Buechner: Gift of Christmas
“O Lord, the gift of new life, new light, can be a gift only if we open ourselves to receive it. So, this is our prayer, Lord: that thou wilt open our eyes to see thy glory in the coming again of light each day, open our ears to hear the angels’ hymn in the stirring within us of joy at the coming of the child, open our hearts to the transforming power of thy love as it comes to us through the love of all those who hold us most dear and have sacrificed most for us.
Be born among us that we may ourselves be born. Be born within us that by words and deeds of love, we may bear the tidings of thy birth to the world that dies for lack of love. Amen.”—Frederick Buechner, “Come and See,” Secrets in the Dark, A Life in Sermons, p. 55.
Seibert women lunch, Women with many gifts.
The gift of Christmas is the incarnation, a big word that means God loves us so much that God came among us and became human. It was and is a gift. The gift of the incarnation also extends to us, as it did to Mary. On this eleventh day of Christmas, I remember that a part of God is also born in us and every other person we meet.
Advent has been a time for us to prepare to honor the Creator by learning how to keep unwrapping that gift.
My granddaughter, Zoe, and I have a tradition of spending time wrapping presents together, beginning in October. So, wrapping gifts that will soon be unwrapped becomes a significant part of my year during this time.
The women in our family also try to have lunch as often as possible, especially during the 12 days of Christmas. I love watching and seeing how gifted each of them is, especially with the gift of love.
As we meet with spiritual friends, we cannot help but imagine how we unwrap that gift of the Christ Child in ourselves and each other. As spiritual friends, we have the privilege of watching and waiting for the excitement of Christmas morning with each other. When some realize Christ is in them, they excitedly unwrap the present, almost tearing the paper apart. Others unwrap the gift slowly and cautiously.
We, as observers, also receive a gift, for the gift of the Christ Child is too powerful to keep and must be shared. Our spiritual friends help us unwrap the gift within ourselves as they share the gift in them.
Each experience is unique, but the gift is continually offered to all of us by the One whose name is Love.
Joanna https://www.joannaseibert.com/