Seen and unseen
December 25, 2019
An amazing photographer recently told me “A good photograph should raise more questions than it answers.”
Each photo, he said, is like a blank canvas and should be examined top to bottom, side to side and corner to corner — before clicking the shutter. This is because what’s left out of the photo is just as important as what is included, maybe more so.
My photography teacher recommended making at least six photos of each scene, looking at the subject from various angles and distances, adjusting exposure and thinking outside the box to create a dynamic, storytelling image.
In Matthew 8:20 and Luke 9:58, Jesus said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
For most of us, Christmas is about home. As Christians, we are familiar with Jesus’ suffering on the cross, but did you ever consider that the sacrifice of our King of Kings and Lord of Lords actually began in a simple food trough for animals?
“If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him,” (John 14:23)
Let’s think outside the manger as we reflect on the birth of our Lord today.
Tammy Warren, Communications Associate, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Revised Common Lectionary Readings for Wednesday, December 25, 2019, the Nativity of Jesus Christ (Year A)
Christmas: At Dawn
First Reading Isaiah 62:6-12
Psalm 97:1-12
Second Reading Titus 3:4-7
Gospel Luke 2:(1-7) 8-20
Christmas: Christmas Day
First Reading Isaiah 52:7-10
Psalm 98
Second Reading Hebrews 1:1-4 (5-12)
Gospel John 1:1-14
Today’s Focus: Nativity of the Lord/Christmas Day
Let us join in prayer for:
PC(USA) Agencies’ Staff
Lorie Neff LaRue, Board of Pensions
J. Herbert Nelson, III, Office of the General Assembly
Let us pray:
God of Heaven and Earth, as we fix our eyes on you, help us see as you see, hear as you hear, love as you love and serve as you serve. Renew us day by day until you call us to our eternal home with you.