I am always amazed at the night sky as we transition to the
colder time of the year. There seems to
be a crisper look to the sky. The stars
and moon look brighter and more vibrant.
I was looking in the sky the other night as the moon was full. I noticed besides the moon scattered clouds
and a smattering of stars throughout the sky.
The moonlight gave great reflection off the clouds and gave a view of
the universe that allowed you to appreciate the beauty and feel small in God’s
universe at the same time.
I think it is good to put our life in perspective. We are all part of a grander story of
creation. Our part in this story may
seem small in relation to the time we have on earth, yet our time here does
matter significantly. We are charged
with the task of passing on the legacy, story, and witness of God’s love. This is no small task. We are co-participants in sharing the
greatest story of all time. God believes
in our ability to tell and live this story every day of our lives. It is easy for us to ignore this story and
simply do what we want to do. It requires
us to be intentional and mindful that we are God’s ambassadors on earth. We are to consider each day how we will
enter, engage, and embody this story in our words and our actions.
We will come into close contact with this story of God’s
love intimately with the celebration of Jesus’ birth. The story of the baby Jesus reminds us that
God does not forget. God fulfills
promises. God seeks to be in our
presence even in vulnerable ways. God
desires a relationship with us. God
believes in us enough to rely on us to care for this child, seek to find this
child, worship this child, and do everything in our power to honor this child
with our daily life. We can easily get
lost in the cultural Christmas busyness.
I hope we can see through the chaos of the day and find the joy and mystery
that is the incarnation, Immanuel (God-with-us).
The next time you look up at the stars at night I want to
remember that we are to be humbled in our single solitary life, yet we are
wrapped up in a story of love that we live every day. Our task is to share that story and invite
others to live that same story, too. If
you recall, three men looked up in the sky one night at a bright star. They chose to follow that star and it changed
their lives forever. Stargazing can be
more encompassing than you think.
Grace and Peace,
Rev. Dr. Chris Wilson
