A little under 15 years ago I walked into a holiday season with a broken heart, unsure of what my next steps in life would be. My family was a mess. My career was up in the air, and autumn had only brought further destruction and devastation at every turn. As November turned to December, I was far from holly and jolly.
I dreaded the holiday cards, the hustle and bustle, and the celebrations. I knew I didn’t have the capacity to pretend that everything was okay. And yet, something magical happened. I saw the hand of God weaving something beautiful in my undoing.
When I felt abandoned by earthly dreams and relationships, God came near. When I couldn’t see a way out of the chaos, the Lord provided a safe path for my next steps. When my heart felt crushed, I felt sustained and provided for by a God who was unafraid of my mess and loved me in spite of it.
God met me in the rubble of that year just like he’s been meeting us in our mess for all of creation. From Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden (where God the Father searched for them while they hid) until today, He keeps showing up and making a way for wrongs to be righted and for love to win.
His ultimate restoration plan didn’t come to earth with much fanfare or celebration. Jesus didn’t come to earth with a political strategy, a kingdom to take over, or a publicist who would help Him win over public opinion. No, He came to a lowly manger, surrounded by animals, after being rejected by local inn-keepers. He came with His presence, God incarnate. He came to offer His body as a living sacrifice. He won the war against death and evil, and He has promised to one day right every wrong.
Colossians 1:19-20 says,
“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross–through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”
That tiny baby in the manger was God’s reconciliation plan! Isn’t that amazing? Look at those verses again. The passage says that God in His fullness was pleased to live in Christ and make peace between heaven and earth through His sacrifice.
The God of the universe decided to come close, to draw near, to make a way for you and I to know the truest love that has ever existed! And He did this through the incarnation, the birth of Jesus Christ!
That Christmas when I couldn’t see past my heartache and hurt? I dreaded it, but God met me there. He reminded me that His very presence was the only reason I needed to celebrate the season. It gave me the gift of letting go of holiday traditions and pretense.
Suffering opened my eyes to my greatest need and how it was met in a God who came close. And the great news is that He is still drawing near to us today. This season, whether you find yourself in a time of joy or suffering, I want to remind you of some famous words that are often spoken during the religious practice of communion:
The Body of Christ broken for you.
The Blood of Jesus shed for you.
This season of advent, of waiting for all things to be made new, may those words and that truth be enough. May His presence, His holy incarnation, be the thing you cannot escape this season.
One day, that tiny baby in a manger would grow into a man who would suffer, die, and overcome the grave so that you and I would know the greatest love. This is good news, dear friends!
Jesus came near, and He bore the cross for us. This is the heart of the Christmas story! And, like I discovered all those years ago, this good news, this gospel story, is why no matter what you’re facing, you can celebrate the incarnation and have a very Merry Christmas.
