Christmas Eve was hard for me.
My GI tract decided to take the wheel, and for a while, the day kept me in bed; weak, discouraged, and very aware of my limitations. It would have been easy to let the darkness win.
But take heart.
I was not to be denied the joy of Christmas!!! Or what it all truly means.
And in the middle of my $$*%$ day, something beautiful was happening anyway; Doug was outside smoking TWO hams all day long
The smell alone felt DELICIOUS!
Church had to be part of the night. Not because everything felt good or easy…but because Christmas was never about ease. It was never about strength. It was never about having it all together.
It was about Light entering darkness.
As the candles were lifted (from the darkness) and the room filled with quiet glow, I was reminded of this truth:
Jesus does His best work when the dark is present.
THE LIGHT!!
The Light of Jesus.
In my darkness, I had hope.
This poem says it better than I ever could:
I came into the world on a night like this.
Not when everything was resolved.
Not when bodies were strong.
Not when hearts were confident or circumstances calm.I came when there was no room.
When Mary was tired.
When Joseph was afraid.
When the world did not yet know what I was about to do.This night; the night before was not a failure of faith.
It was the doorway to it.If you are weary tonight, you are not late.
If you are hurting tonight, you are not forgotten.
If you are hoping quietly (or not at all) I am still here.I do My greatest work in the dark,
in the waiting,
in the unseen spaces where trust is formed.Tomorrow will come.
But tonight, rest.
I am already with you.MIC DROP
Tonight, we’re not celebrating what’s finished.
We are honoring HIM who is in OUR MIDDLES…
With ham and my honey(s)
And that….right there is Christmas. AMEN.