813.253.5388 | Info@HydeParkUMC.org |    
813.253.5388
Info@HydeParkUMC.org
   

The Power of Your Words

Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

I spent the last several days out of town enjoying Spring Break with my daughters Grace and Maddy. We spent most of our time in Chicago, where Grace is in graduate school for Museum Studies. But last Monday and Tuesday, we made a quick road trip over to Cherokee, Iowa, to see some old friends from our previous church, and to inter the ashes of our beloved dog Micah, whom we adopted in Iowa and who died last January at the age of 16.

While we were in northwest Iowa, a local high school teacher and friend of mine asked me to speak to her high school assembly about the importance of communication skills in one’s life and career. I offered a 45-minute presentation called “The Power of Your Words,” based on a sermon I preached at Hyde Park several years ago.

I thought I’d share the highlights from my talk to those high schoolers, which was in the form of The Top Ten Tongue Twister to Help You Tame Your Tongue.

10. If liars lie in lairs of lies, in their lairs lay lots of liars.

This one is about lies and truth telling. In a time when there is so much misinformation on social media, and misleading information being shared to sway people’s opinions, it is important to check where you are getting your facts, verify it with other sources, and do your very best to share the truth.

9. If you attack behind their back, they’ll be back to bite you back.

This one is about gossip, which is conversation about a person’s private life without their knowledge, in a way that is unkind, judgmental, or untrue. Ask yourself these questions before you share that information with others. Does this have to do with a person’s private life, which they don’t want to be made public? Is it unkind, judgmental, or untrue? And most importantly: Has that person give me permission to share this information with others?

8. I need not your needles; they’re needless to me. It need not be needed to be needling me.

Watch the insults. There is no need to cut people down. It is true there might be a distinction between insults and teasing. The latter can be a fun and non-harmful way of connecting with family and friends, based on shared memories and inside jokes. But there is a fine line between teasing and insults. Insults cut deeply into someone’s personhood and can conjure up hard and harmful feelings.

7. An oyster’s noise annoys me, see, When an oyster voices complaints to me.

This one is about grumbling and complaining. Life is meant to be filled with joy, enthusiasm, and hope. Instead, some people choose to live lives full of pessimism, grouchiness, and grumpiness. Now, there are times when it is appropriate to feel dissatisfied, and even angry, about the state of things, like when there is injustice, inequity, or harm being done. It is right to complain then. But to have a general, perpetual state of complaining is not only unhelpful; it can be harmful.

6. Ye have two ears to hear in here, so hear ye with your ears, and don’t pack your yaks like a yakking yak pack packs yaks.

This is a simple reminder to listen more. The book of James says, “Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry.” Yes, it is important to claim your own voice and to speak your truth. But remember that yours is not the only voice, and yours is not the only story. Listen more to others.

5. Classless cusses cause crass clauses across coarse courses.

This one is pretty simple. Cut down on the cursing. Yes, there are certain words of profanity that express meaning in ways that classier words cannot convey. But the better way to speak is to elevate our speech beyond that of the coarse and unrefined. Stay away from the crass; opt for the classy.

4. Love best builds and fills when it’s built and fills your will.

This one is really important. Use your words to encourage people. Paul says, “Bear one another’s burdens … Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” Make it a habit of offering at least one word of encouragement every day to someone else. You will be surprised at the impact you can make on other people. And more surprisingly, you will see the impact that it can make on yourself.

3. Patient patients push a penchant for patience in a pinch.

Think before you speak. Let your words be graced with patience. It can be easy to talk impulsively, in the heat of emotion. Sometimes that is unavoidable, and you just need to say something to get it out of your system. But to the degree that you can help it, take a breath before you say something, whether it be in person, via text, or email. When we let our unbridled emotions take over, we often pay the price.

2. Would you bother to bother a brother if you offer one offer but proffer another?

Watch the hypocrisy. Back up your words with actions. One of the fastest and most enduring ways for you to compromise your integrity and gain a bad reputation in the eyes of others is to say you are for something, but then act against it. Or to make a promise, but then not follow through with it. Make sure your word is your bond, and that your actions are consistent with your words.

So now it is time for number one. And this one is so important that I offer it just straight and clear. No gimmicks, and no tongue-twisting.

1. Speak the Truth in Love

This means being willing to say something you don’t want to say but needs to be said. Yes, there are times when we need to keep our mouths shut. But there are times when we need to speak truth to others that they don’t want to hear. Sharing that truth can sometimes hurt. It can be costly and painful. But when we share it in love and genuine concern, in the long run, it can bring hope and healing.

We can all work on our speech. Our words can be destructive and divisive, or they can bring wholeness and life. The choice is ours.

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

Bach Birthday Bash Concert This Sunday!

Get ready for an unforgettable musical extravaganza this Sunday at 4 p.m. in the Sanctuary! The Tampa Chapter of the American Guild of Organists is back with the 23rd annual celebration honoring the legendary Johann Sebastian Bach. Immerse yourself in the timeless melodies of Bach’s masterpieces as talented local organists take the stage. Don’t miss this extraordinary event filled with soul-stirring performances and musical brilliance! Learn more here.

The Collect: A Way to Pray

Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

At the start of the year I began using a book titled Being Here: Prayers for Justice, Curiosity, and Love by Padraig O’Tuama. He is an Irish poet, theologian, and conflict mediator whose writings have been very helpful in my spiritual practices. Being Here has been a beautiful part of my daily devotionals this year.

He begins with an introduction to a form of prayer called the collect (pronounced CAH-lect, rather than cuh-LECT), which is one of the most common types of prayer in Christian worship.

Here is a famous one, called “The Collect for Purity:”

Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secretes are hid: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy name: through Christ our Lord. Amen.

O’Tuama says there is a basic five-fold structure to the collect.

A. Name the one you’re praying to

B. Unfold the name of the one you’re praying to

C. Name one desire

D. Unfold the desire you’ve named

E. End

 

You can see those five elements in the Collect for Purity:

A.  Almighty God,

B.  unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secretes are hid:

C.  cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit,

D.  that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy name:

E.  through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

To put it in even more basic terms, O’Tuama says the structure is:

A. Address

B. Say more

C. Ask one thing

D. Say more

E. Bird of Praise

 

I love his phrase “Bird of Praise.” It’s his way of describing the way we seal and offer the prayer up to God, releasing it by the power of the Holy Spirit for God’s use in us and throughout the world.

Here is another example. It is the Collect for Lent in our United Methodist Hymnal. See if you can identify the five elements:

O God our deliverer, you led your people of old through the wilderness and brought them to the promised land. Guide now the people of your church, that, following our Savior, we may walk through the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen.

As part of your Lenten journey, I invite you to write a collect that is meaningful to you. Here is a simple one that I wrote:

God,                                                                                                                         

I know that you love me.                                                                                   

Help me to love myself,                                                                                     

That I may love others.                                                                                      

In Jesus name, Amen.

I led the staff in this exercise back in January, and invited them to write one. They each did a wonderful job. Here is a sample of what they came up with:

The One who summoned me, 

You are who laid out all the plans for my life 

Help me follow that plan, seeking You in every step at your pace and at your direction. 

Looking not at the landscape or the problems that loom, but only your face. 

I bless your Holy Name in this moment and forever.  

O holy God, who loves all without condition. 

Enable me to have patience at home and focus with work, so that I may better love my family and use my unique gifts to equip others. 

In the power and name of Jesus I pray, Amen. 

Creator of Hope,  

Source of light and security,  

Open my eyes to how much you love me:  

Help me to see where you are working in my life that I may be at peace to release my anxiety of all that is happening.  

In your steadfast strength, Amen 

I hope you find the form and beauty of the collect a helpful addition to your prayer practices.

And I would love to read any collects that you write!

 

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

Being and Doing

Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

For the past few days, I have been with my clergy covenant group in Atlanta for one of our bi-annual retreats. It is a gathering I always cherish, connecting with my closest friends in ministry for a time of encouragement, learning, and play.

Yesterday, we were at the Candler School of Theology, the seminary of Emory University, where our covenant brother Dr. Brett Opalinski serves as the Assistant Dean of Methodist Studies. He invited us to meet with the first-year students in his Discipleship Seminar, to share with them about how our own spiritual practices shape our life and ministry, and how we lead others in deepening their discipleship.

Brett began our panel discussion reminding us that following Jesus involves both being and doing. It is both a conscious orientation toward the way of Jesus, and a faithful effort to practice that way. And as my friend Scott Smith said, many of us are good at being, but not at doing.

But both are necessary. Discipleship requires clarity about what Jesus wants us to become, as well as clarity about what Jesus is asking us to do. 

A LESSON FOR JOHN WESLEY

After John Wesley’s ill-fated missionary trip to Georgia, in which he not only failed to bring new people to Jesus but also feared for his life from a near-shipwreck, Wesley returned to England with a badly shaken faith.

He confessed to a German Moravian bishop named Peter Boehler how much he was struggling with his faith and his doubts. He was set to preach the next day and told Boehler that he was “clearly convinced of unbelief,” and was tempted to not preach. He wondered in his journal how he could “preach to others when he had not faith himself?”

He asked Boehler whether he should not preach, but Boehler said he should.

Wesley asked him, “But what can I preach?” Boehler replied, “Preach faith till you have it, and then, because you have it, you will preach faith.”

To put Boehler’s advice in broader terms of discipleship, practice the faith until you have faith. Then because you have it, you will practice faith. That nugget of insight reminded Wesley of the real importance of spiritual practices. We don’t do them in order to be saved. We do spiritual practices because we are saved. And then we do spiritual practices to be strengthened in our faith.

If you are in a place in your life where you feel like your faith is weak, or you are unsteadied by doubts or disbelief, then practice the faith until your faith is strong. And then then you can practice the faith because your faith is strong.

SPIRITUAL PRACTICES AT HYDE PARK

In this congregation, we talk about the Discipleship Pathway, which describes the seven spiritual practices that help us grow in our faith. There are three corporate practices that we do in community (Worship, Small Groups, Service) and four private practices that can be remembered with the acronym G.R.I.P.: (Give generously, Read Scripture, Invite Others, Pray.) You can learn more about these practices and find resources for how to develop them here.

You can also view last week’s sermon, where we explore these practices in the context of Jesus’ call to Peter to take up our cross and follow him.

During these days of Lent, and every day, may your life be enriched by attentiveness to the Holy Spirit and the daily diligence of spiritual practices. May you discover the reward of practicing the faith until you have it, and the joy of practicing the faith because you have it.

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

God Who Pays Attention

​Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

In my journey of living into “savor” as my key word for Lent, I am sharing a prayer I experienced last weekend that I have found to be very meaningful.

Last Saturday, I attended an event in Orlando called “Exploration,” which gathered people from around the country who are exploring a call into ministry. It was incredibly inspiring in its hopeful vision of the future of the United Methodist Church.

In one of the opening worship services, my colleague and friend Rev. Debbie Allen offered this guided prayer, which was published by the spiritual resource Enfleshed.

It is a prayer meant to be prayed slowly and meditatively to allow the Holy Spirit to move in and between the phrases. You might simply choose to read the prayer to yourself silently, pausing along the way. You might be creative, audio recording yourself on your phone or other device, so that you can close your eyes as you receive the prayer in your own voice. Or you might have someone else do the same for you, as you experience the prayer together.

However you offer it to God, may this prayer be a blessing to you as it was to me.

God Who Pays Attention

By M. Jade Keiser

God who feels,

God who pays attention,

God who formed webs of life entangled,

Help me to notice today…

To notice my body – what it’s telling me it needs and wants.

To notice my neighbors – who they are and how they are.

To notice the creatures and creations around me – each as a valuable life of their own.

You know my limitations – what is enough or too much

To be aware of at once.

To connect with.

To feel. To hold.

Do not allow me to rush pass what needs or deserves my attention.

Neither let me be overwhelmed by trying to bear more than my share.

Just help me to be alive to what is,

alive to you within and around.

Amen. 

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

My Word for Lent

Dear Lenten Pilgrims,

Last year, I gave up coffee for Lent. It went as you would expect; I found myself longing for Easter resurrection many times.

This year, I’ve decided a different approach. It doesn’t involve giving up something as it does focusing on something. It is captured in a word that I’m claiming as a guide over the next forty days.

Savor.

I’m going to focus as much attention as I can on savoring every aspect of being alive.

  • Savoring each conversation.
  • Savoring each bite.
  • Savoring each breath.
  • Savoring each punchline.
  • Savoring each sunset.
  • Savoring each beautiful day.
  • Savoring each ugly day.
  • Savoring every sensation of being alive.

Other traditions might call this mindfulness. It is a focus on the present that counters grief (which pulls us into the past) and fear (which pulls us into the future.) Savoring is a spiritual companion to gratitude, since one cannot be thankful without pausing, and pausing is an invitation to savoring.

In a way, I guess I am giving up something for Lent after all.

  • Giving up hurriedness.
  • Giving up envy.
  • Giving up shame.
  • Giving up boredom.
  • Giving up excess.
  • Giving up selfishness.
  • Giving up distractions.
  • Giving up life as usual, to gain life as God intends.

I’ll see how it goes. And yes, I’ll be savoring every sip of coffee.

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

Defining Moments

Dear Hyde Park Family,

 

What are the defining moments of your life?

All of us can point to memories that we consider pivotal in shaping who we are today. Perhaps you think of the day you got married, the birth of a child, or the moment you survived a near-death episode. These moments change you, leaving an indelible imprint.

For Jesus, the transfiguration was a defining moment in his life. On a mountaintop with his three closest friends, Jesus appeared glowing white, accompanied by Elijah and Moses. And he heard a voice from heaven: “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

The synoptic gospel writers tell this story about halfway in their gospels, to suggest that the transfiguration was not just important to the life of Jesus, it was important to the salvation story of all humanity. The presence of Elijah and Moses, the words heard at Christ’s baptism, and the allusion to mountaintop experiences throughout the Bible all point to the grand sweep of salvation history.

The transfiguration story is therefore a defining moment for all those who walk the life of faith. Will we choose to stay on the mountaintop, as Peter, James, and John preferred, or will we enter a life of self-sacrifice, commitment, and surrender to God?

Wesleyan Christians refer to the daily decisions to follow Jesus as the process of sanctification. It is the grace-empowered journey of slowly being conformed to the image of Christ in every aspect of our lives. Catherine Livingston was a nineteenth-century Methodist married to the preacher Freeborn Garretson. In an entry in her personal diary, she reflected on the defining moment in her life, when she chose to identify with Christ, in his death and resurrection:

I find myself more than ever engaged for sanctification. I desire to rest in nothing short of this great privilege. I want to serve my God with a perfect heart and willing mind. I have long seen a great beauty in this doctrine, and long to bear witness to the truth of it. I last night dreamed I was crucified. Be it so, Lord Jesus! Let me die that I may live, and that my life may be hid with you. Such a day of heaviness and travail of soul I have not experienced in a long time. (Garretson Family papers, UMC Archives, Drew University)

 
This Sunday, we celebrate Transfiguration Sunday, the final Sunday before the season of Lent. Join us for this important last step of preparation before we begin our journey to the cross.

In the words of Peter on the mountain, “Lord, it is good for us to be here.”

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

The State of the Church

Dear Hyde Park Family,

Last Sunday night, we had our annual Leadership Gathering of elected committee members and ministry area volunteers. It was a time of connecting with other leaders in the church, learning about our church’s organizational structure, and anticipating the year ahead.

Our guest was our Bishop Tom Berlin, who offered insights into leadership in a large church, the hopeful future of our denomination, and reflections on the resurrection based on his book, The Third Day: Living the Resurrection, which we gave as a gift to all our leaders.

It also included my annual “State of the Church” address, in which I observed the many reasons to be grateful for over the past year, and offered the opportunities and challenges for us in the year ahead.

So, in lieu of a longer Midweek Message, I encourage you to watch my address here.

Thank you to our amazing collection of leaders and volunteers, as we embark on an exciting year ahead.

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 
 

The Treasure of True Friendships

Dear Hyde Park Family,

Like many of you, I watched the 80s NBC sitcom “The Golden Girls,” about a group of four elderly women who forged a deep and enduring friendship. You might also remember the opening lines of their theme song:

Thank you for being a friend.

Travel down the road and back again.

Your heart is true, you’re a pal and a confidant.

Many of our most popular television shows explored the beauty of true friendships, from “Cheers” (“Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name”) to “Friends” (“I’ll be there for you / When the rain starts to fall”) and even as far back as Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood (“Won’t you be my neighbor?”)

We all grew up knowing the value of having a close group of friends to be by our side, to help us face the highs and lows of life.

So, what’s gone wrong?

Many studies over recent years have chronicled our current “Friendship Recession.” The American Perspectives Survey, conducted by the Survey Center of American Life, (American Enterprise Institute, 2021) found that Americans have fewer closer friendships than they did in 1990, talk to their friends less often, and rely less on friends for personal support.

Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic is a factor, but there are other explanations for this downward trend, including the fact that Americans are working longer hours and traveling more for work than before, diminishing time to make and maintain solid friendships. (American Enterprise Institute, 2021)

THIS SUNDAY: STRONGER FRIENDSHIPS

We will explore the value of friendships this Sunday as part of our current worship series “You are Not Alone.” We will gain insight from passages from the Bible’s wisdom literature – Ecclesiastes and Proverbs – including these famous verses: “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil.” (Ecclesiastes 5:9) and “Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” (Proverbs 27:9)

We will also learn from the great C.S. Lewis, who wrote an essay on friendship in his book, “The Four Loves:”

“Friendship arises out of mere Companionship when two or more of the companions discover that they have in common some insight or interest or even taste which the others do not share and which, till that moment, each believed to be his own unique treasure (or burden). The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, “What? You too? I thought I was the only one … It is when two such persons discover one another, when, whether with immense difficulties and semi-articulate fumblings or with what would seem to us amazing and elliptical speed, they share their vision – it is then that Friendship is born. And instantly they stand together in an immense solitude.” (C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves)

See you Sunday, as we rediscover the power of friendship, and learn ways to strengthen them.

Grace and Peace,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 

The Year In Review

Dear Hyde Park Faithful:

As we begin a new year of ministry at the church, we want to say, “Thank you!” Because of your generosity and faithfulness, this church made a profound impact in our community and around the world in 2023.

  • On Christmas Eve, 2,500 worshippers heard the good news of Christ’s birth, culminating a week of various services in which 4,000 people worshipped with us.
  • Our Harnish Center has served as a cold weather shelter eight times last year and already once this year, serving up to 80 persons each night.
  • Weekly worship attendance continues to be at or above pre-pandemic levels, and reaching new people through our online service, our Hyde Park services, and our 1001 gathering at The Portico.
  • Our children, youth, and Small Blessings preschool ministries have done amazing ministry to the young people and families in our congregation. We also opened a brand-new, beautiful playground on the Hyde Park campus.
  • We served over 9,000 meals at the Hyde Park and Portico campuses to people experiencing homelessness. We are also among the first institutions to receive Breadcoin to serve our unhoused guests, which you can read about [PROVIDE LINK, BELOW]
  • We gained over 90 new members, welcomed 28 baptisms, and had over 3,000 hours of personal contact through our congregational care volunteers.
  • Our most recent generosity campaign has brought in over 40 new commitments, and over 140 people who are increasing their pledge from last year.
  • And because of your faithful giving, we were able to finish 2023 with a surplus, enabling us to cover all our church expenditures and fund major improvements.

This spirit of joy and excitement is captured beautifully by a woman named Donna N., who said, “After leaving the church where I had grown up and served for more than 50 years, I didn’t know if I would ever find a place that felt like home again. Then a friend invited me to Hyde Park and after one visit, I knew I was home.

You helped us finish last year strong, and you are helping us make 2024 even more amazing. This Sunday, at our annual church conference, the Finance Committee will propose a budget that meets our threshold of being underwritten by your pledges. It once again promises to be an exciting year of ministries and programs for our community and our world.

Thank you, Hyde Park, for making a difference, and for making God’s love real!

With Gratitude,

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist
 
 

THIS SUNDAY: STRONGER FAMILIES

We continue our worship series “You are Not Alone” by exploring our most personal relationships of all: those within our own families. We’ll listen for what Paul said to the Ephesians, and discover ways to strengthen our relationships with our own family members.

 

FOSTERING CONNECTIONS SEMINAR THIS WEDNESDAY

Coinciding with our January sermon series “You Are Not Alone,” we will be offering another FREE seminar by licensed psychologist, Dr. Erica J. Clark. It takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 24, at 6:30pm. She will be discussing a variety of topics including fostering new connections, communicating effectively, building healthy boundaries and navigating conflict. Learn more and register here.

The Annunciation (in Rhymed Narration)

Dear Hyde Park Family,

We are ten days away from that grand, holy night
When we’ll gather for carols and warm candlelight

To celebrate Christmas, and Jesus Christ’s birth
And God’s gift of love given to the whole earth

But first there’s this Sunday: Advent Week Three!
When we will thank God for the girl named Mary!

We’ll re-read her story, in Luke chapter one
When God called on her to give birth to a Son.

What was it like, as that story unfolded?
When Mary was called, as Isaiah foretold it?

“A young woman will come and give birth to a boy
Immanuel’s the name that this boy will employ.”

Well, come with me now, to that most holy scene,
And imagine with me all that we would have seen.

Back two thousand years, to zero B.C.
(Or as academics might say, back to 4 B.C.E.)

We come to her home, and we knock on her door
We hear footsteps approaching, from the indoors

She appears before us, and the first thing we see,
Is that Mary’s so young! Just barely a teen!

What we also can see is how common she appears
No glitz, and no sparkle, not mature past her years

As a girl, she’s quite plain in a quite troubled time
Could this be what Isaiah said would be God’s sign?

Then suddenly, from nowhere, with a loud boom
Came the presence of something quite big in the room

We jump to our feet! We jump here and there!
For an angel’s appeared here, right out of thin air!

“Mary” he says to her, “Peace be with you”
“The Lord is with you and he favors you, too”

We all look at Mary, and she’s white as a ghost
She’s never played host to a Heavenly Host

What is this girl thinking, while she’s standing right there?
Is she frightened with fear, is she gripped with a scare?

Then we see, in her eyes: she is troubled, confused.
(If to you came an angel, wouldn’t you be so, too?)

She’s a normal young teen in a Nazareth town
Just the typical type that we’d see all around

In a sense, she’s no different from the you’s and the me’s
So she wonders, “Why me, Lord? Tell me, won’t you please?”

We guess the angel reads minds, ‘cause he rightly reads ours
He says, “Don’t be afraid, Mary.” And he says this with power:

“God has richly blessed you, and soon you will give birth
To God’s one only Son, the Messiah, on earth.”

“God will make him a king, somewhat like ones you’ve known
Just like David his ancestor was king long ago.”

“He will be a great king, over all Jacob’s kin
And the kingdom he rules?  It will never end.”

Then Mary opened her mouth, and she sounded quite tense
As she started to speak, her words really made sense.

She said, “How can this be, I am such a young girl!”
I cannot be pregnant, there’s no way in the world!”

(She does make a point, she’s not married just yet
And the baby-maker-kit is a two-person set!)

Then the angel replied, his voice strong and secure
He responded with words that were divinely assured:

“The Spirit of God upon you will arrive”
And then in your womb the Messiah will thrive.”

“God’s power will rest upon you and this one;
For this reason, your child will be called God’s Only Son

“And in case you forget this, please let me remind you
Of this one certain truth: there’s nothing God cannot do.”

We are speechless by now, and not one of us speaks
We’ve lost touch with reality, in some bad campy flick

And again, we see Mary. She’s different somehow
No longer afraid, she’s more confident now

She says, “I am the Lord’s; may this happen to me.”
Then the angel, at once, could no longer be seen.

We stand blinking, perplexed, trying to pick up the clues
Is the prophet’s prediction now coming true?

Could it be, we now wonder, that our wait is no more?
Isaiah’s words are fulfilled, as we’d heard them before?

The young woman foretold in the days from the past
Is this Mary, this one who was least of the last

And Jesus Christ, God with us, this boy Immanuel
Will come down to earth to proclaim, “All is Well!”

Here is what’s powerful to hear every Christmas:
It’s not just that God came, but how God comes to us

God came through some people, just like you and like me
Not special-brand people, just from good family trees

When God’s Love Became Real in a most holy birth
God chose plain, simple folks, the most common on earth

So it shows that when God does extraordinary deeds
God prefers to use folks just like you and like me

You don’t need special training, or a call to the cloth
You don’t need to use words like “Thus sayeth” and “Doth”

All God wants from you now is a true, open heart
To say yes to the Lord when God gives you your part

In a tension-filled world that is battered and bruised
In a time when deep anger and resentment are fused

When we wonder how God might come redeem us again
When we wonder how God might come save us from sin

There is only one answer, from the Bible we’ve heard
That we’re Joseph and Mary and we can bear God’s Word

Will you choose today to say yes to God’s call?
To say yes to the one who was born in a stall?

Will you not wait to have it all start to make sense
And like Mary declare to God obedience?

The world needs Christ today, and to that there’s no doubt
The Christ that’s within you, you must boldly give out.

In the name of our God who created the heavens,
And redeems us, sustains us, we all say, Amen.

The Rev. Magrey deVega
Senior Pastor, Hyde Park United Methodist