He invites us to find real, deep, spiritual life. In self-denial. In service. In death.

There's a reason we take communion. To remember his death on the cross, to be sure. But I can't help but think that Jesus wants us to share in His redeemed humanity, the literal substance of His being. In living life as it was meant to be lived.

This Christmas, I want to find this life. I want to know this Man. Preferably over peppermint white chocolate mochas. Hold the whipped cream, of course.