During tonight’s Christmas Eve service, we will light the final candle, the one that symbolizes Jesus’ birth.
Today is Christmas Eve. Tonight we celebrate the birth of Jesus. You may still have some running around to do today or you may have it all done. Personally, I will be cooking today with my mom and sister. We will play Christmas music and laugh and tell stories and get caught up on each other’s lives. My sister has little ones, so they will be running all over the place, nearly vibrating with the excitement of Santa coming.
But, tonight, we will stop what we are doing, whether we are finished or not, and we will attend a Christmas Eve worship service at my mama’s church. We will sit in silence as we listen to the words of the prophet Isaiah which finally came to pass some 700 years later. We will hear about a virgin who was told by an angel that she would bear the son of God. We will hear about a man who stood by his young wife-to-be, even though the child wasn’t biologically, his.
We will hear a story of obedience to God’s will. We will be reminded that the town of Bethlehem was packed with travelers and there was not one single room for a young woman in labor. We will be quietly reminded and possibly convicted with the fact that mankind continues to struggle to make room for that baby who came to earth to save us all.
We will hear once again, about the baby being wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a manger. The son of God made his debut on planet earth in the quietest and simplest of ways. We will be told about shepherds who were keeping watch over their flocks by night who were told of the wondrous event first by one angel ,and then by an entire host singing and praising God.
We will hear about God’s wish for peace on earth through this baby. Through it all, the service will likely be noisy with children, which I find to be perfectly fitting. After all, we a are celebrating the birth of the child who came to save us all. Children should be present to hear the story.
At the end, we will light candles and sing “Silent Night.” I will get teary as I always do during a candlelight service as I contemplate the light that came to the world that night and as I pray that I can share that light in some way with a dark world.
We have been talking about Advent for about a month. We have been talking about preparing our hearts for Jesus. We have looked at hope, peace and joy. We’ve talked about the announcements of angels. I would love to encourage you to find a church service tonight. It doesn’t matter whether or not you attend regularly. Just go. Feel the peace. Feel the joy. Feel the hope. Feel the love.
If we can make room in our hearts for Jesus, we can have all of the above and more. What do you say?
Have a Merry Christmas!
Wendy 🙂