Advent Day 17 - Light of Christmas Devotional

John 1:1-4

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

One of my earliest Christmas time memories is of bundling up in my pyjamas, getting into the car after dark, and well after my bedtime and going for a family drive. We were headed to Chipping Norton, where many houses were adorned with Christmas lights. I can't tell you much about those displays now, but I can tell you that to my young eyes, they were a sight to behold. I've always had a fondness for fairy lights.

Growing up in apartments meant we had a balcony and while some neighbours only had Christmas lights up through December, our house went through a good several months one year with a string of multi-coloured Christmas light around the hand rail. Eventually these were phased out in favour of a simple white bulb tube of lights. It gives atmosphere year round and I love sitting on my parents balcony in that ambience.

I love that we adorned our homes and Christmas trees with lights at Christmas time. There's something special about the lights, as there is about the stars in the heavens. Light brings with it joy, peace, clarity. While I'm not afraid of the dark, I do so like having even a little source of light in the darkness, if I do need to walk around the house. But when darkness comes into our lives, it can feel so heavy and hard to find a light to break through that darkness. We look to all the wrong things to bring us joy, peace and clarity. In John 8:12, Jesus says, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'

I've been reading Ann Voskamp's advent study 'The Greatest Gift' and very much loved her writing on December 14th. I'll share portions of it here:

There is a dawn in the dark, there is unstoppable light, there is God-glory blazing. Our God who breathes stars in the dark - He breathes Bethlehem's Star, then takes on lungs and breathes in stable air. We are saved from hopelessness because God came with infant fists and opened wide His hand to take the iron-sharp edge of our sins...

Our God who cradles whole inking galaxies in the palm of His hand, whom highest heaven cannot contain - He folds Himself into our skin, and He uncurls His newborn fingers in the cradle of a barn feeding trough... and we are saved from ourselves...

The message of Christmas is that this world's a mess and we can never save ourselves from ourselves and we need a Messiah. For unto us a Child is born.' (pp. 138-139)

The message of Christmas and of this life is that Jesus came to take our darkness on Himself so that He could take it away, far away from us. We don't have to battle against darkness alone. We can call on the Light, who stepped down into darkness. We can celebrate this Christmas, because Jesus 'is the light of all mankind. The light [that] shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not [and will not] overcome it'. (John 1:4)

So let your light shine this Christmas.

N.

P.S. Have you got Christmas lights up in or around your home? Please share a picture with us on our Instagram page @casualgraceblog