Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
    stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.  – Isaiah 53:4-6

I did an object lesson with my boys on Christmas Eve.  While we were eating, I brought my dog’s nasty dish to the table.

It was particularly nasty, in need of a good cleaning.  Even though they are boys, and therefore very familiar and comfortable with dirt, they looked at me as if I had lost my mind.

I asked them if they would like to sleep in there.

Again, they looked at me as if I had lost my mind.  Realization was starting to dawn with the big two, and maybe the little ones as well.

I then reminded them that Jesus came here as a baby and slept in something maybe even more nasty…all because He loves each of them.

The packages may be unwrapped, the hoopla over the season may be done, leaving just a mess and a thousand dirty dishes (at least at my house)…but this fact does not change.

For us He did this…each and every one of us.  He came knowing what this world was like…and what His death would be like.

And He did it anyway.

Let’s remember this Christmas feeling throughout the year…and honor Him the day after Christmas as much as we did on Christmas.

Father, thank You for the indescribable gift of Your Son.  Help us to remember Him with the joy and fervor and anticipation of Christmas each and every day of our lives.  In Jesus’ name.  Amen.

You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. – 2 Corinthians 3:3

Well, out doing some cookie delivery this morning, I got rear-ended.  But…it was actually a blessing.

Stopped at a light, I was finishing a conversation with Matthew.  Then I felt a bump in the back of the car.  I quickly hung up, pulled onto a side street, and got out of the car.  No damage to me (benefit of a big car)…but the little black Nissan that hit me had some obvious damage.

So did the young woman (very young) who got out of the car.

Oh, not physical damage…but she was severely shaken.

I went into “mom” mode.

I asked her if she was OK, even as she continued to apologize for hitting me.  I took this trembling young thing gently by the arm and told her everything was OK.  Cars are just hunks of metal, and not that important.  The important thing was that everyone was OK.  I told her to call her parents.  She tried, but did not get them.

She said she was headed today to file the paperwork for her upcoming wedding and was meeting her fiance at his job.  She apologized again, and started to cry.  I put an arm around her to comfort her.

She wore a cross on her neck.  I pointed to it and asked if she was a Christian.  She nodded.  I told her I was, too.  Then I told her I thought we should pray.

I took this young, still-trembling woman in my arms and prayed with her.  She was quietly sobbing while I thanked God for everyone’s safety, and asked for the Lord to calm the heart of sweet Mary (for that is her name…a bit ironic) and help her to go on safely and peacefully through her day.

As we were finishing the prayer, a man in a white pick-up stopped to make sure we were OK.  We both said we were, and he answered, “You all have a blessed day,” as he drove off.  I told Mary that was our confirmation that God had the situation.  How cool when He shows up like that!

She texted me a bit later to thank me for praying with her and for being so caring.

Now, I know very little about this young woman.  I know she has a tender heart and that she trusts the same Savior I do.  Even if she did not trust Him, I knew all I needed to know to take a tough situation and try to make it better.

I am thankful to God that she was wearing her cross that I could see it, thus feeling more open about praying with her.  The old saying about there being no atheists in foxholes probably would apply to car accidents as well, but the confirmation from a small piece of silver with diamond chips was a blessing.

I am thankful, too, for the confirmation of God from the man in the pick-up…both for my sake and for Mary’s.

I am thankful that no one was hurt and that her car was able to be driven.

But, mostly, I am thankful for God giving me the strength to help show Him in a situation where it would have been so easy to respond in a worldly manner, rather than with the love of Christ.

And while I pray that her car is easily fixed and that she does not stress over it any longer, I thank God that I got to meet Mary today.  She will be in my prayers for many days to come.