Just some early morning thoughts from me to you…
“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.”
Luke 2: 10-12 (KJV)
Lynda and I will gather again this year with our family—our children, Nathan and Amy, and their little girls, our Grandchildren, Hannah and Ellie Kate—to open the gifts we have for them, and they have for us, and we for each other.
And before we begin to look in our stockings, or open our gifts we will stop and sit down together to read certain scriptures from God’s Word, including the scripture verse set out above from the Gospel of Luke.
And I will again cry.
I will cry with the reminder of what God did for us by sending His one and only Son as the Baby born in Bethlehem. I will cry with gratitude knowing that if God had not sent His Son—for me—my world and life would be so much less than it is, if I were alive at all. I will cry with the knowledge that my Bride, son, daughter-in-law, and two precious Granddaughters are secure in their relationship with Christ, and that they will grow to love Him even more as He continues to demonstrate His love for them evermore.
Christmas can be a tough time. The economy today makes it so, but even in good economic times it is tough for many of us. Christmas is an emotional time as we remember the loss of a loved one now gone at this Christmas for the first time; a discouraging time with hurried lives leaving things undone and people untouched; a depressing time as the sadness and heartache of bleak Christmas pasts rears up again in our memories.
But Christmas is a time where we remember that God came as the Babe of Bethlehem to a world in need—and said to the world “What do you need?” The shepherds came and the Wise Men followed—and He asked them “What do you need?”
And Christmas comes again amongst us now—to a world in need—and the Babe of Bethlehem looks up into the faces of each of us and once again asks:
“What do you need?”
Christmas is here again to remind us that no matter what you and I need, you and I will find it now, right here, in a manger, in a stable in the person of the Babe of Bethlehem. The Shepherds came and raised their hands in praise and reached out in need to touch the Babe of Bethlehem. The Wise Men heard, and also came to reach out in praise and in need and to touch the Babe of Bethlehem.
For all of us a child is born…a Savior…who is Christ the Lord.
What do you need?
Come to the manger. Come to the Babe of Bethlehem.
And as you come, reaching out in praise and in need—stop for a moment—look closely—and see if you don’t see the tiny Baby reaching out His hand to you, to hold you, to comfort you, to lift you in whatever your moment of need.
“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David
a Savior which is Christ the Lord.”
Christmas is here once again. Look closely as you come. Look closely to see if you can see the Christ child reaching out His hand—do you see His tiny hand reaching out to you? It is now, as it always has, and as it always will.
Now—that should make you cry—for joy.
Merry Christmas to all of you dear family and friends, and children of the Babe of Bethlehem!
In His Name—Scott
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Copyright 2010. Scott L. Whitaker. All rights reserved.
