The God Of All Comfort

Do you believe it?  The year 2018 is almost over, and Christmas is right around the corner.

Sometimes Christmas and the holiday season is hard though, isn’t it?  For me, this is the second year in a row that I haven’t put up any decorations in our house.  My husband’s okay with it – because that way he doesn’t have to worry about stringing up the lights outside.

The reason I haven’t decorated this year is because I’ve been struggling with my emotions.  This year again our son won’t be home for Christmas and I’ve found myself stuck on the bottom of the seesaw, wondering if I’ll ever be lifted back up to the top again.

But God is good, all the time.  I shared in a recent video how my precious loving Father has lovingly shifted my focus back to what this season is all about – by going to The Grinch movie, of all things!

Sometimes the vastness of His knowledge simply blows me away.  Recently I came across something I’d never heard before; going all the way back to the gifts of gold, incense and myrrh that the Magi brought and laid before little Jesus over 2000 years ago in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1-12).  These were not just random gifts they had laying around their homes.  Instead each gift had been picked specifically by an all-knowing God.

I hope this excites you as much as it did me!

1. Gold.  Gold was the gift typically given to kings.  It says in 1 Timothy 6:14-16 and Revelation 19:11-16 that Jesus was to be the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
2. Incense.  Incense symbolized God’s presence – it was holy to God (Exodus 30:34-38).  Matthew 1:22-23 tells us that Mary and Joseph’s baby was to be named Immanuel, which means “God with us.”  Plus it tells us in John 1:14-18 that Jesus was God in the flesh.
3. Myrrh.  Myrrh was a type of burial spice.  It says in John 19:38-40 that it was one of the spices Joseph of Arimathea brought when he and Nicodemus went to bury Jesus.  Matthew 20:17-19 tells us that Jesus Himself knew that He was to be crucified.

Do you all see how incredible this all is?  The gifts the Magi brought were handpicked by God to signify that Jesus was to be the Lord of all, God in the flesh, and would die – all this for us!

Friends as we head into this Christmas we need to remember that God has plans for us, and those plans are specific and orderly.  He is our Father, and He knows better than all of us the best course of action to take in each and every circumstance.  I have a dear friend who said her pastor dad always told her “God is a God of order, not of chaos.”  Why is that so hard to remember?

Because we’re human, that’s why.  We let our eyes and thoughts drift to things and places where we should not go.  But how awesome is it that Father God knows us so deeply, and loves us so majestically, that when we find ourselves in the doldrums such as I’ve been the past 2 Christmases, that He organized the events my life to go to see The Grinch movie with a friend – which I probably never would have gone to on my own.

Never underestimate the path He has you on dear friends.  Even when things don’t make sense, He’s got everything in control.

Have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year!  Starting in January I’m going to be doing a series of blog posts about how things I went through when I was young have shaped me into what I am today.  I didn’t know who Jesus was back then, but He knew me.  And it took years to realize that even through the pain and sorrow I went through, He was right beside me protecting me – in spite of myself!  There were so many days of hurt and tears; as well as extremely frightening moments.  Growing up without godly parents is always difficult, but thankfully God knows all our hearts.

I look forward to chatting with you more in 2019!