The Wonder of Christmas

Last week I said to a friend: “the ‘daily grind’ + the world around me going crazy has me in a bit of a funk. I’m finding it hard to remember and embrace Christ and the Gospel.”

Fast forward a few days and all hullabaloo broke loose. A kid fractured a bone. The furnace broke. And a piece of family news stirred up some new anxieties.

In the midst of it all, it’s easy to lose sight of the “wonder of Christmas” - to feel like I’m missing it all. To get frustrated that I’m not finding the time to quietly ponder the weight of the Word become flesh.

But, instead of allowing the “meh” and the “humbug” to CLOUD our vision of the beauty of Christmas... What if we allowed the ho-hum humdrum and the hubbub - and even the sorrowful and unnerving - be the very things that ENHANCE our vision of the wonder of it all?

When you are doing extra laundry to make sure the Christmas pjs are clean for pajama day, remember... Jesus left the glory of Heaven for dirty laundry.

When everyone has the grumps and dinner got burnt and you have to order a pizza with money you don’t have because you spent it all on presents, remember... the King of the Universe left perfection for hunger and poverty.

When you find out a loved one has a terminal illness, remember... the Sinless One took on a decaying body and died to pay our debt and conquer death so that we can live with Him forever.

That IS the wonder of Christmas. The God of the Universe so loved you that He joined you in the mundane and the melancholy. Our strength and consolation. Joy of every longing heart. Emmanuel.