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In her book, “Who Am I?” Marjorie
Holmes leads her readers in a prayer for all who get lost at
Christmas.
And who are these lost ones?
Holmes identifies them as children lost
in stores, adults lost in the confusion of crowded parties
and crowded lives controlled by drugs, drink, sex and
mistaken goals.
She includes husbands and wives lost to
each other through habit and neglect and misunderstanding;
sons and daughters lost to their parents and those who are
lost in prisons and at sea.
Christmas has a lot to do with losing
and finding.
The wise men, who traveled from the
east bringing gifts to the newborn king, lost their way when
they stopped following the star and ended up at the palace
of Herod. There, the king’s advisors consulted the
Scriptures and told them the king they sought was to be born
in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Following this good advice, they
found their way again and soon they were worshipping and
presenting their treasures of gold, frankincense and myrrh
to the one they had traveled far to find.
Many have lost their way in life and
then found their way home through faith in the one born in
Bethlehem that first Christmas. Recognizing the power of
God’s love revealed in Bethlehem’s stable, Marjorie Holmes
wrote: “Reach out your arms to us, bring us back into the
warm shelter of the stable. Let us gaze upon the miracle of
the manger. Let us become one with it, drawing new hope
from it, and a sense of new worth so that we know we are all
very dear to You, so that we are less likely to stray.”
Some, however, think they’ve lost
Christmas, itself, in the celebration. Perhaps you’re one
of them. If so, in order to help you find what you’ve lost,
I submit the poem below by our daughter, Cheryl, one of my
favorite writers of rhyme.
TAKE SOME TIME
Take some time from all the bustle of the season,
From the rushing crowds of people everywhere;
Find a quiet room and close the door behind you,
Take a moment…meet your Savior there.
Take some time to read again the Gospel stories;
Start in Matthew, move to Mark and Luke and John;
Read the truth about the life and love of Jesus,
The only One to rest your faith upon.
Take some time…and treasure what you find there;
Let the wonder of Christ’s birth embrace your soul;
Meditate upon the Gift God chose to give you,
In sending Jesus Christ to make you whole.
Take some time…or the season will o’erwhelm you.
Just let go of all your worries, all your care.
Find that quiet room and close the door behind you.
Take the time…your Savior’s waiting there.
…Cheryl Campbell Powell |
