Being Intimate at Christmas

My wife and one of my daughters had just left our home to go and do Christmas lay-away shopping and I had the home to myself for the next few hours. I began to think about all the events coming up and the shopping to be done. I’ll need a vacation in January to recover. My mental calculator is going into overdrive trying to figure out the budget and how to make everyone happy without breaking the bank. In the middle of this God drops a thought, be intimate at Christmas. I thought this is strange everyone knows that Christmas is a time of shop to you drop and go until you can’t go any more. But the thought of being intimate at Christmas persisted.

   So, I began to mediate on this thought of intimacy. I began to take a closer look at the Christmas Story and I began how intimate it truly was. First of all we have a young girl named Mary having an encounter with an angel and after a short discussion she agrees to have a child by the Holy Spirit and an intimate a wonderful thing occurs she conceives Luke 1:26-38.

Mary’s soon to be husband, Joseph gets his own intimate visit, in a dream, from the Angel of the Lord telling him what has happened and its O.K. to marry Mary ( Matthew 1:18-25) .

  We all know the next part of the story found in Luke 2:1-18. There was no room in the inn; the place was packed with people, not an intimate place at all. But an intimate was found, in a stable and the birth of Jesus took place. Then, shepherds showed up, telling of an encounter with angels and they come to see what God has done. The thing I would like to point out is there were only a few shepherds maybe as many as twelve.  In other words, there was an intimate few who came to the stable that night. 

   Then, in Luke 2:25-38 comes a great point of intimacy with God. Simeon, a devout and righteous man and Anna a woman who worshipped God day and night have their intimate time with Jesus. This happened in the middle of the Temple with hundreds of people going about their business around them. And finally, the visit of the Magi (Matthew 2:1-12) who traveled from the east and sought out the King of the Jews and when they found him, they had an intimate time of worship. 

   So, here in the midst of one of the greatest events of all eternity, God takes time to be intimate with His people who have a relationship with Him. God’s desire for mankind is to have an intimate relationship with Him. He waits patiently for us. Take time in the midst of all the shopping, parties and events this Christmas season to spend some intimate time with Jesus. Remember Jesus wants to spend time with you.

Just, take a few minutes, get still, and invite him to come as you wait on him. If you do this, you will find a deeper and more intimate relationship with God. You will also find a truth in Christmas that will change your life.      

   

©COPYRIGHT 2011 RICHARD SPANGLER