Gratitude, Day 27 On this Fall morning, my mind is racing as I think of falling leaves, gone-too-soon loved ones, and heart piercing matters. The ups and downs of my emotional landscape render flowing tears more readily accessible. Will life ever be the same again? I wonder and ponder. Life as I knew it has become death. The colored leaves have already fallen. Loved ones have already exited my known universe. Heart-wrenching topics have already torpedoed my quiet boat. And it is hard. And it is raw. Missing and weeping and hurting have become familiar gerunds in the grammar of my heart. Yet (I love this 3-letter word!) . . . . . . life is here. . . . life is there. . . . life is everywhere. And my heart is uber thankful for life because of an uncommon promise that was once prophesied then became reality: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). Isaiah foretold it (Is 7:14). Matthew quoted it (Mt 1:23). It was given as a sign. 700 years later, the promise or the foretold sign no longer remained a fuzzy thought for truth-seekers but became a proven fact in a manger, a stable in Bethlehem. History recorded in its annals the sensational news of young teenage Mary who had not been with any man yet gave birth to a baby boy named Jesus. The angel announced it to nearby shepherds tending their flocks that night, saying: Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. (Luke 2:11-12, NIV) The fulfillment of the above prophecy in the persons of Mary and Jesus at the beginning of this common era unearths gratitude within my breast and bolsters my faith in three ways: 1. I am grateful for conception. The idea that God delights in authoring life in unlikely or even infertile environments heartens me. In the missing and the weeping and the hurting of this dark season, I am invited to see the light of the Creator knitting and impregnating the womb of my quasi disconsolate soul. I am invited to discover and embrace that life is not defined by my losses and trials; rather, life is defined by the Father who conceives and incubates eternal gains and triumphs reserved for anyone who believes in Him. Indeed, God is life. He is here, there, and everywhere. 2. I am grateful for the gift of birth. Labor pains, the crowning, the emerging body, the babys first cry, everything about childbirth is momentous. I am reminded this morning that God intends for this dreary and woeful season to eventually deliver a promised son on my behalf. And this son manifests himself in the restoration The Lord has in store for me. He has promised me day instead of night, laughter instead of tears, singing instead of wailing, dancing instead of mourning. What joy shall fill my heart with such a birth! Indeed, God is my restorer here, there, and everywhere. 3. I am grateful for Immanuel. Not only did Mary conceive and give birth to a son, she was granted the honor of naming her child Immanuel -- God with us. For me, I am truly encouraged this morning to think that The Lord of glory is with me. With. Me. It is mind-blowing. In my loss, I am not alone. In my missing Papi, the Son of God feels abandoned on the Cross. In my tears, Immanuel weeps with me. In my hurting, Jesus is also acquainted with grief. In life or death, health or sickness, plenty or want, acceptance or rejection, Immanuel is ever with me. I. Am. Not. Alone. Not ever alone. He is the Friend who sticks closer than a brother. Indeed, Christ is with me here, there, and everywhere. Thank You, Lord! How can I ever thank You enough?
Posted on: Fri, 17 Oct 2014 12:59:38 +0000
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