Fridays with Froehlichs #13

When the boys were young, the Advent wreath with the weekly lighting of its candles was an important part of our family celebration. However, Jonathan seemed intent on calling it “Eevent.” I think his mischievous smile meant he was in on the joke, another bit of Froehlich wordplay which we all thought was hilarious.

But he was right. Advent is an event, a huge event. The Incarnation is the fulcrum of human history, the point of which pierces the young woman, a girl actually, who is entrusted with the Son of God. She is the theotokos, to use an ancient expression – the God-bearer. The divine child comes to her uninvited, a terrifying imposition. So, Gabriel the angel reassures her: “Don’t be afraid.”

I suppose when an angel is sent from God, “fear not” carries significantly more weight than any reassurance I could offer.

“How is this possible?” Mary asked, perplexed. Gabriel responds, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” And she consents. (Lk. 1:35) Think about that. The Son within her is accompanied by the Spirit and enveloped by the Most High – a Trinitarian embrace, the divine community of God promising to hold her and sustain her to make the impossible possible.

To be overshadowed, to use the image of the poets in the Psalms, is to find shelter under the wings of our God. “Hide me, O Lord, in the shadow of your wing.” (Ps 17:8) “Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Ps 91:1) When we are afraid and overwhelmed, we pray to our Triune protector using the image Jesus gave us, “As a mother hen (Mt 23:37), gather me under your wing, your body a shield against whatever is threatening me.”

Clearly the tenacity of chickens is under-rated.

I am not Mary, and the fate of human history has not been entrusted to me. But life, and the chaos, confusion, evil, death, cruelty, and injustice around us often disturbs and unsettles me, sometimes angers and terrifies me. The darkness feels like it could consume us at any moment. Angelic reassurance would be nice, but I’m pretty sure Gabriel is busy elsewhere defending the realm. Can I find rest in the shadow of the Almighty, in the Triune protection of God? Can I find quietness of soul in the presence of Immanuel, God with us, the Most High drawing near in flesh and blood, forever? Can I pray with Patrick of Ireland who understood the powerful presence of Advent:

XXXXXChrist to shield me today…
XXXXXChrist with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
XXXXXChrist in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
XXXXXChrist on my right, Christ on my left,
XXXXXChrist when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise…
XXXXXI arise today
XXXXXThrough a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity.
XXXXXThrough belief in the threeness,
XXXXXThrough confession of the oneness,
XXXXXOf the Creator of Creation.

Yes, under the shadow of his wing, I believe I can be still and know that he is God. And know that he is good. From that shelter he shows me the beauty and the glory of all he has come to redeem.

Meet the Teddy Bear Ladies
from The Repair Shop

Last month we shared our... ok, Steve's enthusiasm for The Repair Ship. Justin Brierly interviews "The Teddy Bear Ladies," Amanda Middleditch and Julie Tatchell, as they share how their love for Jesus intersects with their love for all manner of stuffed creatures, but especially bears.

We have been charmed by the creations of
David Bird and Petr Václavek.

 Becorn creations by David Bird

Petr Václavek is the creator of Dubánci, acorn elves.

Wendy and Tasha are both NLPC/Cornell alums. Both are gifted and insightful writers. Here are two of their recent pieces.

Why I Need Jane Eyre
Wendy Kiyomi
(published in Christianity Today)

The heroine reminds me what it means to be beloved as I raise three children who were abandoned like her.

Turning Towards the Sun
Tashya Dalen

How do we keep from being overwhelmed, paralyzed, disengaged, cynical? Where, in this onslaught of all that we see and know are we most implicated? How do we choose what to pay attention to?

“I’m Still Healing from Spiritual Abuse”

Ben Hein is one of Steve’s pastoral colleagues. He is planting Hope Church of Huaghville, IN, in the metro area of Indianapolis. He has a tremendous vision for that work, and an infectious love for the people of the community he now calls home. But he brings to that work all of the experiences the Lord continues to use to teach and form him. Like many of us, some of those experiences leave wounds that take a long time to heal. When those wounds come from our experience with other Christians and church leaders, we often find ourselves in deep conflict – how can we go to the community of grace when that community has been the source of abuse? Click here to read Ben's reflections on healing from spiritual abuse.

(from the December 2024 issue of Fridays with Froehlichs): Many people have left the Church and may even have thought about giving up on God as a result of how they have been treated by the Church. Too many people in the Church have been wounded by abusive leadership, and many pastors have been beaten up by their congregations. Last year Steve was asked to preach on "church hurts."  Click here to listen to Steve's sermon "Healing Church Hurts."

International journalist, Mindy Belz, reports in the Wall Street Journal on the recent crackdown against Christians in China. Read her free Substack report, “Xi Is Watching.”

On Oct 10, more than 10 police officers reportedly broke into the Beihai, China, apartment of Ezra Jin Mingri, senior pastor of Zion Church. As they rifled through books and handcuffed Mr. Jin, 56, a police dragnet fell across the country, rounding up other leaders in the church’s network. The complex operation was the largest crackdown on unregistered religious activity since 2018.

The arrests reflect China’s growing use of advanced surveillance technology, a staple of the regime’s Public Security Bureau. The goal is to silence with fear and intimidation a Christian network that in recent years has launched about 100 small churches in 40 cities across China and reaches tens of thousands of people online. Its blend of digital outreach and open witness make it a political competitor in the eyes of the Communist Party. Those in custody are now housed in two detention centers in Beihai, reportedly facing interrogation in cramped cells.

Leaders of Zion Church in China recently recorded a hymn, “By Kindly Powers,” that features many of the men and women leaders now imprisoned, including Rev. Ezra Jin Mingri and four other pastors.

When it comes to news, I (Steve) made a decision about 10 years ago to stop watching cable news and listening to talk radio. Other people may experience these outlets differently, but I came to the personal conclusion that too often these were not reliable sources from which to draw informed conclusions. So, I now look for more long-form journalism that offers more nuanced exploration of important topics. I also look for ways to learn and benefit from differing opinions. One source I’ve found helpful is the free edition of Tangle edited by Isaac Saul. Each issue covers only one topic. The editorial team presents multiple perspectives on that topic followed by a reasoned opinion or critique. No one is paying me to say this, but even when I don't agree with their editorial conclusions, I’ve found Tangle to be a helpful and remarkably even-handed journalistic source. Perhaps you will too.

“Wintering”

In 3 days we will mark another Winter Solstice, the shortest day and the longest night of the year. The winter of 2026 will officially have arrived.  I am ready for daylight to begin lengthening, but I am not so eager to invite another season of winter. Christina Rossetti captures the coldness in her poem “A Christmas Carol” (1872):

XXXXXIn the bleak mid-winter 
XXXXXXXXFrosty wind made moan 
XXXXXEarth stood hard as iron, 
XXXXXXXXWater like a stone; 
XXXXXSnow had fallen, snow on snow, 
XXXXXXXXSnow on snow, 
XXXXXIn the bleak mid-winter 
XXXXXXXXLong ago.

Michelle Dockery of Downton Abbey fame reflects on Rosetti’s poem.

November in Ithaca was extraordinarily dreary serving up day after day of heavily overcast skies. Our solar panels generated the least kwh for the month of November in five years.  Some days began, continued, and concluded in what felt like an eerily extended twilight.  Thankfully we awoke December 1st to a glorious snowfall. Thus began 17 consecutive days of glistening sunshine. Mornings offered the cheery sight of trees and shrubs and fields blanketed in powdery white fluff.  However, yesterday a warming trend set in which is forecast to continue for a few days.  This morning, we awoke to find the snow washed away leaving us with dirty white slush and the brown of bare trees.  Day to day, like so many things in life, weather remains variable.   Year to year seasons evolve with predictability.

I have been rereading sections of Katherine May’s Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times for inspiration and motivation. May notes that “in our relentlessly busy contemporary world, we are forever trying to defer the onset of winter. We don’t ever dare to feel its full bite, and we don’t dare to show the way that it ravages us. An occasional sharp wintering would do us good. We must stop believing that these times in our lives are somehow silly, a failure of nerve, a lack of willpower. We must stop trying to ignore them or dispose of them. They are real, and they are asking something of us. We must learn to invite the winter in. We may never choose to winter, but we can choose how.”  She concludes, “we have seasons when we flourish and seasons when the leaves fall from us, revealing our bare bones. Given time, they grow again.”

Rossetti concludes her poem:

XXXXXWhat can I give Him, 
XXXXXXXXPoor as I am? — 
XXXXXIf I were a Shepherd 
XXXXXXXXI would bring a lamb; 
XXXXXIf I were a Wise Man 
XXXXXXXXI would do my part, — 
XXXXXYet what I can I give Him, — 
XXXXXXXXGive my heart.”

Welcome winter 2026.

•   •   •   •   •

Praise the LORD from the earth...
lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
stormy winds that do his bidding...
Let them praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.

Psalm 148:7-8, 13

•   •   •   •   •

"The good news of Advent is
not that we are faithful in our waiting
(we often aren't)
but that God is faithful in his coming."

Rich Villodas

•   •   •   •   •

“Merciful God, we thank you that you can rewrite the script of our lives,
moving us from wandering to arrival, from self-hatred to acceptance,
from loneliness to belonging, from weakness to energy,
and all this because of the enfleshment of your dear Son, our Lord & Savior.”

Luci Shaw

Personal Updates

Medical: XSheryl has gained significant ground in managing Sjögren's symptoms. The more challenging issues are pronounced fatigue and joint pain, blurred vision and burning eyes, and insomnia. These can be under control for weeks and then suddenly erupt especially in the the cold. The "advice" (brace yourself) is to avoid getting cold (ha!) which is impossible if she's enjoying snow therapy: walking, hiking, snow shoeing, or cross-country skiing. She has been testing different hand warmers without any great success.
XXXXXChristopher, our oldest son (45), continues to contend with effects of sarcoidosis and post-Iraq PTSD. He plans to enter 2-3 month in-resident PTSD treatment February 11th at a VA facility in Batavia, NY. 
XXXXXSteve's November CT scan came back all clear. Thanks be to God. His next scan is scheduled for June at the 5-year mark post-chemo. If it is all clear, he'll transition to annual scans for the duration.

XXXX
Family: XSheryl's mom, Naomi, is now receiving hospice care in the home where she resides. It doesn't mean death is imminent, but Naomi is showing signs of terminal decline, like weight loss. She's down to 93 lbs. We're planning a visit probably immediately after New Years. 
XXXXXSteve's contract to serve part-time as interim pastor at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Rock Tavern, NY extends through April. He now thinks he can make the 3-hour drive each way in his sleep, but Sheryl recommends that he not test that theory.  The sermon series on the Seven Deadly Sins wrapped up in time for Advent.

 THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS

Steve recently completed a sermon series on The Seven Deadly Sins.
Text, audio, and video are available here.

Good Stuff

(click here to keep reading)

It’s true. The best cheese in the country (and 5^th best cheese in the world) is made just 5 minutes from our house. Indeed, blessed are the cheesemakers! In particular, Jeremiah Timmins of Old Chatham Creamery.

Not to be confused with Henry Wensleydale’s Old Cheese Emporium of Monty Python fame.

History Matters, David McCullough

This collection of essays by magisterial American historian, David McCullough, captures his deeply held conviction in the importance of history if we are to understand our present and future. "We Need to Know History, Especially Now" is Peggy Noonan's review of McCullough's History Matters.

Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm, Charles Mackesy

Charlie Mackesy’s four unlikely friends meet again in this sequel. They are wandering through the wilds again. They’re not sure what they are looking for. They do know that life can be difficult, but that they love each other, and cake is often the answer.

“The eternal God is our refuge,
and underneath are the everlasting arms.”

Deuteronomy 33:27

Website Updates

Grace Unscripted is now on Substack. Fridays with Froehlichs will be posted there as well as here via email. We're trying out this platform to see if it's a good fit for hosting our more personal writing. Sign up - the subscription is free, and you'll get a notice whenever we post anything new.

If you are new to Fridays with Froehlichs, you can catch up on previous editions at the Fridays with Froehlichs page.

Work on the Holy Callings project has been on hold for quite a while primarily because of Steve's interim work.

Benediction

Now may God be your exceeding joy,
Christ your only hope,
the Holy Spirit your unfailing comforter,
in all your worship,
in all your work,
in all your troubles,
until Jesus comes.
Amen

From Grace Be With You
by Dale Ralph Davis

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