Friday, December 19, 2014

I sit here at breakfast....

I am sitting in a local restaurant having breakfast...

As I sit, I realize that this day is much like the days of old.  People are coming and going, doing business and saying hi.  Food is being eaten and bills are being paid.  A wave here and a place to be in a few minutes.  Nothing much different than 2,000 years ago.

Another realization came to mind.  It is the reason I started typing this post.  about 2,000 years ago today, Jesus is about to arrive.  The census is underway and everyone is headed to their home town to make sure the Roman government has their tax books in line.  But while all the hubbub is going on, a baby is born.  Not just any baby, but a baby that would mark history and make it different.  Better.

And so, here I sit, watching what many would call "life".  And it is not much different, maybe much the same.  People all around are talking about Christmas, yet it's not Christmas they are really talking about.  It's gifts, dinners, parties and shopping.  They are not trying to miss the message, it's just so easy to pass it over in the hustle and bustle.

A few tables from me sit a group of older men.  Curse words and coarse joking fill the air around them, and in the middle of their morning fellowship comes this phrase, "Merry Christmas".

I  hope, more than anything, that those men understand what they've said.  "Merry", happy, what a wonderful blessing to speak to someone.  "Christmas", not just a season, but a celebration.  Man's greatest need is met by God's greatest gift.

We really aren't any different, it's all around us and we look over it. 

Lord, please forgive us and for a moment, allow the Spirit of Christmas, the child born to die, to clearly come into focus so we will know the wonder of your grace this holiday.  Amen.

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