The Light has Come

I think I mentioned this a couple years ago in a sermon and if I didn’t some of you may of say it on Facebook.

But in college when Arika and I were engaged Arika got this idea that when we got married she wanted to start a new tradition where every Christmas our whole family got matching pajamas

And I was able to push back on it for our first couple years,

And then we had a kid and I was told listen, if you won’t be a part of the matching pajamas then everyone else will get them except you.

And I thought that was unfair, so all of the to say here we are in year one, year two and now year three of matching pajamas.

I think high school me would be so disappointed about this

But you know if I am honest I love Christmas traditions, there is something about the traditions we do that make the holiday special each year.

You know and its neat because there are some really interesting traditions around the world.

In Germany they actually hide a pickle in the tree and you have to find the pickle in the morning before opening presents

In Dutchland they place there actual shoes by the fireplace and Santa fills their own shoes before Christmas instead of stockings (make sure you buy new shoes before Christmas)

And then my favorite Christmas tradition is in Venezuela people roller-skate to church on Christmas.

And so many people do it that in Venezuela’s capital Carcus, they actually close the roads around the time churches start there service.

But you know one thing that is so neat with each tradition whether it is one of these or maybe a tradition we have personally in our family is there is a backstory that makes it special,

but a lot of times what will happen is we do these traditions year after year and it looses the specialness and becomes a tribual thing that we just do and really it looses its meaning.

And as we celebrate Christmas, it is so easy to come to church, sing Christmas songs, enjoy a beautiful service, and then leave while somehow missing what God has done and is doing in your life this evening.

and so this evening for just a short period of time, I would love to have us pause and lean into the story we just read

And my prayer for us is that we will leave this place realizing the life changing significance that this story brings to our lives.

Because I want you to picture understand whats happening in this story.

Because the story focuses on this young couple named Mary and Joseph.

In fact Mary is somewhere between the age of 12 and 16 years old and pregnant.

And not just pregnant, but she is really pregnant ( I mean she is ready to pop).

And so you can picture Mary nesting, getting their place ready to have this baby with so much excitement

When all of the sudden there is a decree (or order) that goes out from the Roman government that changes Mary’s plans.

Because now instead of Mary waiting at home for the baby to come, she finds herself going on 90 mile (probably about a 30 day) journey from where she is to Bethlehem.

And where they were the weather would have been freezing around this time of the year

Not only that but the trip was dangerous.

It was not uncommon for people to get robbed or even killed on a trip like this.

And on top of all this Mary could go into labor any second, without any shelter or anyone around other than Joseph.

And you can picture the fear, the worry, and the anxiety that this teenage girl felt as all the “what if’s” entered her mind

And not only that, but as those “what if” thoughts became a reality.

because they go on this trip and arrive to Bethlehem to discover there is no room in the inn.

And Mary ends up giving birth to her first child in a barn surround by animals in the cold of night.

But heres what I want you to get because I am telling you this not to ruin the Christmas story for you, but for you to understand that the Christmas story is a messy story.

Because so often we take the Christmas story and make it sound warm, fuzzy and peaceful, when in reality it is messy!

Its like how a lot of us might have family gatherings tomorrow and if your family is normal there might be a little dysfunction their.

And the family get together could be a disaster.

The uncles are arguing

A Person forgot to bring a main dish

The police got called and people are angry

But then we will post on Facebook how we had a great time with our family.

But heres the thing because the Christmas Story is messy,

But it is out of this mess that the savior of the world is born.

And can I just tell you if the savior of the world can come in a mess like that, don’t you think He can come into the mess you are going through in your life right now?

You know if you come to our house right now and saw our Christmas tree some of you would wonder what in the world happened to our tree (Take out ornament)

because there are almost no ornaments on bottom half of the tree because we have a toddler who either breaks the ornaments himself or takes the ornaments off the tree and then we step on them and break the ornament ourselves. (Step on Ornament)

But this is what I want you to get because you might feel like your life looks like this ornament

Its shattered and broken beyond repair.

You have made mistakes

Maybe your kids are making mistakes

Maybe your family can’t stand each other

Financially you are in trouble

There is a hurt in your life that you just can’t get over

And maybe there is something going on that I didn’t list, but its coming to your mind right now, because it is just a broken area

And ultimately you are looking at your life or even just the situation and it just feels shattered like this bulb

And if you are honest you do not see a way to put the broken pieces back together.

It feels hopeless.

But heres the thing, because I found this art project where there are people who will take broken ornaments

And they see what we see as broken beyond repair and valueless

And they see value, because they take the broken bulb and they put the broken pieces together in a way where they create a new ornament

And the amazing thing is these ornaments end up being more beautiful then before they were broken.

And I really want you to hear this, this evening, because you may feel broken and even alone this Christmas,

but we have a savior who is taking your broken pieces and putting them back together in a way that is more beautiful that we can imagine.

And He is ready to enter your brokenness the way he entered this broken world over 2000 years ago.

But the question is are we going to let Him enter our lives

Because one of the amazing parts of this story is that others are invited into it.

Because if we look at the story we read and even just look at the manger scene its not just Mary and Joseph here with this baby

But their were shepherds who came

and the shepherds were rough guys who you did not want to mess with.

and then eventually (some believe it might have been a year later) but eventually wisemen came who were considered upper class and they had everything together.

But whats beautiful here is those who are a mess and those who seem to have it all together are invited to experience this child that has come into this world.

And this evening I do not know where you are, but I can guarantee that you are invited.

And I just want to end by reading verse 15 of this story because it says this:

Luke 2:15 NIV

15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

JOE COMES UP TO STRUM

You know the Shepard's recieved this good news, but they had to make a descion on what are we going to do with it.

Are we going to keep living the way we have been or are we going to see and experience this gift that God has given us.

You know this evening we are reminded of this gift (being Jesus) that can change your life drastically.

We are reminded of this gift that has come to this world because of His love for you.

The question is are we going to keep living how we have been or are we going to accept this gift in our life and allow it to change us from the inside out

And as we close tonight you should have recieved a candle (if for some reason you didn’t you can grab one in the back)

But we are going to have a couple people that will be coming around to light the candles of the people sitting closest to the inside isle.

and I would invite you to light the candles of the people in your row

And as the lights go off and as we sing these songs. I want us to take a moment and look at the light we are holding

Because this light represents the light of the world that has come for us

And not just that but it is a light that can completely change our lives.

This year can we please make this more than a tradition?

And maybe this year if we haven’t accepted this light into our lives yet (or we strayed away) how amazing would it be for tonight to be the night that we accept it and begin our relationship with Christ.

And so as we close and sing these last couple songs will you look at this light and ask yourself have I accepted it into my life?

Maybe tonight is the night your broken pieces can be put back together.

Will you pray with me?

Sing songs:

Away in a manger

Silent Might

You know I love the end of this story because at the very end it tells us Mary treasured these things up in her heart.

This evening if God spoke to you and maybe you decided you wanted to start over in your walk with God.

Can I just encourage you do not forget it. Treasure it in your heart. Make it so this is not a one time thing, but something that will change your life.

And I would encourage you to let someone know. There are connect cards in the rows in front of you and that is a great way to write down and tell us how God spoke to you.

So we can be in prayer for you. And you can just place the black box in the back as you exit.

I would also love to talk with you about it and pray with you.

But can I just be the first to wish you a Merry Christmas!

I really hope you have a blessed time with family and friends tomorrow as you celebrate our saviors birth.

God bless and Merry Christmas!