CHRISTMAS BLUES

CHRISTMAS BLUES

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed.”Luke 1:46–48

Christmas can be the best of times or the worst of times. It tends to magnify whatever our circumstances may be at the time. No one really knows what Mary’s life was really like that first Christmas; it couldn’t have been that great. She lived in remote village in Israel. The nation had been in spiritual apathy and darkness for four centuries. To make things even more unpleasant, the hated gentiles, the Romans, were occupying their land. When she experienced the angelic visit followed by divine visitation, Mary’s life was irreparably changed. The birth of Christ was imminent, she was pregnant with the Son of God, The first Christmas was about to pierce the darkness that had enshrouded the land.
Maybe you have been stuck in a time of spiritual apathy. Does it sometimes feel as if The Lord moves in other people’s lives but not so much in yours? Maybe this Christmas you can join with Mary in her song of salvation and deliverance. Here is something Luther said of Mary’s song.

“Mary praised God for his power, knowledge, and desire to perform many amazing and great works. This song of praise strengthens our faith, comforts those who are humble, and terrifies all the powerful people on earth. She didn’t sing it for herself alone. She wanted all of us to sing this song with her. The great works God has done won’t comfort you unless you believe that God is. More important, you must believe that God is willing to do them! Willing to do them for you. However, believing that he is willing to do them for others but not for you is inadequate. If you only believe this much, you will put yourself beyond the reach of what God wants to do for you.”

Christmas is a time of new beginning, it is a time of spiritual renewal. It happens in winter, the darkest time of the year. Suddenly a light, a different kind of light pierces the darkness. Songs of joy fill the air and awaken our hearts. Just like Mary, two millennia ago, the song of The Lord begins to resound in our soul. We become aware that God our Savior has come, He has come for me. Just as Mary was shocked that she was the one God chose to carry her Son, we too are shocked with joy that we too are called to carry His Son in us in this dark world.
Luke 2:10-11 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”