Psalm 113:5-6 – Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth? (NIV)

I find Christmas absolutely amazing. It's not just because of the great music, the beautiful lights, or the glorious glitter. I find it amazing because it's a celebration about the Lord of all creation stooping down to our level, to leave His holy Son amongst us. The whole event is a commemoration of an amazing sacrifice by God.

What God did, away back then, would be like me taking my daughters, when they were babies, and leaving them on the dirty streets of Calcutta. I couldn't ever do it because my fatherly love would not want to abandon them, and I would feel the need to protect them. That's precisely what makes Christmas so wonderful to me — when I realize how much love God truly has for the whole world, such love that He was willing to let go of Jesus.

Years ago, when I first came to live in the United States, my eldest daughter, Lynsey, went to her first overnight camp. We were just in Knoxville about ten days and felt totally cut off from our families back in Scotland. We were on our own, and it just didn't seem right that our eldest would be spending time away from us so soon. Lynsey felt the same separation anxiety, and just after midnight, I had to go and bring her home.

We were emotionally exhausted and weary as we journeyed home. I didn't know it, but I was driving on the wrong side of the road. Suddenly, I saw headlights in front of me and heard the blaring of a car horn. Seconds later, we were involved in a head-on collision. Thankfully, no one was injured but Lynsey and I were both emotional wrecks.

These days, Lynsey is a graduate student living hundreds of miles from home. We may be separated geographically, but we are very close. It makes me wonder if that's the kind of relationship that God maintained with Jesus throughout His life. God may have let Christ go to earth that first Christmas, but They still carried each other in their hearts.

As I stated before, Christmas is amazing. Each year, I like to believe that God and Jesus stoop down to look at the earth and celebrate this grand season with us.

Prayer: Lord God, most of us cannot comprehend what it took You to let go of Your holy Son and leave Him to the mercies of the world. Even though You loved Him dearly, You never protected Him from what the world and people like ourselves eventually did to Him. That level of love and sacrifice is amazing to us, and we are truly thankful for Your sacrifice which brought us salvation. In Jesus' holy name, we humbly pray. Amen.

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About the author:

John Stuart <traqair@aol.com>
Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
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