A couple weeks ago I posted an article written by Charlie Daniels. He posted another one the other day... and I thought it was great. A real reminder of what it is that we are honoring during this season.
Even those believers who feel convicted that they should not celebrate Christmas can appreciate the words of this article as they pertain to God's love toward us.
I'm sure some will want to pick out a phrase or two in this article and start a theological debate over it. I would ask that we show some restraint and just take this at face value... and think about what this man is saying.
Enjoy... and Merry Christmas!
Krispy
[i][b]Can You Imagine?
by Charlie Daniels
Mt. Juliet, Tennessee
Dec. 17, 2007
Did you ever stop and think what the first Christmas must have been like?
We have gotten so used to our modern day version of Christmas, the bright lights, the Christmas trees, etc., and don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with that, I love Christmas and Christmas traditions. There are four Christmas trees in our house and I love all the lights, the food and all the other traditions that go to make up the Christmas season at our house.
But can you imagine a young couple arriving in the tiny village of Bethlehem on a cold night, the girl being right on the verge of childbirth and finding out there was not a bed in the village for her to lie on?
We all know the story about them finding shelter in a livestock keep and we've all seen the sanitized versions of the friendly animals standing around a new born baby lying in a manger filled with hay, the warm lights flickering.
But let's look at the practical side of the situation. Have you ever been in a barn? A drafty, smelly, unsanitary place never meant for human beings to live in, much less a baby to be born in.
Why the Creator of the Universe, who could have provided the most opulent of palaces for the birthplace of his Son would choose instead a stable on the barren plains of Israel is far beyond my comprehension.
But God's ways are not the ways of man and his thoughts are not the thoughts of man and I may not understand it but I know one thing, it was the perfect place at the perfect time under the perfect circumstances, because God does nothing less than perfection.
Can you imagine a star which so obviously shined it's light down on this humble scene that it guided visitors from a far and distant land to this tiny town in the middle of nowhere?
Can you imagine tending a flock of sheep in the midnight hours when all of a sudden an angel appears to you and tells you that The Messiah, The Prince of Peace, The Savior of mankind has just been born within walking
distance of where you're standing.
The greatest news since the beginning of time was not announced first in a royal palace, in the courts of a king or to the religious leaders and scholars of the day but to a group of lowly shepherd's who made their living in lonely solitude moving their flocks from pasture to pasture and protecting them from the wild animals that roamed the plains.
And can you imagine the angel being joined by untold numbers of heavenly beings praising Almighty God? Can you imagine the perfection of Heavenly voices being lifted in praise?
Can you imagine the magnitude of what happened that night in Bethlehem? God proved he is no respecter of persons, sending his angel to the common man and sending his only begotten Son to a sinful earth where cruel men would nail him to a cross.
God knew what would happen to Jesus, which just goes to show us how very much he loves us.
This year, as we enjoy all the superficial joys of the Christmas season, can we just stop once in a while and reflect on what Christmas is really about and remember the indescribable love that motivated the Creator of all that exists to bring his Son into the world in a humble stable in Bethlehem and remember that no matter how lowly or lofty our station in life, we are all his children, no more and no less.
From the Daniels house, all the folks at Twin Pines Ranch and all the Charlie Daniels Band family we wish you a blessed and Merry Christmas.
Happy Birthday Jesus
Pray for our troops
What do you think?
God Bless America
Charlie Daniels