Christmas is Surprising
There will be countless numbers of people, young and old alike who will get a surprise this Christmas. That is as it should be. It’s in keeping with the very first Christmas that we recognise and celebrate every year. Joseph got a surprise, the shepherds got a surprise, the Wise Men got a surprise, even Herod, King of the Jews got a surprise. The story remains the same and we know it too well.
The element of surprise is key to my kind of Christmas. It puzzles me when people receive a gift from family in October and they say “Thanks, that will do as my Christmas present this year”. For me, I would rather know I wasn’t getting a Christmas present than to know I actually got it in October. The real beauty of Christmas is that the gift of the Messiah was expected by God-fearing Jews. It’s just that He appeared when they least expected it! Now that to me that is the greatest surprise of all! A surprise that is anticipated but still comes at a truly surprising time.
No matter how often I read the Christmas accounts in the Gospels I usually find that each year something new and fresh comes to my attention. Surprises me. Its not that I haven’t pored over the texts before. I have been doing it for 37 years. I come to the Season of Advent in expectation perhaps, and God does not disappoint. My hope is that this is not an isolated experience but is one that touches countless lives throughout the world this Christmas. Christmas is surprising.