Today’s scripture: John 10:10 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Lynnette Pullen-Bradford):
I was not invited to my family’s Thanksgiving dinner, because I have a wife instead of a husband. I won’t be invited to Christmas dinner either. It’s been like this for a while now, but the lacerations on my soul seem to burn anew every year. To top things off, this year, I was subject to seemingly endless posts and pictures of the event on Facebook. Note to self: Don’t scroll through Facebook around the holidays. I just started that stupid account last month, and I already regret it.
I thought about telling my family exactly how I felt and about shamelessly demanding to be loved and valued. I didn’t though. I knew it wouldn’t work. They have no interest in hearing my thoughts on the matter or even considering my point of view — so, when I was asked to write an entry on “What Christmas means to me,” I struggled. I bitterly thought: “Rejection! That’s what Christmas means.” The irony was not lost on me. The realization that the celebration of the coming of Christ now symbolized “rejection” was sad and strange.
It did get me thinking, though. Why did Christ choose to come in human form? I won’t pretend to know the answer to that, but I do know that it’s a beautiful way to say “I love you.” I remember reading a story about an autistic child and his parents. They tried all kinds of ways to get their little boy to listen to them, without success. It was only when they chose to enter his world, play his games, use his language, and eat his food that they could reach him. The funny thing is the initial intent was to get the boy to comprehend what he was being told, but instead the couple said they learned to understand each other. I feel like that is what Jesus did for us: He joined our world, not just to show us the way, but to get to know us on every level and help us to know Him. Not just distantly observing, but He was intimately experiencing everything we encounter. Hardships, rejection, fear, temptation, love, betrayal, anger, joy, pain, fear and ultimately death: Jesus experienced it all, by choice. I think Jesus wants us to know how much we mean to Him and how utterly and completely loved we are. Coming from a family in which love feels finite and conditional, that is admittedly hard for me to comprehend.
My first instinct is to look for the catch. What do I have to do, say, or give to receive this so-called unconditional love? Not a darn thing. That still blows my mind. That is what Christmas is really about for me: Jesus coming to my world and experiencing life on my level because He loves me. Jesus is seeing my life and the world around me through my lens and helping me through it — and, when I do fall short of the glory of the Lord, Jesus doesn’t demand reparation. Instead, the message of Christ is that I find joy and that I have life abundantly. Quite honestly, it is hard for me to accept that — but, really, I know it’s true. I don’t have to shamelessly demand to be loved and valued. I don’t even have to ask. Neither do you. You are loved because you are His. Period. Christmas is a celebration of God’s unconditional, irreversible, undeniable, all-encompassing love. Real love.
Prayer for the day: God, thank You for the gift of Your Son. We know there are mysteries around His birth and death we will not be able to comprehend in this lifetime, but His descent from heaven to be born into our world is an undeniable act of pure love. Help us to remember and take comfort in this message when we are experiencing loss and pain, particularly around the holidays. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.