It is the day after Christmas and the sanctuary is quiet. Much like our homes, the decorations will soon be stored away for the year and our lives will “get back to normal.” However as most people know, after the birth of a baby we are challenged to figure out what the “new” normal is. I wonder what that will mean for us this year? Here are some thoughts from my Christmas Eve meditation:
All year long we wait, sometimes without knowing it, for moments when we sense that God actually cares enough about us, and this world that God would chose to be among us. We wait, sometimes without even knowing it, for a moment when we will feel touched by the Spirit of God, the Spirit of God-With-Us.
Throughout life and its myriad of experiences, we become aware of our own humanity, our own weaknesses, and our very real dependence on God. And I believe, it is the moments of love and grace that save us, those times when God comes to stand close to God’s people and remind us that when all is said and done, what remains is God’s unfailing, unconditional, and complete LOVE.
Moments of Grace.
On a cold, blustery day, a small child runs to you with her jacket flapping in the wind. She wraps her little arms around your legs as she says, “I’m cold. Hold me tight.”
In the beginning was the Word.
A parent, whose role has now become the one to receive care rather than give, says, “I cannot do it myself, stand close and help me.”
And the Word was Love.
A friend struggling with depression and addiction invites you to sit and talk over a cup of coffee and says, “It is difficult, I am afraid, stand beside me.”
And the Word was with God.
A group of people show up on Christmas Eve and sit surrounded by stars and stories, songs and silence, and somewhere amidst the chaos and quiet there is a moment when their heart is strangely warmed and God’s love is felt deep and strong.
And the Word was God.
A woman gives birth to a baby, and God says to the world, “Come, stand close and see this new dawn of hope.”
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
Our lives, our world is not free from trouble or sorrow but hope is found with the possibility of LOVE ~ the promise of LOVE.
As one of my friends wrote so eloquently, the truth of Christmas is this:
When we are stripped down, bare to our core, what remains is our ability to initiate and to receive love. In the beginning there is Love. In the end there is Love. And the Word is Love.
“And the Word… that is LOVE… becomes flesh and dwells among us, full of grace and truth.”
Peace and Joy,
Pastor Cindy