Light of the World, We Need You

When the darkness comes, let the light shine through
A spark of faith will ignite in you
In a candle’s glow, a virgin’s womb
In a simple prayer, in the empty tomb

“The Miracle Hymn”, Susan Boyle

“You may have one light to give. But I hope to give everyone a little light this Christmas.”

We recently watched “The Christmas Candle” (Amazon Prime and other platforms), a 2013  film based on a story by Max Lucado. I don’t recall having seen any publicity for the movie when it came out, and it’s fortunate I have the assignment to find “Christmas shows” for weekend viewing, as I literally stumbled on this one.

Every 25 years, an angel comes to the small British town of Gladbury, and “empowers” one candle made by the town candlemaker to be the Christmas Candle. The townspeople each have their secret wish, but only one is granted. But, with the arrival of a new pastor for the town church, everything changes. Each family has a need, individuals have a dream, even the pastor, trying to be rational, has his own past to reckon with in first denying the value of the Christmas Candle, and then seeing its good blossom in ways no one could have imagined.

I highly recommend spending the hour and a half plus viewing this film.

If we ever needed angels giving us the gift of light, we do now.

Between COVID and politics, there has been enough anger, sorrow, angst, and about any other emotion humans can muster. My sense is that we can’t grasp that so much is out of our control. Events must unfold as they will. We want answers when we don’t know the questions, and we want them now.

As adults, we fail to recognize what effect these behaviors are having on our children. They are looking to us for guidance, and a significant portion of the adult population are not fulfilling their duties to be beacons for their children. Imperfect beacons, to be sure, but, guides to faith, hope, and love.

We prepare to begin the season of Advent (as does the timeline in the film). We are bruised, scared, unsure, but still, filled with hope of the great good that we look forward to honoring the birth of Our Lord, the Son of Man.

Born as one of us, with human qualities, yet of the Father. What an act of faith by Mary and Joseph, not just for them, but for us.

We relearn how to wait .. wait for the Lord, as His day is near. In this hyper electronic age, that is almost beyond us, but we are commended to stop, think, and pray.

This season, with all the negatives, we have, again, the chance to step back and, again, ask God what His will is for us as we prepare to bring our light of faith to the stable in Bethlehem.

Be strong. That will be the brightest light you and I can share with this cold world.