God With Us
I entered the story below in a contest to be published in the Southern Christian Writers Conference book “Christmas Blessings”. My entry was not selected, but was published on the SCWC blog. I wanted to make it available here for my subscribers. I hope you are blessed and encouraged.
The Christmas of 2017 went much the same as every other Christmas has gone for my family since my brother and I have been grown with families of our own. We gathered at my parent’s house for a day of food, gifts, playing games and just being together. Now that all our children are grown, it has taken a Herculean effort to coordinate everyone’s schedule and find one day that works, but we had somehow managed it.
The menu didn’t vary much from previous years. There was the usual oven roasted turkey breast, Mama’s cornbread dressing and gravy, and green beans. Delaine, my sister-in-law, brought her cherry salad, and I contributed the sweet potato casserole. All of this and more lined the counter by the stove. As usual the opposite counter, designated as the dessert counter, held a truly shameful amount of cakes, pies, cookies, and candies.
Over the years, the tree had gone from a handpicked wonderfully aromatic live tree to an artificial tree. Now even that was reduced from its original full size to just a four-foot mini tree perched on top of the sewing machine cabinet. Twinkling multi-colored lights adorned its branches, and gifts littered the floor below all ready for a game of Dirty Santa.
We enjoyed our food as we discussed topics ranging from politics to trips down memory lane. Lingering there at the table enjoying everyone’s company has always been one of my favorite parts of the day. Once the meal was over and the kitchen put back in order, we each took a place in the living room ready for the game and the unwrapping of gifts. But first, Mama asked for a volunteer to read the Christmas story. Although this was sporadically done when my brother and I were growing up, some time back my Mom and Dad made a conscious effort to have it as part of the family tradition when we are gathered around the tree and specifically before gifts are exchanged.
It was my daughter-in-law, Tori, who offered to read. She sat on the floor the Bible lying before her on the large ottoman and opened to Luke’s account of the story. As she read, I thought of how fitting it was that she should be the one this year. Her rounded belly resting on her lap nestled my unborn grandson. A child. A son. A gift to us all.
It was a beautiful time together as a family filled with laughter and love, and when it was over, we moved ahead into the new year taking for granted that we would continue on with the status quo indefinitely. There was no way we could have known as we spent that day together that we were perched on the edge of life as we knew it. We were about to plunge headlong into uncharted waters and nothing would ever be the same again.
A few short weeks later in early January my dad suffered a stroke. A brain bleed is what the doctor said. Thankfully he survived, but not without some limitations. He can walk on his own but is sometimes unsteady, and the risk of falling is always present. Because he can no longer drive, the frequent long trips my parents had become accustomed to have come to an end as my dad is the principle driver and my mom isn’t comfortable driving in unfamiliar places.
They own a large amount of property and need help taking care of that. We had some ‘work’ days where everyone came together and pitched in, but for the most part, my brother and his wife took over things like mowing the grass, tending the garden, and general repairs and upkeep because they live much closer than we do. My brother has gracefully stepped up and taken responsibility for many of the things that my dad would normally have done. I have been amazed as I’ve watched him walk out his new role with the utmost tenderness and respect for my dad.
The huge woodworking shop of my dad’s always humming with the sounds of saws and lathes and where he built baby beds, blanket chests, and beehives is now silent. Unfinished projects and piles of wood for projects dreamed of lie untouched.
You may be asking yourself what all of this has to do with Christmas blessings. Well here it is. That Christmas, like every Christmas before it and every Christmas since, we celebrated the fact that the Eternal God Who existed before the foundation of the world stepped into time becoming fully human. In one of the most humble settings imaginable, the King of Kings came to us. Came for us. The Child Who was born. The Son Who was given. A gift to us all.
As I look back on that Christmas before daddy’s stroke, I can see Jesus there seated at the table with us as we broke bread and shared ourselves with each other. Gathered with us around the tree listening to the story of His birth. As we laughed and played games, the Light of the World was sealing our hearts together in love and the knowledge that He was the center of our family.
Jesus is with us now too as we learn to make our way on this new journey. Each time we must cross a bridge that we haven’t crossed before, He’s there giving us the grace to honor one another in the choices that we make and stirring up compassion in our hearts for each other. Our time together now is richer and sweeter because we understand the value of it, and He’s helped us to not lose sight of that. Though we’ve always been an affectionate family, the hugs now are tighter and the “I love you’s” more earnest.
Because Jesus is not bound by time, He has simultaneously been with us in the past, is with us now in the present, and has gone before us into the future preparing the way and beckoning us with outstretched hand to come and not be afraid. We don’t know what lies ahead, but He has already been there making a path for us to follow. What a comforting thought to know that there is no place or time where we can go that He has not already gone.
At Christmastime, I’m reminded once again that the Lord of heaven and earth wrapped Himself in flesh and walked among us. He was with us then. He is with us still. He is Emanuel, God with us.