​Have you see the above symbol as a bumper sticker on a car or adorning someone’s cap?  I remember when I first saw it over five years ago and thought it was some weird rock band symbol or something.  However, when I finally found out what it stood for, I’ve loved it ever since

​It serves as a constant reminder of the daily decision we must make to humble ourselves so that Christ may be magnified in our lives.  It puts into four simple symbols John the Baptist’s succinct but powerful declaration that “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  John made this statement when one of his followers noted how Jesus was attracting more followers and taking some of John’s disciples as well.  So he asked what John felt about this after so many years of successful ministry.  John’s answer was filled with humility and one that would rarely be heard among church leaders in America today. We would do well to learn from John’s example of humble leadership and pursuit of God’s kingdom above personal success.

​It is Valentine’s Day weekend.  Love is in the air.  And I have the honor of standing up as a bridesmaid for a dear friend as she makes a covenant before God and others to love her man for the rest of her days.  While marriage is a wonderful thing and the love God ordained between a man and a woman is beautiful, it is just a weak shadow and imperfect copy of what love truly is.  Therefore, as we begin this weekend that celebrates love, I believe it is quite fitting that our next couple verses in John contain some of the most famous words on love in the Bible.

​Are you a night owl or a morning person?  Does the pre-dawn stillness thrill your soul or do you prefer the quietness of the midnight hour after others have retreated to bed before turning into proverbial pumpkins?
 
As I sit here in the pre-dawn stillness pondering and writing on today’s passage from John, I think you can guess which category of people I belong to.  The early bird catches the worm, and I like getting as many worms captured each day.  Yet despite my early morning preferences, I find that I often do my soul-searching praying and wrestling with God late at night and into the wee hours of the morning.  Can anyone else relate?