Following our granddaughters’ last visit, our manger scene was a bit of a mess. The aftermath of them spending time with the figurines resulted in what appears to be a rather rough morning after a crazy party. I was tempted to rearrange the scene, righting it from this chaos to a more aesthetically pleasing nativity scene…but I stopped myself.
Every morning, I look at what I now call the “Rager in the Manger” and smile. I am reminded of the little hands that held those figurines and the interesting conversations I overheard.
The display’s inhabitants varied quite a bit…in addition to the regulars, a nesting doll set, a ballerina, and a reindeer made an appearance. I tried to keep up with the soap opera unfolding before me as they played. At one point, every figurine was placed in the stable and given names, “this one is grandma Boyles, this is grandpa, this one is Nana and this is Papa…” Eventually, an unusual storyline emerged from their imaginations…Brooklyn, the youngest, was the ballerina. She proclaimed she was the mommy and kept having her ballerina lovingly kiss baby Jesus. Parker, the middle child, pushed back at this idea. Showing Brooklyn a picture of the nativity scene on a nearby music box, she pointed out that Mary was not a ballerina. Brooklyn explained that the picture was before she was a ballerina. Parker’s imaginative mind wrestled this concept into time travel. Asking if she came back in time. Then, out of nowhere, Brooklyn proclaimed, “Baby Jesus is going to die”. Cue dramatic pause…Parker once again tries to make it make sense, “so you came back to sped time with him?”
“Baby Jesus is going to die.” This blunt statement felt unsettling in the midst of ramping up for the Christmas season, and yet, she was not wrong.
This next week of Advent, we await the celebration of the birth of Jesus while contemplating His LOVE for us. Births are hope-filled and worthy of celebration each year with candles, presents, and cake. But, what makes this particular birth different can be found in those startling words uttered by my granddaughter: “Baby Jesus is going to die”.
God sent His son, Jesus Christ, to our world on that night long ago…the Word becoming flesh, a savior born to take on the sin of the world, a fulfillment of God’s promise to us all. His life would continually point the way to His Father. In every step He took, every action and word, He was leading us to the cross. Yes, baby Jesus would die, but the story only begins there…Christ’s death and resurrection made a way for you and I to be reconciled with God. Once separated from God by our sin, we can seek forgiveness and know grace because Christ was born, lived, died, and rose again.
“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the porpotiation(atonement) for our sins.” 1 John 4:10
We are loved. You are loved. It is not an earned love. It is a gift, waiting to be accepted, given to us in the birth of Christ. This week, in every nativity I see, in my head I will hear Brooklyn’s sweet voice: “Baby Jesus is going to die” and I will thank God for this most precious gift and remember how loved we are.
Tuesday With Teri 