We’re all in a hurry these days.
Gifts to wrap.
Cookies to bake.
School performances…neighborhood parties…relatives to visit…
We rush through meals and errands and conversations.
Mary and Joseph were in a hurry, too. They had a deadline to meet and responsibilities to fulfill.
And a baby to welcome.
And as every parent knows, a baby changes everything.
Our priorities. Our schedules. Our whole lives.
Newborns really cause us to slow down and attend to the simple things like nourishment and comfort. We stop and gaze at them, memorizing every detail because we know this phase is fleeting.
Sometimes we, as the Church, tend to rush through Christmas, too…We want to fast-forward to Easter, as if Christmas is just a sweet anecdote in the great story of rescue and redemption.
We need to linger in the stable a little bit longer and soak up the Emmanuel-goodness…
Emmanuel. God with us.
He was here.
And although He, too, had a lot to accomplish, he wasn’t in a rush.
So let’s slow down. Let’s spend some spend some time in the stable with the baby and memorize every detail of this fleeting season. Let’s rest in the nourishment and comfort and the amazing truth that He was here.
The Greatest Gift.
Good tidings of GREAT JOY~
Katie