Rejoice Always!

1 Thess.5:16
Over the years, artists have painted the Christmas story with picturesque and peaceful strokes, with colours of brilliant blues and gentle golds. The

Christmas story has been narrated by poets with hushed sounds and calming consonants. “Silent night, holy night.” “O little town ….” Christmas cards we send are filled with messages of peace on earth and thoughts of
love. That’s the way we would like it to be, but it’s not – not for us, not for the original participants at Jesus” birth. If you look carefully, you will find very few people in our Christmas story escaped the heartrending and relentless realities of life. Most of them might have had a hard time rejoicing evermore.

Consider ZACHARIAS, the future father of John the Baptizer. He was a priest of God. But he was also a priest who doubted the angel Gabriel’s promise of a son. His doubt was so great the he was struck dumb for over nine months. Then there’s ELIZABETH, his wife. She was no stranger to trouble. Had not people of her village talked about her childlessness for years? Perhaps they had assumed her barenness was a punishment for some secret sin. She might have had a hard time rejoicing too. Then there was MARY, the mother of our Lord. No doubt her reputation had been torn to shreds by razor sharp tongues that gathered daily at the town’s well. Then in an advanced state of pregnancy, she was compelled to travel a rough and rock strewn road. As the time came for her to deliver and give birth to the world’s Saviour, we might wonder if Mary was rejoicing. and the WISE MEN may have been shaking in their boots when they asked King Herod where they might find the newborn King.

But – stop. And take another peek into the stable. Look at these people – real people. See them. See the way they rejoice. See them act differently. Their actions say they had something very special. They had a Saviour – not just a temporary Saviour, but a Saviour who was Immanuel, God with us. (from Lutheran Hour Ministries)

Pastor Darryl

Photo by Caley Dimmock on Unsplash