December 2004
Rev. Troy D. Perry
MCC Founder and Moderator

"For Unto You Is Born This Day In the City of David, A Savior, Which Is Christ The Lord." - Gospel of Luke 2:11

I am sure it is no accident in God's design that the three holiest days in Christendom represent the cycle of our physical lives... our spiritual lives... the fulfillment of our hearts' dreams... and the work of our ministry.

Christmas... the season of new birth.

Good Friday... the season of death.

Easter... the season of resurrection and new dreams.

I wonder where you are in the seasons of your own life?

In my own ministry, I have dealt with so many people this year who have been discouraged. Disheartened. Depressed. Worried about the world's situation. I've met many involved in this vital ministry who are weary, near exhaustion and over-stressed.

And a look around our world is not immediately encouraging. War continues in Iraq, with almost daily loss of life. Still there is no lasting peace in the Middle East, nor in the holy city of Jerusalem. Genocide continues to take its toll on the people of the Sudan. The rate of HIV and AIDS is growing at alarming and epidemic rates across sub-Saharan Africa - yet continues to be ignored by much of the world's governments, media and corporations. In the U.S., this year, the LGBT community experienced demoralizing - but temporary! - defeats for equal rights. And this year, in my own country, the number of people in poverty and without adequate medical care and health insurance grew once again.

For many, discouragement is much more personal and intimate. A hurt from a friend. The painful end to a relationship. A life change over which you feel no control. Family struggles. Problems in the workplace. And, yes, the hurts that can occur in our own communities of faith.

Believe me, from the external viewpoint, I can understand why some are discouraged and weary.

But this Christmas season, I invite you to take your eyes off the external - and to refocus on the eternal.

Together during this season, we draw fresh hope from the Child of the Manager who became the Christ of the Cross. You see, something profound and eternal happened on a Judean hillside 2000 years ago.

In the stillness of that first Christmas night, our world was forever changed.

Angels proclaimed a baby's birth.

Shepherds left their watch to follow their hearts' deepest dreams.

Wise Ones journeyed vast distances, following a Star of Hope

And in the most humble of places, a baby was born.

There, surrounded by sheep and cattle, beneath the starry sky of a wintry night, a Mother cradled the new born Jesus - and in her arms, she held our most noble aspirations of hope, and faith, and love.

So I wonder, where you are in the seasons of your own life?

My deepest prayer for you this Christmas season - the season of birth - is that you will experience a new birth in you own life!

During these holidays, this is my prayer for you:

God of all ages and God of our lives: I pray for these four things:

I PRAY that You will bless my friend with the unspeakable joy of new birth. In the name of the Christ Child, I ask that my friend might experience a new birth of faith - faith that causes us to look up, and not down. A new birth of strength - that causes us to move past our weariness and prepares us for Your work ahead. A new birth of hope - that moves us past discouragement to see the possibilities and opportunities waiting for us in the New Year. A new birth of love - that lifts us beyond hurts and resentments, to remind us that the Creator of the Universe loves us, watches over us, and holds us dear.

I PRAY for those this Christmas season, especially my lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender brothers and sisters, who still feel alienated from Your love and presence. Heal the wounds that have become barriers, that they might discover the "peace that passes understanding" and find life's deepest meaning within You.

I PRAY for each person who speaks out for social and spiritual justice for LGBT people, for those who take bold stands at personal sacrifice, and for those who work to better our world and from whom we draw hope and strength.

I PRAY for this movement of Metropolitan Community Churches to which we have been called. I rejoice that thousands of GLBT people of faith, along with their families and friends, have discovered spiritual and personal peace through the ministry of our local MCC congregations. Call forth clergy and laity with a passion to plant new churches, and to carry your message of unconditional love to all people around our world. Keep our hearts focused upon You.

This Christmas season, in your joy and in your celebrations, let us together pray for a birth of new spiritual vitality - in our lives, and in our churches, and in our world.

In Christ,

Rev. Troy D. Perry
MCC Founder and Moderator

MCC Communications Department