1. What stands out to you from the above and why?
“wonder is the opposite of apathy” It is so good to be reminded of the importance of wonder, pondering, awe. And I am reminded of  the danger of not pondering, of not giving thanks, not glorifying Him–Romans 1:21-“for although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.” Thankfulness flows from a heart that ponders.
I am also intrigued by Mary, her chosen-ness. I know that her heart pondered Him, she was soft, obedient, and loved Him. And she was chosen. I know God could have chosen one who did not love Him already, and then transformed the heart–but either way, the heart is only transformed by the Spirit. 
2. How are you doing at starting with Jesus and experiencing His peace this Advent. Any stories to encourage us?
I had a little anxiety about what lies ahead in coming weeks, but this study is really helping me to consciously stop, and not focus on my earthly losses but remember my Heavenly gain, my imperishable inheritance that awaits, and the peace that the Comforter brings now, here, today. Just reflecting on His names…Counselor, Comforter, Prince of Peace…He stills my heart. 

As I read the introduction here and listened to Audrey Assad singing, “I wonder as I wander”, the scenery reminded to of much of wooded New Brunswick, my home province right now, cloaked in the first few inches of snow. “Come, Lord Jesus. In these days of cold and darkness, come.”
I scrolled ahead and found Dee’s words deeply unsettling, I’m afraid, as I ponder my son who is now wandering in the spiritual cold, away from Jesus. (Dee says, “It does seem what begins as choice becomes a permanent disability. Dante’s picture of hell was not fire but ice: an individual becomes colder and cooler until he cannot move. Even Disney’s “Frozen” uses ice as a metaphor for sin.” (I am in a bit of a melancholy tonight, after a busy but lovely week of settling in to our new home and our friends giving us a lovely retirement party yesterday. However, I found out this morning that a dear friend is now in hospital palliative care.) 
In any case, I will try to follow along here. I need this lesson from Scripture.

1. What stands out to you from the above and why?
 
Recapturing the wonder instead of the nostalgia of Christmas. I think that’s what the Hallmark movies focus on, the nostalgia. One of the movies we’ve watched this year showed how an innkeeper was helped by others who put up her Christmas tree and decorated it for her. Then, taking in the sight of the beautiful tree, she said, “Now it really feels like Christmas”. And the nostalgic/sentimental parts of Christmas are so interwoven in our lives: the trees, lights, carols, traditional foods, cookies, gifts…we can sigh and feel aaahhh….now this is Christmas. I do it too. I am looking forward to this Saturday because I saw a flier for an Advent event at an Episcopal church near where I grew up, and they are having an event called “Walk the Labyrinth to the Heart of Christ”, and I’m going to go. I have never walked a labyrinth before, but it is an ancient spiritual practice.
Also, I loved this song, sung by Audrey Assad. I’ve never heard it before. As I watched the video, I felt like I did yesterday as I went to one of our parks to hike a trail, knowing that there is a stand of pine trees along it that was planted by a Girl Scout troop in 1968 (a sign tells you so). I wanted to gather some branches for my mantle. There are no branches you can reach from the ground, but I collected some fallen ones. To be out there alone, hearing the wind in the trees, looking all the way up to their tops, it just fills me with so much joy and pondering. I never really feel alone when I’m out in nature; surely His Spirit is there.
 
2. How are you doing with starting with Jesus and experiencing His peace this Advent? Any stories to encourage us?
 
I have been listening every day to the podcast and really loving it. I find that I’m not feeling so harried this year, and have let some things go as far as decorating and things like that. I don’t want to be stressed, and that pressure to have the “perfect” Christmas comes from the world, not from God. 

Listen to today’s podcast from Sarah Dahl.
 
3. What stands out to you from the above and why?
 
Fire warms, comforts, gives us light and heat. But fire also can destroy. Why did God choose to appear to Moses in a burning bush? Maybe because He wanted Moses to see that this God was wild and strong, like fire, but also with the saving strength of love. God can “burn away” things in our lives, yet we ourselves are not consumed; we are held safe and protected. We can come close to a Holy God, but not be consumed or destroyed. Perhaps that was the message of the burning bush.
 
4. What thoughts do you have on the above clip? What do you like or not like? What rings true? How did the writer contrast Mary’s faith with that of her mother’s?
 
I do like the portrayal of Mary, but the scene seems a bit spooky. I always believed that when it says God sent Gabriel to Mary and that he appeared to her, that she saw someone; maybe the likeness of a man? In this scene, the window blows open and the moonlight streams in, and an invisible and inaudible voice talks to Mary. Mary appears very frightened initially. The mother watches on as Mary talks out loud to the air, so she asks her who she’s talking to, and when Mary tells her about Elizabeth, her mother questions the truth of this news that her cousin is pregnant.
 
5. How do you see wonder in Luke 1:29? What thoughts do you think she might have had?
 
My NLT says that Mary was confused and disturbed and tried to think what the angel could mean. This contrasts the movie clip because the Scripture does not say that Mary was afraid and sort of cowering like portrayed in the movie. I believe that Gabriel “toned it down” with Mary so as not to frighten her badly, in contrast to how he may have appeared to Zechariah in the temple who was afraid at the angel’s appearance. At this point, all the angel had done was to greet Mary, calling her “favored one”. Perhaps she wondered why he called her favored of the Lord, and why her ordinary, routine day was interrupted by this strange visit?
 
6. How do you see wonder in Luke 2:19?
 
Here, the shepherds have come to see what the angels told them about. Everyone is astonished by their story, but Mary takes it all in, “kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.” Perhaps she was going back to that first visit by Gabriel and what he had told her about the child she would bear. Now, she goes over it all carefully in her mind and heart. I think maybe we women tend to do this? Recently my daughter face-timed me and we had this long conversation, and she wondered why I didn’t react much. But what I told her later is that after we got off the phone, I go over and over it all and process. If I’m going to be upset or whatever, those feelings often come later as I process through.
 
 

5. How do you see wonder in Luke 1:29? What thoughts do you think she might have had?
She was greatly troubled and “tried to discern” what the angel meant by his greeting.
6. How do you see wonder in Luke 2:19?
I’ve always loved this verse, she “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart”. There are “holy moments” I think we have at times, especially as a mom.  Sometimes something is said or done that is so special, yet so personal that I know others may not see its weightiness, and so I treasure it in my heart, holding it, to ponder.. 
8. What is the promise of Ezekiel 36:25-27?
Oh how I love this passage. The promise of complete cleansing, of renewal, a heart transplant, and His Spirit indwelling. He will remove the old, sinful stony heart and make me new, soft, mold-able, able to be shaped by Him, led by His Spirit. 
9. The truth of Romans 9:18?
God chooses who He will give mercy, and who He will harden. He is Sovereign over all. 
10. How do you see both God’s part and our part in John 15:4?
He will grow the fruit in us, our part is to abide in Him, stay connected to Him. As Keller said in this week’s sermon, He has done everything to be near us, we must also make changes to be near Him. 

4. What thoughts do you have on the above clip? What do you like or not like? What rings  true? How did the writer contrast Mary’s faith with that of her mother’s?
-That God came to her in the night-His light overtaking the night and shining on her. 
-That His plan wasn’t contingent on her agreeing or not. He chose her to be Jesus’ mother and to carry Him in her womb. The process had begun before He revealed it to her.
-Right after He told her she was pregnant He immediately told her about Elizabeth-God wanted her to be comforted and encouraged. He wanted someone to lift her up, to teach and encourage her. To build her up for the start of a difficult journey. God provided everything Mary needed for this, and to protect her down the road. 
-Mary’s faith was strengthened by God for she seemed like a ponderer-and wonderer from the start-play dough heart. Her mom’s heart seemed maybe stuck in what is seen. like she had to see it before she would believe it. 

11. What part do you think we have, as believers, in making our hearts tender, and what part does God have? Why do you think this? Can you back up with Scripture? (If you participated in our study on the Beatitudes, Momentum, what do you remember?)
 
From our study on the Beatitudes, I remember that the beginning of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount was likened to a ladder, or one rung after the other, beginning with “Blessed are the poor in spirit”, which meant those who recognize their need for God. The next “rung” was “Blessed are those who mourn”, meaning those who have godly sorrow over their sin. I believe then that our part in keeping our hearts soft and tender towards God is remembering that we are bankrupt. I remember an excellent sermon I got to hear in person when Joe Stowell, then president of Moody Bible Institute, came to my former church and talked about how we all come to the Cross stripped bare of everything, seeing that we are really poor, naked, and helpless. However, he said, at some point after conversion, it is our tendency to start to put our “blue ribbons” of achievement back on ourselves…our good works, our success, status, reputation, etc… We must go back to the beginning. I believe David exemplified that in Psalm 51. David was likely riding high on his achievements as the greatest king of Israel. Now, he had gotten away with murder, literally, and had his new, desirable woman who was pregnant with his child. And, as I’ve heard Leslie Vernick on this, David and Bathsheba did not have an “affair”….he raped her. He saw her, wanted her, and sent for her. She was powerless to say no to him. David’s heart was as far away from God as it had ever been in his life. God’s part initially was to convict him through Nathan the prophet. David’s part was he came clean and confessed his sin, without any excuses. God’s part then was to forgive and to restore to David the joy of his salvation and the fellowship he used to have with God.
 
12. What stands out to you from the above and why?
 
This was the podcast about the shofar and the walls of Jericho coming down. I wonder what the people of Jericho thought as they looked down from their walls at these strange soldiers of Israel, marching around their city but “doing nothing”. Maybe they laughed at them and taunted them. Maybe they threw things down at them from the wall. Was it hard for the Israelites to not take matters into their own hands and start fighting before God gave the word?
 
13. What stands out to you from the above?
 
I think this was one of my favorites on the podcast, the story of Ruth. What is it like to be a stranger? How did Ruth feel when she went into Boaz’ fields to glean and knew no one? This saddens me…recently an old neighbor and friend who I haven’t seen in many years showed up in my Sunday school class a few weeks ago. I was late that day and so surprised to see her there. Later, she told me that she came in and sat down at one of the round tables in our room. It was several minutes before one woman came over to say hello, and it was Lynn, who was our assigned greeter. No one else said anything to her. This has been my “sticking point” about this class; I have been going there for about 8 years now, and the kind of fellowship that I imagine should be there just hasn’t materialized. In my heart, I know that these fellow believes are only acquaintances in my life, and it saddens me. What must Ruth have felt when Boaz spoke so kindly to her? And God…He welcomed Ruth into His family, and that’s certainly no small thing. How are we to treat the stranger?