by Rev Douglas Brauner

Making sense of this crazy time of year.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” 
Galatians 6:14 English Standard Version

Not far from the Garden of the Gods, the busiest attraction in Colorado Springs, is another gem of our local park system, Ute Valley Park. Only a fraction of the people who visit the Garden of the Gods spend time at Ute Valley Park. It’s doesn’t have the same appeal that you find in the Garden of the Gods. There are no towering rock formations or paved walkways.

Ute Valley Park, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Yet, Ute Valley Park is a wonderful place for a hike, a run, or a mountain bike adventure.

This tree is growing out of the rocks in my favorite area of the park. The rock formations make me think of something other worldly, like from the moon. (Granted, the moon doesn’t grow trees but I can’t think of another way of describing these rocks.)

What draws me to this picture of this tree, rooted in the midst of these rocks, is both its symmetry and its asymmetry. There is balance and imbalance. There is harmony and dissonance. This tree is a picture of symmetry as it’s surrounded by rocks with its branches reaching out equally on both sides. Yet the twisted, divided, trunk also depicts asymmetry.

As we prepare for Christmas we might feel both a sense of balance and imbalance. The child for whom we wait is the one who brings balance to our lives in the gift of forgiveness from his cross. He declares us right with God. However, we still live in a world that needs him to come and deal with the darkness that surrounds us.

Even though we celebrate the birth of the baby we must look to the cross. Laying in that manger is the One who establishes harmony in our dissonant world through his sacrificial death.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado