The question is nearly as old as time: who is God to you? Is He your emergency backup when things are going wrong? Is He your once-in-a-lifetime, couldn't-live-without-Him love? Is He your personal Santa Claus, granting success in busines and relationships, and any other number of wishes?
As I was getting dressed last Monday morning, I was thinking about Christmas. It is a time of year when much energy is devoted to talking about the reason for the celebration, and documentaries discuss who Jesus was/is. Because my husband loves these documentaries, I was disturbed to learn that the latest theory paints Jesus as an alien.
I thought of all the people in Bible times who questioned: Is he a prophet? Is he a madman? Is He a Great Teacher? Who is He?
And all they needed to know was His name: Emmanuel. God with us.
You see, when Hagar was running from Sarai, He was El-Roi, the God who sees me. When Elijah was under a tree being fed by ravens, He was Jehovah-Jireh, my Provider. When David was running from Saul, He was El Elohim, my strong Protector.
And all of these are summed up in one name: Emmanuel.
God was with Israel in battle.
God was with Hagar in isolation.
God was with David in danger.
God was with Elijah in desperation.
God is with us. In joy and in grief. And when they mix.
Jesus didn't come to be the perfect baby in the manger. He came to get dirty; to experience scraped knees and a bruised heart. He came to experience loneliness and shattered friendships, and even loss through death. He came to know the spotlight, the applause, and the silence: to experience the hillside crowds and the Garden solitude.
Is it so hard to believe that He came to be with us? Is it really easier to think of Him as an alien than as our self-sacrificial Friend? Do we believe that we are too difficult, our lives too messy, to be loved by the Redeemer?
Oh, but that's why I adore Him! He does redeem us -- and our mess! Still, right in the middle of the corporate success, interpersonal disasters, loss and discontent - He walks with us. He waits only to be acknowledges and invited.
Immanuel: God with us.
Blessings to you, my friend. I pray your Christmas holds the peace that only comes from knowing Him.
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