Headed Home

Introduction

First and foremost, while the byline lists my name, I have a ghostwriter whose contributions and efforts far exceed my own. His name is the Holy Spirit. I am no one special. I have no honorable title before my name or little letters after, declaring formal qualifications from any prestigious seminary (or even a humble one). My small collection of Bibles and supporting references has suffered broken spines and spilled-out loose pages, but I have no desire for their retirement, replacing them with new and updated versions. Each wrinkle, mark of the pen (yes, I write in my Bibles), loose page, coffee stain, and salty-tear-soaked blemish represents a marker on my personal life journey.

Headed Home is not a traditional devotional. It is a forty-day journey chronicling Moses’s wilderness adventures while leading Israel out of Egyptian bondage and into Canaan, the Promised Land. Israel’s story is contemplated against the epic expanse of God’s revelation, particularly the life and times of Jesus Christ, all loosely tied together with a Christmas theme. It begins at the Bible’s beginning (Genesis 1:1) and ends at its end (Revelation 22:21.) Why forty days and Christmas? The Bible makes much ado about the number forty. As for Christmas, it is a time when many folks, regardless of religious affiliation (or lack thereof), keenly feel a deep inner angst amid the unrest of this troubled world. The needy heart throbs, hungering for an elusive solution to its vague pain. What do we seek? Healing? Purpose? A return to innocence? That thing often referred to as unconditional love? Jesus is continuously knocking at the door of drained, heavily burdened hearts. During the Christmas season, folks may be more willing to open the door. And those who do will be presented with the best gift ever given: their hearts’ desire.

Even so, Headed Home should not be strictly regarded as a “Christmas” book. The days continue beyond the holiday season. In fact, it discusses the entire calendar of Jewish feasts. Just pick it up and begin the journey. Any time is fine.

However, if following a holiday-oriented timeline, the days are designed to begin on November 27 and continue through January 5, with December 25 and the birth of Jesus falling on day 29.

Christian denominations celebrate the four full weeks prior to Christmas as Advent, twenty-eight days of expectant waiting. Christmas Day then marks the beginning of Christmastide, aka the Twelve Days of Christmas, which ends on January 5, the eve of Epiphany or Three Kings’ Day.

Twenty-eight days of Advent plus twelve days of Christmastide equals forty days of Headed Home.

I adore scripture. It is anything but boring. I use its engaging power and poetic beauty extensively to advance the story and thought process. As mentioned, I write in my Bibles. So too have I peppered these passages with my own comments and thought clouds. Such annotation has been placed within square brackets for easy identification. Unless otherwise noted, scripture is quoted from the New International Version (NIV).

To summarize this journey in one sentence, “I just can’t make this stuff up!”