return

Monday, January 4th, Jeremiah 31: 12 They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will rejoice in the bounty of the LORD— the grain, the new wine and the oil, the young of the flocks and herds. They will be like a well-watered garden, and they will sorrow no more. 13 Then maidens will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. When you return home, there is just something about the joy, not always shown, in your heart. We just had our Christmas Eve service, lots of people. The church was filled not so much with new faces as with returning and rarely seen faces. There is something about Christmas that calls one to return to home base. They find comfort, hope, familiarity, and hopefully, some sense of where home is. They don’t always, and sometimes never, return. For some that once a year is all the home they can take, too many issues to deal with. For others what is important is finding an open door and an invitation, to which some day they will respond. Until then, we look forward to the day they will come in the door of our churches dancing and shouting for joy.