We’ve heard all our lives that, “This is the most wonderful time of the year!” Many would agree and many would disagree. This is the time of year when families and friends gather for parties, people spend hours shopping for the perfect gift, Christmas lights are hung and trees are put up, cards are mailed, and children wait eagerly to open their gifts on Christmas morning. It’s the time of year that can be very difficult for those who have lost loved ones. When I was pregnant with Thomas, I always pictured us decorating for Christmas together, baking cookies for Santa together, watching Christmas movies together, and the biggest thing I remember imagining is Thomas running down the stairs to wake Buddy and me so that he could see what Santa brought him. Sadly, this will never happen. While those things are fun and exciting, they are not the reason we celebrate Christmas; Jesus Christ is and I would never wish for Thomas to be here to experience those things when he is instead standing face to face with our Savior. It IS the most wonderful time of year, not because of all the material things, but because the One who gives me hope that I will see my son again was born.
But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her. - Luke 1:30-38