Saying Yes
By Mary Lou Eroen
“I am the Lord’s servant, let it be done to me according to your word.”
Luke 1:38
The last sermon my husband preached was just before midnight, Christmas Eve, 2023. In that final sermon, Ron spoke of living in expectation of Jesus’ 2nd Advent. It was a favorite theme of Pastor Ron’s, and he delivered it with enthusiasm that night, completely unaware of how ironically prophetic his message would prove to be. Within less than two weeks, he would be Home with Jesus.
Ron’s was a sudden, unexpected death, “a rescue,” is how the Lord put it. In a heartbeat, a flashing moment, our family’s world shifted in what felt like a geological event, leaving an unnavigable fissure in our landscape. Yet, somehow, amidst the shock of it all, God sustained and held us together through difficult adjustments in family, ministry, and small-town life.
Eleven months later. December 2024. First Christmas without Ron (aka Grampy). Traditions, rituals, everything we always did to celebrate and welcome Jesus, God with us, nothing would be the same without Ron. But…God. As I look back on last Christmas, my heart is awestruck by how present Abba Father, Holy Spirit, and Jesus were to us. What could have been hard and sad turned out to be a gentle, happy celebration.
We mixed things up and welcomed Jesus in unconventional, new-to-us ways, ways Grampy would have been ‘all-in’ for. Of particular note was our Christmas Day road trip to Flying Flags in Buellton. After setting up camp in a circle of vintage trailers, we festooned the place with lights, hung the stockings, and set up shop for Christmas dinner under the stars, followed by a chilly moonlit stroll and stories around the campfire. The next morning, we hit the road and continued north to celebrate with the NorCal cousins. It’s a stretch, I know, but in some ways we were sort of like the Magi, on a holy journey, in our case searching for Jesus in the midst of all the new.
We’re a strong tribe, for sure, but the movement from anxious to calm, melancholy to gladness, was nothing we did on our own. It was all God. Did we miss Grampy and want him to be with us? Of course we did! But God had a different Christmas celebration in mind for him…and we all knew Grampy was lovin’ it.
I close with this final thought and invitation. When Gabriel brought the unexpected, life-altering, most-likely-unwanted message to Mary that she would bear the Son of God, she said, “Yes.” It’s a work in progress, but I’m learning to be like Mary, to say “Yes” no matter how confounding Yahweh’s plan for me might be. Let’s do that. Let’s learn to say, “Yes” to the One who came to love us, save us, and show us the way, “Yes” to his movements and plans for us…whatever they are…wherever He leads.
Ron’s was a sudden, unexpected death, “a rescue,” is how the Lord put it. In a heartbeat, a flashing moment, our family’s world shifted in what felt like a geological event, leaving an unnavigable fissure in our landscape. Yet, somehow, amidst the shock of it all, God sustained and held us together through difficult adjustments in family, ministry, and small-town life.
Eleven months later. December 2024. First Christmas without Ron (aka Grampy). Traditions, rituals, everything we always did to celebrate and welcome Jesus, God with us, nothing would be the same without Ron. But…God. As I look back on last Christmas, my heart is awestruck by how present Abba Father, Holy Spirit, and Jesus were to us. What could have been hard and sad turned out to be a gentle, happy celebration.
We mixed things up and welcomed Jesus in unconventional, new-to-us ways, ways Grampy would have been ‘all-in’ for. Of particular note was our Christmas Day road trip to Flying Flags in Buellton. After setting up camp in a circle of vintage trailers, we festooned the place with lights, hung the stockings, and set up shop for Christmas dinner under the stars, followed by a chilly moonlit stroll and stories around the campfire. The next morning, we hit the road and continued north to celebrate with the NorCal cousins. It’s a stretch, I know, but in some ways we were sort of like the Magi, on a holy journey, in our case searching for Jesus in the midst of all the new.
We’re a strong tribe, for sure, but the movement from anxious to calm, melancholy to gladness, was nothing we did on our own. It was all God. Did we miss Grampy and want him to be with us? Of course we did! But God had a different Christmas celebration in mind for him…and we all knew Grampy was lovin’ it.
I close with this final thought and invitation. When Gabriel brought the unexpected, life-altering, most-likely-unwanted message to Mary that she would bear the Son of God, she said, “Yes.” It’s a work in progress, but I’m learning to be like Mary, to say “Yes” no matter how confounding Yahweh’s plan for me might be. Let’s do that. Let’s learn to say, “Yes” to the One who came to love us, save us, and show us the way, “Yes” to his movements and plans for us…whatever they are…wherever He leads.
Reflective Question for the Day
To what is God inviting you to say, “Yes?”
Are you listening to the still, small voice of the Father, responding to the Spirit’s guidance, joining Jesus in His mission to receive love, and be present to everyone we meet along the way?
Mary Lou Eroen is an old friend of Coastline. She has stored up decades worth of wonderful Christmas memories, except one…the year she peeked (adorable new ski clothes!) and had to fake being surprised on Christmas morning. So busted!