"The Love of God"
December 7, 2007, Broadcast #4082
The greatest story ever told needs no embellishment. It occupies little more than a page of holy writ. It begins with the mundane duty of paying taxes. It continues with a journey that was not unusual for the time. The plot thickens when no room can be found in the inn. And it ends with some of the most glorious pronouncements ever heard: “good tidings of great joy,” “ peace on earth,” and “good will toward men.”
How could something so wonderful happen with such little adornment? No decorations were necessary. No one needed to wear fancy clothing or prepare special foods. No glittering tinsel lit up the manger; one bright star in the heavens was more than enough.
Perhaps the reason the simple story of the first Christmas inspires us is because everyone acted out of love: Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the wise men, and especially the newborn babe. No imitations, no substitutions, nothing less than real love came to earth that night.
Ever since, we’ve remembered and retold the Christmas story countless times. Each in our own way, we try to re-create the wonder of it all. Sometimes our efforts seem to fall short of the feeling we had hoped for. At such moments, perhaps we need to ask ourselves why we do the things we do.
Are we motivated by love? If love—real, authentic love—is the force that moves us to deck the halls, bake the cookies, or give the gifts, then Christmas will feel like a blessing, not a burden. The Christmas story will enliven our efforts—or maybe inspire us to simplify them. We will feel the majesty of that holy night because we know that “he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God” (1 John 4:16).
6 comments:
That is so true, love really makes doing things for others a lot easier, that is why it was always easy for me to do projects for my mom and dad on Christmas. Although I still love them very much, the projects have gotten fewer and fewer. I love reading your posts, this Christmas is really tough with a newborn, but I've decided that I am going to focus on my little family and not make such a big deal out of things that I usually do every year, and I feel so much better and relaxed. I love reading your posts.
Thank you for posting that Laurie!
I am going to go figure out how to get on this email list! This post was FABULOUS. I've cut so much out of my to-do list this month & am mainly just doing things with my kids--projects of love! Thanks for the message.
I watched the Tabernacle Choir's broadcast last night from 2003 called "One Silent Night," where Walter Cronkite narrates the story of the Christmas peace between German & English soldiers in WWI on the front line. Go do a search on your tivo for it...you will LOVE IT.
This is beautiful.
Thanks so much for sharing!! I loved the post. Hope all is well!! Happy HolidayS!
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