An Imperfect Christmas

Sometimes at Christmas we can dwell on what we don’t have. It is at Christmastime that “Want is keenly felt.” Perhaps we don’t have enough money or we don’t have the companionship of a spouse, parent or children, maybe someone we love is ill. We all are living with the pain and uncertainty of an imperfect world.

When I think about the first Christmas, I’m struck with the imperfections of the coming of Christ. Mary gave up her reputation of being a good Jewish girl to become an unwed mother. She traveled a long distance, away from home and loved ones, only to give birth in an inconvenient place. If Christ were born in modern times, all the hotel rooms would be booked. Couldn’t God get Mary and Joseph a hotel room? No, there were no hotel rooms, but someone offered them their garage. Mary gave birth in a garage and put the baby on the back seat of a car. Not my idea of the best provision.

Mary and Joseph were further inconvenienced when God told them to leave Israel. Not many of us would relish being told to move to a place where we didn’t know anyone, not to mention the hardship of living in a foreign culture - another less than ideal circumstance.

One message of Christmas is that God did not come to earth to give us our ideal life. He came to be a light into our darkness. He came to guide us toward hope and truth. He came to be Emmanuel – God with us. So if this Christmas you are keenly aware of the imperfections of this life, know that He came to carry your burdens and share your sorrow. Like the first Christmas, He won’t make your life perfect, but He will be an “ever-present help in time of need.”(Ps. 46:1) Despite our circumstances, we can still rejoice that God loved us enough to send a savior - Christ our Lord.