Thursday, December 5, 2013

A Christmas Devotion #4

Luke 2:10-11; But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord".

Have you ever felt special? Have you ever had that moment when everything is about you? Where all of the affection in your world seems to be directed towards yourself…..

Well, growing up I felt special every time December 25th rolled around. Waking up Christmas morning in a home full of joy, love and excitement. Trying my hardest to get to the presents as fast as I could only to be prevented by the Christmas routine of looking in every room but the room with the tree in, just in case there had been presents left there. This childlike frustration/anticipation only added to the growing glee with my heart. Whether I was unwrapping all of the He-Man Figures that I had asked Santa for, or as I grew older and saw the love that my family showed, by picking out gifts that they knew I would love, I always felt special. Opening these gifts as a child felt like the best time of my life because I felt so loved. I felt special at the dinner table wearing my tacky paper hat, sitting next to my granddad as we would all partake in the meal and Christmas pudding that my mam had made for us. As a child I felt like that day was just for me. Sure my brother and sister had a great time too, and the day was for them as much as it was for me, but, I felt like it was all done for me. This feeling that I have had over the years on this day (which I am sure many of you share) was an overwhelming sense of joy and personal elation.

Now, as the years pass by these feelings find a new deeper root within the very citadel of my soul when I read passages such as Luke 2:10-11. "Today in the city of David there has been born for you a Saviour"; this blows my mind. The angel from the Lord was very specific when he said "born for you". It tells us of the very deliberate plan of Christ, that He came to this earth as a Saviour for you and for me. Verses such as these only go to add to the already highly personal plan that God has for our lives. You can imagine how special these shepherds felt when the angel came to say these things to them? As we read on in the text we see something extraordinary happen. A heavenly host, a multitude of angels appeared proclaiming peace on earth and goodwill to all men. Around 1264, Thomas Aquinas penned these words in a hymn; “Panis angelicus, fit panis hominum, Dat panis cœlicus”. (Bread of the Angels, Is made bread for mankind; Gifted bread of Heaven). Truly, in this moment the ‘bread of Angels’ was given to us….. Our true Bread of Life, Christ Jesus.

My prayer this Christmas, is that you will feel like the special chosen person in Christ that you are and that you will have great joy this Christmas season because there has been a Saviour born for YOU!

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