BOUGHS OF HEMLOCK
Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus!

Some things are worth the wait. I've looked forward to many things in my life. Joy came when the thing I had waited for was realized.

Such were the days before Jesus Christ was born. Prophets foretold and scripture explained. But not everyone understood. The revealing of God's Gift would be made known to us. The Son of God would be born in Bethlehem, just as the God-inspired prophets proclaimed years before.

On coming to the house,

they saw the child with his mother Mary,

and they bowed down and worshiped him.

Then they opened their treasures

and presented him with gifts 

of gold and of incense and of myrrh.

Matthew 2:11

The Magi visited the newborn King after he was born. They had followed that special Star and found Jesus, the Savior of the World. Here in the woods where I live, hemlock trees are like gifts. Their green branches remain when other trees have shed their leaves. That bit of green color helps lift a winter scene. Creation adorns each day of wait.

Many people spread their cloaks on the road,

while others spread branches they had cut

in the fields. Those who went ahead

and those who followed shouted,

"Hosanna!"

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

Mark 11:8-9  

Hemlock boughs remind me of Jesus' walk to Calvary. Following the way of love all the way to the cross, Jesus endured. I must also try to follow the way of love. Tough as it is sometimes, I know it's a command and not an option. Evergreen trees remind me each hour of wait.

Then he opened their minds

so they could understand the Scriptures.

Luke 24:45

Who would not trust an incarnate God who can open minds? He made our minds! But he gives us free choice. Not all understand because not all believe. Not being a dictator, God is the greatest giver of The Greatest Gift! Snow on the hemlocks is like the covering of the blood of the Lamb. Our sins are covered. God gives His Holy Spirit to dwell in us. Creation honors Christ each second of wait.

"My command is this:

Love each other as I have loved you."

John 15:12

And there it is...the verse my poem is based on. May we be good at following orders. Minds that have been opened know more than minds that have not been opened. Those minds appreciate what Christ has done for them. Pray for the opening of minds.

As steadfast as evergreens, keep following, trusting, praying and waiting for Jesus to return, as He said He would. 

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus! 

It's worth the wait. All that has happened solidifies our hope.