Advent Week Four

The real reason to celebrate Christmas is to celebrate the greatest gift given to each of us. This gift, wrapped in so many layers, will take a long time to be completely unwrapped. That doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t begin unwrapping it. As each layer is removed, something more of the gift is revealed. This is the way it should be because if we could unwrap the gift immediately we would not know what it was, nor would we know what to do with it.

The Lord’s Prayer, which we can rename ‘The I Am’s Prayer’, holds the secret of the unwrapping process. Each line can be seen as a layer preparing us to behold the I Am in its power and glory. These final words of this special affirmation are a private and intimate exchange as the highest in us connects to the highest in the Universe.

And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

We are not so much asking but rather agreeing to take on this responsibility knowing that this is teamwork. After all, we are I Am beings, and our experience of our I Am is with its mirrored reflection until we have completed the unwrapping.

Lead, eisphero, from eis, which means for, and phero which means upholding, bearing, carrying. In this way we experience the depth of connection and recognize how we work in tandem with the I Am. Temptation, peirasmos, means experiments, to try whether a thing can be done. The activity of these experiments can obscure the still, small voice of our I Am wanting to work with us if we are willing to cooperate.

Then we affirm, “Deliver us,” rhoumai, which means to flow like a current, “from evil” poneros, that which causes trouble and pain which of itself has no value.

As we truly acknowledge the work we must do, we soar to spiritual heights with the closing words:

For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory.
For ever and ever. Amen.

We begin to experience the I Am changing our being; spiritualizing our physical, etheric and astral bodies.

Kingdom basileia, – where the ruling takes place and relates to the physical and the forces of will.

Power dunamai – the spiritual beings associated with the clouds and movement, and relates to the etheric and the power of thought.

Glory doxa – relates to the astral and the radiant feelings.

For ever aion – for the age, a certain period of time.

Many blessings on your work as you carefully and thoughtfully remove the layers of the greatest gift of all time.

The book “Secrets of the Christian Festivals” has many other reflections on Advent 

Painting: Sophia by Iris Yves