🌟 Finding Light in the Darkest of Times: Reflecting on the True Christmas Story

I heard that someone said this feels like the least Christmasy Christmas.

My first thought was: that sounds like one of those Christmas movies where it starts out with everyone angry and at odds and ends up with everyone happy and full of love. The next thought was that I can understand why someone might feel that way. The images of war we see on the news are horrific. The political battles are ever raging. In both cases it seems impossible that the two sides could ever come together, or even see the common humanity in one another.

There is reason to be worried about what the new year will bring. The thing is, biblically that is the Christmas story. The original story doesn’t have carols around the fireplace. It has political powers forcing travel and a brutal abuse of power by slaughtering young children. The biblical Christmas is a story of hope, not because the world is in great shape, but hope in spite of the real condition of the world.

This gospel, this good news, is that a light shines in the darkness. The darkness cannot quench it, can’t even understand it. This light is God’s presence in our world, in our spirits. No matter what the future brings, you are not alone, you are not in the dark. G
od is with us, Emmanuel. O come, O come Emmanuel. That is something worth singing about. 

Peace,
Lisa