Our world is full of signs. There are signs to warn us as well as signs to inform us. So many messages telling us all kinds of things besiege us. We tend to ignore most of them. Unfortunately, ignoring a traffic sign may earn you a ticket or worse. But what if someone told you to watch for a sign and you missed it completely?
I’m sure like me, you’ve experienced this a time or two. A friend gave you directions that weren’t very clear. ‘Turn left on 10th street at the yellow house then drive straight until you see a giant oak tree. Our name is on the mailbox across the street’. When you’ve driven twice as far as expected, you realize you’re lost. How did you go past that important turn? Maybe you missed the sign.
Over two thousand years ago, on a cold, clear night, shepherds kept watch over their sheep in the fields outside Bethlehem. It was a night like any other for them. Nothing special or out of the ordinary. Then suddenly, the sky burst into light with angelic voices singing a glorious song. They fell to the ground in fear.
While the shepherds trembled, an angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David, a savior is born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in clothes and lying in a manger.”1
Rather than running away in terror, the shepherds traveled into Bethlehem to look for this special baby. As the angel foretold, they found him: Jesus, Emmanuel-God with us. Even today, he still makes his presence known. If you keep your eyes open and watch for a sign, you’ll find him in the most unexpected places
Just this last week, Jesus revealed his presence to me during a normal conversation with a woman I met over a year ago. I knew she worked in a pharmaceutical company in the city but I had no idea what she did for them. Only when I shared with her that my sister was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer, did she tell me that her team is developing a potential treatment for that very same cancer.
The overwhelming impossibility of this chance meeting was not lost on me. God set up this crucial contact and answered our prayers long before we even asked for help. Then he sent me a sign to say, ‘I hear your prayers. Never forget, I’m with you always.’
Emmanuel, God with us…yesterday, today and forever. Watch for a sign of hope this Christmas. You don’t want to miss it!
1Luke 2:10-12
