MERRY CHRISTMAS
As I laid snuggled warm and comfortable in my bed this morning listening to the howling wind, it made me think about the story of Elijah in 1 Kings where Elijah was told that the Lord was going to pass by. What Elijah found was that the Lord wasn't in the roaring wind, or in the earthquake, or in the fire, but rather in a gentle whisper.
And that made me think about how Tim has been joking with me lately about how he is waiting for the "lightning bolt" from God to help him figure out what he is supposed to do in the next chapter of his life. And, of course because I'm the resident "church lady," I'm quick to remind him that God's probably not going to come to him in some grand gesture or earth shattering experience, but will more likely come to him in small, quiet ways that he will have to be watching for.
AND those two thoughts led me to think about how God chose to be incarnate, not as a powerful king or wealthy politician, someone in a GRAND and flashy package, nope, Jesus came to us in a VERY SMALL and fragile package... as a BABY!! And this baby was poor and was visited by the shepherds who lived on the margins of society. They saw him because they were open to seeing him as he was. They recognized the miraculous gift in this little package and sang GLORY TO GOD with the angels! And this great treasure was nothing less than the physical presence of God and God's unmerited and unconditional gifts of love, mercy, forgiveness, and salvation! ALL of THAT in a teeny, tiny, wiggly, baby shaped package!!
This Christmas as we give and receive gifts, let's look for God disguised in a plate of homemade cookies, a kind note, a warm hug, a smile, because no matter what the commercials tell us, God doesn't come to us in a brand new car wrapped in a big red bow, he comes to us in the love we give and receive when we do small and meaningful things for one another. The very BEST gifts really do come in small packages!
(Phew! That was A LOT of thinking before I even got out of bed!!)