Love came down at Christmas

“Love came down at Christmas

Love all holy, love divine

Love was born at Christmas

Star and angel gave the sign.”

[ For a modern rendition of this carol by Jars of Clay, go to
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIr5th0d44Y ]

I’m pretty sure we are all familiar with these words by Christina Rossetti … in fact we may have sung them only last night or this morning. Just as I’m also sure we have heard at least one sermon mentioning the importance of love in the Christmas story. But have we really experienced or internalized just what this actually is in our lives?

Everyone has a Christmas story … and so here’s mine. Let’s revisit the knight and his lady, who, if you remember from my earlier blog “An Allegory”, are now settled in the "kingdom that cares'.

"It was just a few days before Christmas, and the weather outside was frightful! While the main roads were simply treacherous, the lanes and by-ways were impassable. People were warned not to venture outside their manors except for emergencies. As previously mentioned the knight and his lady were not as young and as spry as they once were. Yet they were not afraid or even anxious as the storm howled outside their walls. “Why?” wondered the lady. ‘Why do I feel safe and secure even though the elements are beyond what we can cope with and we might well be cut off for days from the necessities of life like water and fuel? We aren't strong enough to brave the storm in order to acquire these.” She thought about this all night as the storm raged, but was no nearer an answer when morning came. With them in the manor lived a younger family, who while busy with their affairs kept an eye on the knight and his lady. So as the winds howled, the younger couple made sure that they had good food, and the waning of the storm saw three generations out clearing away the shambles, making it possible for everyone to travel once more. And the lady realized that this was why she had felt safe during the storm… because she knew intuitively that she could count on the younger couple and their family to keep her and the knight safe."

And why you might ask is this a Christmas story? I believe it is a Christmas story because what the lady really felt was the love of those around her. Not a showy love, not a love that needed to be expressed in words, not a love that expected something in return, but a love that was just ‘there’ supporting when needed. And isn't this the same kind of love that Jesus exemplified in his lifetime?

And so my wish for all of you this Christmastide is that you too have an opportunity to experience the support of love and also the opportunity to offer it to others throughout the coming year.

In the words of Tiny Tim "God bless you, everyone!"

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