the susie solution

Ps. 17: 10-12, 15  “They close their hearts to pity; with their mouths they speak arrogantly.  They have now surrounded our steps; they set their eyes to cast us to the ground.  He is like a lion eager to tear, as a young lion lurking in ambush.  …  As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.”

I tend to have a hard time looking at an infant and limning in its features the lines of its parents’ faces.   It’s often easier to see a general “family resemblance” –telling a Winterstein from a Wachtman from a Jonen.  Rob has a family of cousins whose parents came from very different models.  One family had very long bodies set on notably short legs, the other had normal bodies set on legs up to their armpits.  Two of these cousins each had two boys.  In both sets, one of the boys took after the one grandparent, and the other boy took after the other, resulting in one brother being about 6’4” and the “little” brother barely making it to 5’2”.  Looking at the four together, you’d expect the two tall ones to be brothers and the two short ones to be brothers, not split sets as they are.  Such is the Puckish nature of genetics!

During adulthood, the resemblance most likely to be noted is how folks start to look like their parents.  I mean, we ALL have those moments as adults when we say something and suddenly realize, “Oh, my goodness, I sound just like my MOTHER!”  We have some voluntary control over that, but the looks?  We’re pretty much stuck with those.  What’s that old saying  – “If you want to know what your spouse will look like in 50 years, look at her/his mother/father?”  The wrinkles we develop, the jowls, the receding hairline, the big ears, the long nose (did you know your nose and ears keep growing your whole life?  Oh, joy.) … they’re in the genes.   Sooner or later, for better or chagrin, most of us will hear someone say, “Boy, you sure look like your dad/mom/grandma/grandpa!” 

In the Christmas story, we can easily see the first verses quoted above as they apply to Herod.  Herod “the Great” was a ruthless tyrant who stopped at nothing to ensure his rule.  He banished his first wife and three year old son so that he could marry the niece of his nephew, both of whom he later executed.  He ordered the execution of a many rabbis and any others who opposed him.  Although he considered himself a convert to Judaism, these actions and his decadent lifestyle led to his being viewed with extreme antipathy by observant Jews.  His being a servant of Rome earned the ire of the nationalists.  Having been elected “King of the Jews” by the Roman Senate, he was not about to let any upstart usurper enter the picture, hailed by the stars or not.  Ordering the slaughter of three or four dozen or so two year old boys around Bethlehem?  A small matter to ensure his rule.  In I Peter 5:  8, Peter says the enemy, Satan, “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”    Herod was a “chip off the old block” for sure.  Like his father the devil, the lion roaring, seeking someone to devour, so, too, was Herod a young lion eager to tear, lying in ambush.    

I recently heard a pastor say “This earth is as close to Heaven as a non-Christian will ever know.”  People like Herod actively work to make earth as much like Hell as possible.  But for the Christian, the second part of that pastor’s statement was “This earth is as close to Hell as a Christian will ever know.”  That isn’t really saying much, when you think about it.  Hell is the absence of the presence of God, and no matter how “hellish” the Herod’s of the world seek to make our lives, they can’t remove God’s presence from us.   Roar as he might, Satan can’t actually devour us.  Our Father never lets go of our hand.  No matter what our circumstances, our Father’s face is always before us.   God is always at work to conform us ever more and more into His likeness. 

When it comes to spiritual looks, there could be no greater satisfaction than hearing, “Boy, you sure look like your Dad!”

Ps. 6: 7, 8  “I bless the LORD Who gives me counsel; in the night, my heart also instructs me.  I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

Do you dream in color?  In one way, that’s a trick question because a lot of people don’t even remember dreaming at all.  I do dream in color, and I often remember vivid snippets of dreams.  The other night, I had a dream wherein I thought of a new word, that, in the context of the dream, was somehow earth-shatteringly clever and important :  “impossihossibility”.  Explain it now I cannot, but I think it had something to do with horses.  I play the piano beautifully in my dreams, too.  If only!  Jillian remembers whole dreams – book, chapter, and verse. 

Modern psychology, of course, explains dreams as the subconscious “working out”, or making sense, of events of the day or fears of the future – and most of the time, it’s not hard to interpret our dreams that way.  A dream of falling?  We’re usually feeling that something in our life is out of control.  A dream of being out in public and suddenly realizing we are dressed only in our underwear?  We’re feeling vulnerable.  The Bible, though, records many instances of God using dreams to give very specific instruction.

It’s interesting in the Christmas story that two of the principle players, Mary and Zechariah get face-to-face visits from Gabriel, Elizabeth gets her news second-hand from her hubby, and Joseph gets his visit while he’s catching zzz’s.  Twice, in fact – when he gets the news about Mary’s baby, and when he’s warned to take mother and Child to Egypt.  God always mixes things up.  Just because He does a thing one way one time doesn’t mean He’ll repeat himself.

Joseph was obviously a man of amazing character.  Men generally didn’t marry until they were established in life, so he would probably have been at least 30.  That’s a long time to dream about being married, a long time to ponder on the Song of Songs and to look forward the delights of married life.  Finally a young bride is chosen and the betrothal is entered into.  Then, before the actual marriage takes place…. “Uh, Joe, dear, I’m pregnant.”  In Jesus’ day, it wasn’t uncommon for young unwed pregnant girls to claim “Honestly, I didn’t even have sex!”, and according to some historians, it was even fairly common for girls to claim to be carrying the Messiah.  Hey, you could hardly be accused of sexual sin under those circumstances, right?  The Bible doesn’t tell us whether Mary told anyone about Gabriel’s visit at the time, or whether she tried to convince Joe about what was going on.  I think she would have – but it wouldn’t have been any wonder that he didn’t believe her if she did.

Most men, upon finding that their intended was pregnant, and knowing it wasn’t THEIR baby, would be mightily offended in pride.  Mortified.  Humiliated.  The tendency would be to lash back.  But Scripture tells us that Joseph was a “just man”, and had no such desire.  He was unwilling to put her to shame.  He wasn’t willing to MARRY her under the circumstances, but he wasn’t going to make a public spectacle of her in the divorce, either.  Yet, he “considered these things.”  He didn’t act rashly or hastily.  It was during this time of consideration that the angel of the LORD dropped in on his dream to either confirm what Mary had already told him, or to break the news if she hadn’t tried.

Zechariah got a face-to-face visit from Gabriel, and still had the audacity to ask, “Oh, yeah?  Really?”  Joseph had a dream, and it was ‘nuff said.  Matthew says Joe “woke from his sleep and took Mary as his wife”.  Talk about immediate obedience!   Joseph was obviously a man looking to the LORD for counsel, and anxious to follow it.  Because of that, he had no qualms about his course of action, no matter what anyone else might have thought.

May we be as ready to act on the LORD’s guidance, no matter when the marching orders come through!

Psalm 14: 1, 4  “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’  They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds, …  Have they no knowledge, all the evil doers who eat up my  people like bread and do not call on the name of the LORD?”

I love bread rather passionately.  Crusty honey-whole wheat from my bread machine.  Tomato basil from Panera.  Artisanal from Safeway.  I’ve met very few breads I didn’t like.  I could just about LIVE on bread.  (As long as I also had chocolate!)  Bread is sooooo easy to eat.  Pull that loaf out of the bread machine, let it cool just enough to be cut without mooshing down, and I could eat the whole loaf, slice by slice, some with butter melting in, some with honey, some with apple mint jelly.  Generally, though, bread isn’t “special”; it’s not the main dish, just something to fill out the plate.  Most of us eat bread in some form at least once a day, if not for every meal.

Bread was a staple of Biblical times, too, from Genesis through the Lord’s Supper.  Any Jew would certainly have been able to relate to the imagery, because Israel had no shortage of experience with bad guys who “ate them up like bread.”  By the time the Psalm was written, they’d already enjoyed the hospitality of the Egyptians in Egypt, and after winning their homeland, were beset by Midianites, Philistines, and others from the region.  Within a few generations of David, there came the Persians and Babylonians, followed by Alexander the Great and his Macedonians, then the Seleucids.  Of that latter group, the most horrendous was Antiochus Epiphanes, who performed such abominations that it led to the Maccabean Revolution.  But Israel didn’t stay free, and by the time of Christ’s arrival, they were under Herod’s thumb as part of the Roman Empire.  The names changed, but it was always pretty much the same story.  Throughout their history, the Jews were on the bread plate for every would-be world conqueror.

Herod certainly fit the profile for this Psalm – a fool (in the Biblical sense of the word), corrupt, doing abominable deeds.  Instead of joining Magi in worshiping the Child they spoke of, he set out to slaughter Him.  He never knew (in this life) that his slaughter didn’t achieve its purpose.  He made the mistake of thinking there was no God to notice or to care.  

How ironic is it that in EATING God’s people like bread, he actually missed MEETING the Living Bread?  Herod may have eaten up God’s people like bread, but he himself was toast!

Psalm 13:1, 5, 6  “How long, O LORD?  Will you forget me forever?  How long will you hide your face from me? ….  But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.  I will sing to the LORD because He has dealt bountifully with me.”

I have fibromyalgia syndrome, often shortened to just “fibro”.  One of the aspects of that condition is a brain issue known as “fibrofog” that functions something like early stage Alzheimers.  We can forget things very easily, or get easily confused.  I read one woman’s account that she could get “lost” in her one bedroom apartment!  Mine was never that bad, and since I found treatment about five years ago, has been much better than it used to be, but I still have occasional issues.  For example, if you look at my big planning calendar, you can find days with the same event entered twice.  The exact same wording neatly written one under the other.  Good grief.

In the early years of the condition, one of my biggest problems was simply forgetting things.  It wasn’t enough to write it on the calendar (even twice).  I had to write it on the calendar, on the white board, on several sticky notes, AND I’d tell my kids to remind me as well.  Even then things sometimes still “snuck up” on me!  Worst, though, were the many, many times that I told my kids I’d do something for them… and then forgot.  “Mom, did you get my jeans mended?  You said you’d get them done before I needed them for the party!”  “Mom, did you get more milk?  You said you’d get more when you were at Freddy’s.”  “Mom, you said you’d come read me a book after you finished that email.  It’s been three HOURS!”  They knew it wasn’t exactly my “fault”, but still, it was so painful for me to see that frustration in their eyes when I had let them down, again.

God had promised to be with His people, but sometimes it didn’t feel like He was there.  David starts this Psalm with a cry of frustration, feeling forgotten.  It didn’t LOOK like God was fulfilling His end of the bargain at the moment.  Yet David ends the Psalm on a different note.  BUT.  It doesn’t look like You’re doing what You said You would, but you know, I know You HAVEN’T forgotten me!  In fact, He’s been awfully good to me!

By the time Gabriel showed up at Mary’s place, it had been some 400 years since there had been a prophetic voice in Israel.  Talk about a long time to wait!  That’s a lot of generations to feel forgotten.  “How long, O LORD?” must have been a pretty popular theme song.  Some singing it were probably angry.  Some, though, must have been like David.  I think Mary must have been in that category because when she got the good word of what was going to happen, once she got over the shock of the fact that SHE was to be the instrument, what was her response?  Her Magnificat when she visited Elizabeth echoes David’s sentiment in this Psalm as she rejoices in God her Savior and praises Him for His goodness to her and to all who fear Him, affirming “He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever.” 

Mary recognized in the Messiah’s arrival the fulfillment of God’s promises.  God never forgets.  However long in the fulfillment, what He said WILL be accomplished.  Since we, too, are offspring of Abraham, those promises are to US as well!

Psalm 12: 2, 7  “Everyone lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak. … You, O LORD, will keep them.  You will guard us from this generation forever.”

Ever get frustrated watching a show where it’s obvious to the viewer just who the bad guy is, yet the hero seems totally clueless?  Maybe it’s because he can’t hear the ominous music.  Maybe he just didn’t read the whole script. Whatever the reason, on he goes, treating the bad guy like a pal, going along with his every suggestion.  Around here, you’d likely hear one of us using the old quote, with evil grin and twitching eyebrows, “’Come into my parlor,’ said the spider to the fly!”

I wonder what it was like for the Magi.  They knew they were searching for one born to be King of the Jews.  I would think the first place to ask about that would be the residence of the current king, but that’s not where they went.  Maybe they stopped at the Tourist Bureau first and found out there hadn’t been a son born at the palace in the last two years, so figured it wouldn’t be worth pursuing their inquiries there and turned to other sources.  But after the Wise Men’s question reached the ear of Herod through the grapevine, HE sent for them – privately.  He told the travelers to go find the child they were seeking, then send word back to him, “so that I may come worship him, too”.   How cool is that?  I mean, here’s the current king telling you HE’s as big a fan of this new up-and-comer as you are!  HE wants to come hang out in the mosh pit with you, just let him know where the party is.  It’s all good!

Did the Wise Men hear that ominous music in the background?  Was there ANYTHING in that flattering, double-hearted liar’s speech that made them the least bit suspicious?  What explanation did he give them for keeping all this a secret from the rest of his court?  Didn’t any of it seem even just slightly odd?  Scripture doesn’t indicate that they had any qualms.  All we know for sure is that they took Herod’s advice of going to Bethlehem, and were able to once again follow the star, this time all the way to the Child.  If things had gone according to the rest of Herod’s plan, and they’d returned to give him word of the Child’s exact location, I’m pretty sure they’d never have made it further.  Since he’d gone to pains to keep their first visit a secret, he wouldn’t have risked their news spreading any further.  He could then have sent a targeted squad after the Child.  No muss, no fuss, just another day in the life of Rome.

But God kept the Wise Men and guarded them.  He warned them in a dream that they needed to recalculate their route home and give Herod the slip.  They listened to God’s leading, and lived.  Herod’s flattering lips might have deceived the Wise Men, but they couldn’t deceive the Only Wise God.

I am going to attempt to write one Advent/Christmas thought a day through Epiphany, based on the Psalm I am reading that day.  (I know Advent doesn’t start till tomorrow, but this will make up for an invariable miss.)  We’ll see how it goes!  I have a laptop now, though, so I can sit right at the dining table and do it as part of my devotions, so that should help.  (If I go to my desk, I’m tempted to check email, Facebook, and oh, there’s that note to check the asiflex account, and… I’m lost!)  Here goes!

Psalm 11:7  “For the LORD is righteous; He loves righteous deeds; the upright shall see His face.”

Our first four kids were pretty much bald when they were born.  Stayed that way for quite a while, too.  So, when our fifth one was born, it’s no wonder that the first trait we noticed was that she had HAIR.  Not a thick mop, but definitely much more than her siblings had been graced with.  Her face, though, was very like her siblings – definitely an Aasen baby!

I think most moms spend those months of pregnancy thinking about their baby’s face.  Will he have my nose?  Your chin?  Grandpas’s dimples?  PLEASE not Uncle Humperdink’s nose!  Nowadays, of course, we have ultrasound in HD, and are able to see Baby’s face and profile in utero with astonishing clarity, but, even so, it’s not the same as that first amazing gaze into those precious little eyes, that awed poring over every line of that little face.  I’m sure it was no different for Mary.

Gabriel told her that she had “found favor with God”, and that she was to bear a son, the Messiah, the very Son of God.  I wonder if she ever thought of that verse from the Psalm and how literally it was to be true for her?  When “the Babe, the world’s Redeemer, first revealed His sacred face”, she was privileged to be the first, with Joseph, to gaze upon that face in all its beautiful, bloody birth mess.  The upright did, indeed, see His face.