“And the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us, and we saw His glory.”
Today, as we hear in my favorite Christmas song, O Holy Night, “the weary world rejoices.” Today, God gave us a Savior. We did not deserve this gift. We sinned. We betrayed God. We knew His laws, but we did what we wanted anyway and pushed Him away. But, in His immense love, He looked at this world of human beings He created in His image and likeness and His heart was filled with love. And in this immense love, He sent His Son.
The night that Christ was born truly changed the world. All of God’s promises in the Old Testament were fulfilled, and in His death we can live. Eternity with God can be ours. Our choices determine whether or not we accept His offer. But He came today as a tiny baby to give us that chance, and in coming “the soul felt its worth.”
What are we worth? We are worth mocking and beatings. We are worth the nails. We are worth an agonizing death. Why? Because we matter to God, and we are His.
Today, as we celebrate the greatest gift ever given to us, let us think about the gifts we can give to Baby Jesus. Take time to reflect and to find a way to improve some aspect of your life that will please Christ and help you grow closer to Him. Maybe you have held a grudge too long. Maybe you often let your anger get the best of you. Maybe you struggle with being kind to someone at the office or in your extended family. Maybe you have held on to hurt and bitterness so long that it’s eating you up inside. Maybe you struggle with an addiction. Or maybe you have felt yourself drift away from God. We all have something that has created a barrier between us and Our Lord. Our gift to Baby Jesus could be to begin to tear that barrier down.
Remember, our lives are not our own. They belong to Christ. This Christmas, let us not forget that we are His. Let us find joy in this fact and give Him the greatest gift we possibly can—ourselves.
And this Christmas, and always, let us praise and thank Him for taking on our sins and for dying so that we could have eternal life.
Indeed, the weary world rejoices when it gazes upon Baby Jesus, on Christmas day and every day. Merry Christmas!
“Y aquel que es la Palabra se hizo hombre y habitó entre nosotros. Hemos visto su gloria”.
Hoy, como escuchamos en mi canción navideña favorita, Oh Holy Night, “the weary world rejoices” (el mundo agotado se regocija). Hoy, Dios nos dio un Salvador. No nos merecíamos este regalo. Pecamos. Traicionamos a Dios. Conocíamos Sus leyes, pero hicimos lo que queríamos de todos modos y lo rechazamos. Pero, en su inmenso amor, miró este mundo de seres humanos que creó a su imagen y semejanza y su corazón se llenó de amor. Y en este inmenso amor, envió a su Hijo.
La noche en que Cristo nació verdaderamente cambió el mundo. Todas las promesas de Dios en el Antiguo Testamento se cumplieron y por Su muerte podemos vivir. La eternidad con Dios puede ser nuestra. Nuestras decisiones determinan si aceptamos o no su oferta. Pero Él vino hoy como un pequeño bebé para darnos esa oportunidad, y al venir “the soul felt its worth” (el alma sintió su valor).
¿Cuál es nuestro valor? Valemos la pena de las burlas y los golpes. Valemos la pena de los clavos. Valemos la pena de una muerte agonizante. ¿Por qué? Porque le importamos a Dios, y somos suyos.
Hoy, mientras celebramos el regalo más grande que jamás se nos haya dado, pensemos en los regalos que podemos entregar al Niño Jesús. Tómate un tiempo para reflexionar y encontrar una manera de mejorar algún aspecto de tu vida que agrade a Cristo y te ayude a acercarte más a Él. Tal vez has guardado rencor demasiado tiempo. Tal vez a menudo dejas que tu ira se apodere de ti. Tal vez te cuesta ser amable con alguien en la oficina o con uno de tus familiares. Tal vez te has aferrado al dolor y la amargura por tanto tiempo que te está consumiendo por dentro. Tal vez batallas con una adicción. O tal vez te has sentido alejado de Dios. Todos tenemos algo que ha creado una barrera entre nosotros y Nuestro Señor. Nuestro regalo al Niño Jesús podría ser comenzar a derribar esa barrera.
Acuérdense que nuestras vidas no son nuestras. Pertenecen a Cristo. Esta Navidad, que no nos olvidemos que somos suyos. Encontremos alegría por este hecho y démosle el mayor regalo que podamos: nosotros mismos.
Y esta Navidad, y siempre, le alabemos y le demos gracias por tomar nuestros pecados y por morir para que pudiéramos tener la vida eterna. De verdad, el mundo agotado se regocija cuando mira al Niño Jesús, el día de Navidad y todos los días. ¡Feliz Navidad!
Susan Ciancio has a BA in psychology and a BA in sociology from the University of Notre Dame, with an MA in liberal studies from Indiana University. For the past 19 years, she has worked as a professional editor and writer, editing both fiction and nonfiction books, magazine articles, blogs, educational lessons, professional materials and website content. Thirteen of those years have been in the pro-life sector. Currently Susan freelances and writes weekly for HLI, edits for American Life League, and is the executive editor of Celebrate Life Magazine. She also serves as executive editor for the Culture of Life Studies Program—an educational nonprofit program for K-12 students. You can reach her at slochner0.wixsite.com/website.
Feature Image Credit: ANGEL, cathopic.com/photo/13357-contemplando
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