Christmas Traditions
The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; Make straight in the desert A highway for our God.” Isaiah 40:3
Christmas…not only is it the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” it’s also the most prepared-for season of the year as well. By the middle of fall, much of the country is in full Christmas mode with all of the plans and preparations underway. Lights are hung. Trees are cut or bought,or dragged out of a box,and decorated. For those who send photos, great care may be given to which pictures are the best of the children that year to send to all of the family and friends.
Besides all of the outward preparations, there is an inward preparation for Christmas as well. This preparation is more important, even necessary. This preparation involves the heart. It involves getting our hearts ready to receive the coming Savior and what He brings to us.
Centuries before Christ’s birth, Isaiah spoke of how John the Baptist would prepare the way for the Savior. He would not only announce Jesus’ coming on the scene, but would encourage the people to get themselves ready for Him. “Prepare the way of the Lord,” he said. “Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”
Neither Isaiah nor John was talking about a road-construction project. The preparation that they spoke of is a spiritual preparation. We follow Isaiah’s preparation instructions by first recognizing our sins. Our hearts are crooked with sins of every kind. But we hear of the Savior’s coming and come to Him with a contrite spirit. We ask the Lord to smooth out the roughness of our lives by helping us to see ourselves as we really are: desperate and in need of our Savior’s forgiveness.
And then, we are ready to receive Christ Jesus and the forgiveness He brings! We are prepared to receive the wondrous proclamation of our forgiveness in the Savior.
It’s always good to be prepared. And, when we come to Christmas lowly in heart and believing that in Christ we truly see our God and Lord, we are ready for all the gifts our God gives us! Amen.
Lord, help us prepare to receive you! Amen.