God Love Ya This Christmas

My precious mother Bonnalee used to say “God love ya" quite frequently. I can almost hear her saying it, even though she's been gone about 27 years! Precious memories. They seem to come more often this time of year.

The Christmas season is very special for many of us. For others, not so much, for various reasons. After a tumultuous couple of years of broken patterns and disruption in our lives, be open this Christmas to seeing God work in His mysterious ways in your life. Sometimes disturbances in our lives can help to break old patterns and open us up to some new things. 

In the great scheme of history, Christmas represents the birth of Jesus, the giving of God’s own Son to His creation. Somehow, God had to fulfill His creation by coming Himself in or through His Son to share in the human experience. In a way, it perfected the whole thing – the world became fulfilled and complete. It was the coming of the Savior of the world, the One who would set people free from their sin, showing them the way of life, by being the way and the life. Believe it or not, Jesus came to bring peace. Sometimes that is hard to imagine. Most of all, Jesus came to reveal God’s love to people. 

Christmas can be a time when we are whisked outside of ourselves, to realize the wonder of the ages in the story of the coming of Jesus into the world. We can come face to face with our own weaknesses and shortcomings, often in the context of family members with whom we have some sordid history. At the same time, we can be filled with hope and wonder with the coming of perfection into the world. In only ourselves, we do not have the hope that we find in God’s love and blessing. 

We go through seasons in our lives as we grow older. What thrilled us when we were younger might not mean as much later on. There are different joys. What once was so ordinary can come to mean so much - simple joys of a candle, or a cookie, or a warm hand, held without the need for words. The sharing of gifts and food with family and friends in an atmosphere of love and acceptance can be a setting for memories in the making. 

May you all have a blessed Christmas with your family and friends. And if need be, go a little outside of yourself and get back in touch with old friends who might need a little cheering, a word of hope or love or encouragement. Who knows, maybe even be open to making some new friends – after some years they could become old friends, too. 

Blessings and Christmas joy to all. May you come to know the love of God a little more this year.