But now, this is what the Lord says - He who created you, O Jacob, He Who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. (Isaiah 43:1-2)

Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. (Isaiah 43:18-19)

Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He Who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. (Isaiah 46:4)

Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in Me will not be disappointed. (Isaiah 49:23b)

On Christmas Day, I slipped away to spend time alone in our bedroom, reading the Christmas story, meditating especially on Mary and the conflicting emotions she must have experienced from the moment the angel told her about the coming Messiah. I wondered, was she lonely, afraid, confused? What emotions swirled around her soul when she gave birth to Jesus, far from family, disconnected from everything familiar? I felt strangely drawn to her heart and the feelings she may have experienced on that dark, lonely night.

Mary's song, recorded in Luke 1:46-55, acknowledged her own need of a Savior and her absolute trust that God keeps His promises from generation to generation. I wondered if she sang this song as a sacrifice of praise, choosing to believe the promises of God in the context of unbelievable circumstances. I followed the thread of her story to the foot of the cross and wept as I married my longing for Mark to her anguish as she watched the brutalization of her beloved Son. Did she wonder where God was? As if to answer my questions, God drew me back to the Scriptures from Isaiah where He repeatedly promised to never leave me alone, to guide me in the darkness, to never forget me, to always be with me. I remembered that Isaiah prophesied the virgin birth of Jesus and proclaimed that He would be called Immanuel, which means 'God with us.' The gospel of Matthew places this prophecy right in the middle of the Christmas narrative (Matthew 1:23).

And do you know how Matthew ends his gospel? By His resurrection, Jesus has proven Himself a victor over death. He's about to ascend to the right hand of His Father in heaven, and He promises His disciples - and His followers for generations to come - that He is not really leaving them. Jesus' last words: “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Jesus, through His Spirit, is here. With us. With you. With me. Even now. Especially now, in the season that celebrates His birth.

Songs in the Night: O Holy Night

At first I didn't want to hear any Christmas carols, but then I began to listen carefully to the words. I grabbed on to the ones that proclaimed the “thrill of hope” that weary souls experienced with the entrance of the baby Jesus into a broken and shattered world. Take a few minutes and review “O Holy Night.” Especially take notice of the second half of the second verse, “The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger, in all our trials born to be our Friend!”

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