The Awe. The Wonder.

It’s December and for many, it is filled with semester finals, work projects that must be wrapped up by the end of the year, Chanukah festivities, Christmas concerts, Christmas parties, Christmas light viewing, Christmas shopping, baking, and gift-giving. It can all get rather stressful. As a matter of fact, instead of being of good cheer, we can get rather irritated. Rather “grinchy,” if you will. It’s easy to do. But have you really stopped to think about what we’re celebrating at Christmastime? Yeah, we sing “Joy to the World”, “Away in a Manger”, and “Silent Night” but have you really slowed down to think about it?

I am currently reading a book by Elisabeth Elliot entitled, “Joyful Surrender: 7 Disciplines for the Believer’s Life”. In it, while talking about the discipline of the mind, she quotes Sir Joshua Reynolds who lived back in the 1700’s and said, “There is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real labor of thinking” (Elliiot,1982, p. 56). As we’re sending out hundreds of cards, preparing large feasts, fighting each other over the last shipment of this year’s most popular item all while checking our phones every two minutes, are we thinking about what we are celebrating?Perhaps not.

One of the pastors of my church preached a sermon recently on Colossians 1:15-20, the preeminence and character of Jesus. I have spent time reading Colossians chapter 1 several times since. Verse 13 tells us that God has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His Beloved Son-Jesus. In our natural state, we lived in the domain of darkness! That’s deep! Through the sacrifice of Christ, God transferred us to a different kingdom-the Kingdom of His Son, Jesus, in Whom, the Bible says, we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (every sing one that we have committed-past, present, and future sins) (1:14). In our natural state, the Bible also says we were once alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds (1:21). Ephesians 2:3 tells us that we were dead in our trespasses and sins, and by nature we were children of wrath…“ But, Jesus, as Colossians says, “reconciled in His body of flesh by His death in order to present us holy and blameless and above reproach before Him, if indeed we continue in the faith, stable, and steadfast not shifting from the hope of the gospel…”(1:22,23). So, although I lied to my mother, cheated on a test, talked negatively about people, acted disrespectfully to my husband, yelled at my kids, been impatient with various drivers here in L. A., and on and on, Jesus shed his blood so that God sees none of that.  In fact, God sees perfection.  He did this for me and for you. It was His whole purpose for being born in the first place. This is a big deal! So much so that when He was born, the Bible reads, “And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth among those with whom he is pleased!’” (Luke 2:13,14).

As a string bassist in Richard Dennis’ symphony orchestra at North Central High School, I played (with the rest of the orchestra and all the choirs) the song,” Glory to God” from Handel’s “Messiah” every Christmas. I am familiar with the lyrics. BUT it wasn’t until last night at our church’s Christmas concert where Dr. & Mrs. Fred Sanders humorously, yet truthfully described the heavenly host of angels that were present in praise to God following Jesus’ birth did I really take the time to think, to imagine what that must have been like.  They suggested that it may have looked like Heaven “leaked out” onto the earth with this host of angels. We have no idea of the number, but it’s safe to say that there were too many to count. The awe. The wonder. The thought brought tears (of joy) to my eyes. What a gift we have received in Jesus! I don’t know if you’re struggling to “get into the Christmas spirit” and having a hard time figuring out how you’re going to get “it” all done in time for Christmas.  Maybe you’re disappointed about not securing one of Oprah’s favorite things this year. Maybe you’re mourning the loss of a loved one. There is Hope. The birth of Jesus is that Hope. If you haven’t already, repent of your sins; place your faith in Him for the remission of your sins; and seek Him with your whole heart. If you have already placed your hope and faith in Christ, cling to Him with everything you’ve got. You will be in awe! Jesus really IS the reason for the season.