Find the still and simple moments of life to pause and reflect on the marvelous, tender gift of Jesus entering the world.
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SHAUNA: Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a story about the manger, but an unusual and strange way of singing about it. Let’s listen.
(Joni sings:)
Away in a manager, no crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head;
The stars in the sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.
JONI: Now, you don’t normally hear that strange tune in a minor key; but Jesus coming into the world, it was kind of a minor key. Because He came into this world to His own, and His own received Him not. So, today, may you find a chance to treasure that wonderful, strange gift that God should intervene history through Jesus Christ our Lord. Because everyone needs a quiet moment – a soft moment, a tender moment – to reflect on the marvelous gift that God has given us through His Son, so hauntingly tender. I remember doing that even as a child. I was just a little girl, still on my feet, and I was looking out the farmhouse window. The snow was falling in light, dry flakes, and a soft haze made our barn in the distance almost disappear. By late afternoopocket and on my jacket, stuffed a few carrots into my pocket, and trudged through the snow to the stable. With all the warm celebration going on in the house, I did not want the animals in the barn to be left out. That’s just the kind of kid I was. It was quiet in the barn with the sweet aroma of hay and the cozy scent of horses, the sound of my own breathing. I walked down the aisle in the barn and stopped at each stall to wish each horse a Merry Christmas, giving them carrots, of course. I looked around the barn; it was so quiet, so still, and I felt so warm and safe, and protected. And I even felt love. It was like God was speaking to me that afternoon in a haunting, strange, minor-keyway. I felt His quiet, and His calm serenity.
Now, maybe you don't live on a barn – or on a farm, I should say. Perhaps when you look outside, you see your neighbor’s fence. Or you could live in an apartment or a trailer. Wherever you are, even in a city, find that place to be apart. It could be a brisk walk to a park today or snuggle up in bed in an upstairs bedroom. Wherever it is, make time to be alone with Jesus. For Luke 2 tells us, when the baby was born, she placed Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. Well, friend, make room in your day, in your evening, for a few minutes of quiet.
SHAUNA: Well, that’s a strange story, isn’t it? How Jesus came to His own, but His own received Him not. Why not tell your unsaved friends that? And if you’d like to share the peace of Christmas with someone, visit us today at joniradio.org. You’ll find this program there and you can share it with your unsaved neighbors, your family members and your friends. Because Christmas is coming and we want everyone to accept Christ in their heart. So, find that place to be apart to treasure the minor-key-peace God gives every Christmas and every day. Thanks for listening today on Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope.
© Joni and Friends