“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.”

Have you been looking for any answers lately? I think a lot of us are looking for answers, because while life seemed relatively simple when we were young, it certainly doesn’t seem to be “simple” any longer.

There probably was a time when our primary concern in December was whether or not we would get what we wanted for Christmas.

That has changed. Now there are many of us who are wondering when, not if, we will get Covid-19, how long our job, or perhaps our marriage, will last. We are wondering how we are possibly going to pay our regular bills, much less buy Christmas presents. We are wondering how we got ourselves into such a predicament or how our children managed to get themselves into their predicaments.

There is an increasing number of us who are not looking forward to this time of year and see it only as a time when we are repeatedly reminded that our life is not a life of joy and peace. How can there be joy when children and adults who were so special to us have been cruelly snatched away? How can there be peace when it seems like the whole world has someone to love and love them, but we are so alone? Why is it that so many people are healthy and do not appreciate what they have and I am so sick and in pain that I would give almost anything for one good day?

Joy, peace, and love seem like fairy tale promises sometimes, but they are not!!!

God knows you and He loves you. Jesus didn’t just come to earth once a long time ago. He is still coming into the lives of ordinary people. He is still coming into your life. His Spirit is still bringing you good gifts. These are not gifts to enable us to forget about reality, but rather they are gifts that come in the midst of our reality. These are gifts that are better than any video game, sweater, jewelry, or power tool.

These are the gifts of Love that reminds us that someone cares and that our lives have value and purpose. The gift of Forgiveness that helps us understand that we can move out of the past into the present and actually look forward to the  future. The gift of Salvation and Eternal Life that gives us hope in the most difficult and discouraging of times.

This is why, in the midst of all everything that is your life right, you are wished a very blessed Advent and Christmas.

Pastor Dennis Niezwaag, December 2020