Jesus 'In the Beginning'

I am writing this here on Wednesday afternoon. It is all I can do to keep myself lashed to the task at hand because all of my kids will be in later this afternoon. It will be the first time they have all been home for Thanksgiving in a long while. Plus, I have a new son, Ronald, who has just arrived at my house and I can't wait to introduce him to his new family. So here we are again, at the end of something and at a beginning. Thanksgiving for my family signals a season of the year that has a different texture and feel. Advent will kick off in a few days and as a family and as a church family we will have an extended period of time to ponder and be in awe of the center piece of all this excess and goodness--Jesus.This year we are going to look at Jesus from eternity to eternity. I think this is important for us to do every so often. For a year I talked about the Bible as a story, not just any kind of story, but a love story. God so fiercely loved his creatures and creations that rather than blowing it all apart, he blew himself apart to save it. Well, long before we see love like that played out in the pages of the Bible, there was a love story going on from all eternity. You see, it doesn't just happen that we see God take on the virtue of love when things go all wrong with his creation. That would be a misunderstanding of the whole nature of God. God acts lovingly to his broken creation because love is not an attribute of God, love is his essence and being. This Sunday we will talk about that, Jesus before time. When we see Jesus before time, Jesus in time makes a whole lot more sense.Here's to Thanksgiving! May yours be blessed with much delicious food, love, and goodness. Here's to the beginning of Advent! May you see God in the Incarnation like you have never seen him before and may you drink more deeply of the feast!Blessing,Jim