Why....

Every Christmas, the wonder of what God did way back 2000 years ago, always hits me on Christmas Eve. In all of the billions of galaxies that this universe contains, why did He choose this one? Amongst the zillions of stars, why did He choose ours? And amongst the planets, why did He choose ours upon which to bestow life?

And then, amongst all of the great empires, kingdom, and nations on earth, why did God choose one of its smallest ones, Judea, to bring His Son into the world. And out of all of the cities and towns of that small kingdom, why was little insignificant Bethlehem chosen as the birthplace of the Messiah? And why not in the house of a rich, powerful, and successful person? Why does God allow His Son to be born and laid to rest in the feeding trough of a stable?

Because that’s how God, great and almighty, omnipotent and eternal, works.

God does what He wills, in ways and for reasons that remain a mystery to us. He makes promises and keeps them, so that we will benefit from His goodness, mercy, and grace.

He promises never again to destroy the world, even though the wickedness of humanity deserves it.

He promises to heal us, revive us, and restore us to His favor, even although we have deeply offended Him.

He promises to forgive us of our sins, our past mistakes, and deepest regrets, and make our contaminated souls clean before His eyes.

He promises to keep us when we listen to His Son, and never lose us.

He promises to bring His Son, Jesus, back into our world, so that we may seek His Coming and know that we are never alone.

And His promises begin with God’s choice to bring His Holy Son into the world, in a stable, in a tiny town, in a small kingdom, on a tiny planet orbiting a weak yellow sun, on the edge of the Milky Way, amongst gazillions of galaxies, in this almighty universe, which is contained and sustained by God’s thoughts alone.

Let us pray: Lord God, You have called all of us to be here because You want us to know that we are never alone in the universe. You want us to experience the freedom that faith brings when we give our hearts and lives to Jesus. Liberate us from the past; rejoice with us at this present time, and prepare us for that wonderful day when Christ shall return to this planet, to claim and keep us for His own. Both now and forever. Amen.