Joseph, to whom Mary was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. [Mark 4:26–29]

Quietly. That is the role Joseph was called to play in the Christmas drama. If the story were a church play, Joseph would have no lines. I love this artwork by Matthew Chinworth because it depicts Joseph as a caring, tender father. A man who didn’t shame his pregnant fiancée by publicly calling off the engagement; who looks out for his wife by letting the new mother get her deserved rest; and who quietly devotes himself to his wife’s amazing calling throughout their story. Quite a break from the role that the men of his day normally played.

Avoiding burnout this Christmas season
As a ministry staff we spent our normal Monday meeting going over holiday events and calendar. And we pray for balance and peace during this busy season. I urge the same for you and your family.

During this very busy season of the year, try not to overextend yourself. Live within margins and boundaries (of time and emotions and money). Make room for rest and reflection during the Christmas season.

And be mindful of your church staff as this can be a very hectic time for them. They need space as well, to spend with family and detach at times with relaxing activities away from ministry.

Let’s prioritize spiritual and relational health this season. As we focus on Christ and others, let’s not forget to also focus on our own spirits as we remember to catch our breath during this Advent season.

On my faith-book reading list for 2026
Between Interpretation and Imagination: C. S. Lewis and the Bible (Leslie Baynes)
Baynes, a C.S. Lewis scholar in Oxford, explores how Lewis interacted with biblical scholarship and how he related his biblical understandings to his literary imagination. Baynes looks at how the Bible—especially the Gospel of John—shows up in The Chronicles of Narnia. And she notes that biblical references become more explicit when Aslan is present.

Vindicating the Vixens: Revisiting Sexualized, Vilified, and Marginalized Women of the Bible (Sandra Glahn, editor)
Wow! How’s that for a title?! The book’s introduction explains that this is a fresh look at some women in Scripture who have been given an unfair bad reputation. The contributors are “a team of male and female scholars from different nationalities and ethnicities, as well as educational institutions and religious traditions… But they agree on this: We must visit what the Scriptures say about some Bible women we have sexualized, vilified, and/or marginalized. Because, above all, we must tell the truth about what the text says… And time and time again, God’s heart for the silenced, the marginalized, the powerless, the Gentile, the outsider, was what had been missing.” Quotes from this book were part of my preparation for Sunday’s message about the unlikely women in Jesus’ genealogy.

America’s Best Idea: The Separation of Church and State (Randall Balmer)
This book examines the First Amendment. The Amendment calls for the non-establishment of religion and the resulting freedom for religions and religious ideas to compete with one another in our nation. The lurking prevalence today of Christian nationalism is what makes Balmer’s book so timely. He tells stories of specific moments in American history where the First Amendment was tested and formed into is modern interpretations. I am eager to read this much needed and highly endorsed book.

Finding Freedom in Jesus: The 21 Attributes of Your Identity in Christ (John Paul Foster and Matt Williams)
This practical devotional/formation book looks at the Christ-follower’s identity and challenges the Christian to experience who they really are by affirming their position “in Christ.” An emphasis is not on “who” the believer is but rather “whose” they are. The book is about life-change and is written by a pastor and a missionary who believe that people can truly change. Their idea is “in Christ” one knows they are truly loved and rescued. And that “loved people love. And rescued people rescue people.”

“In one sentence, to be transformed means that the Holy Spirit increasingly changes our thoughts and behaviors—in fact, the entirety of who we are—to become more and more like Jesus.”

Three recent movies worth noting

Hamnet
At first, this film is a bit of a slow-moving story about William Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway, their meeting and their early marriage. They have three children. Their son’s name is Hamnet. The film turns into a very moving piece as the story shows Shakespeare writing Hamlet from the events that surrounded his son’s passing. The finale is the opening of that play, an extended scene which the viewer takes with them from the theater.

The soundtrack was also very moving. And I love the words of Max Richter on the emotional power of the movie: “It’s a very emotional story about a family, love, and loss and death and all of those things. But it’s also this story about our relationship with the bigger world, with nature and beyond and all those cosmic questions.”

Nuremberg
Russell Crowe plays a rather convincing Hermann Gorring as the Nuremberg war crime trials are formalized and carried out. Rami Malek plays Douglas Kelley, a U.S. Army psychiatrist who is charged with psychologically interviewing and analyzing the convicted Nazi general. The story that develops is quite a psychological brew of confusion and even boundary breaking. One is left (again) thinking this villainous, right-hand man of Hitler seems pretty “normal.” “The banality of evil,” Jewish philosopher Hanna Arendt called that phenomenon.

Rental Family
In a world where relational detachment is becoming rather commonplace, here comes a dramatic comedy that addresses the emotionless distances that often exist among and between us. Taking place in Japan, Brendan Fraser plays an American actor trying to get work. He gets hired by a rental agency to play a part in real-life relationships. A sweet story ensues. And Fraser’s gentle, caring spirit wins you over as the movie unfolds.

They said it…
Came across these Advent words from Bonhoeffer as I work on my message for Sunday and the humility of Mary:

“God is not ashamed of the lowliness of human beings. God marches right in. He chooses people as his instruments and performs his wonders where one would least expect them. God is near to lowliness; he loves the lost, the neglected, the unseemly, the excluded, the weak and broken.” [Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God Is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas]

Sue and I recently rewatched A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, the movie about Mr. Rogers and the impact of his life and children’s show.

“We live in a world where we need to share responsibility. It’s easy to say, ‘It’s not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.’ Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.”

I was talking with a friend in Minneapolis the other day about the large Somali community there and the President’s recent unfortunate statements calling them garbage. Quite a leader in her own right, my friend commented, “So many lessons to learn from living through this ugly era. My doctor is Somali. There are several Somali leaders here that are as good as any other leaders I have met. Sorry to preach to the preacher. I don’t know how you deal with it. Love to you and Sue and your family. Merry Christmas!”

Christmas letter to Santa from 1898
Okay, this a very sweet, surprisingly selfless letter from eleven-year-old Mabel Hancox.

Our Tuesday Afternoon prayer
“Creator, maker and seer of all, you know us in the depths of our despair and in the springs of our joy. How holy it is to be so fully known.

“As you did for Hagar, remind us of your true nature and the way you have consistently been working from the beginning.

“The flesh wants us to forget who you are, how you view us and what you have promised the world.

“Forgive us for our doubt, for our unbelief.

“Open our hearts to see you as you truly are so that we might see each other clearly as well.

“Give us a vision greater than ourselves in order to courageously step into the lives you declare for each one of us. Amen.”
[Jessica Galvan of World Relief]