The Light of the World

There are something that we see that defy the boundaries of cuteness. Yesterday I was privileged to see the prekindergarten class at my school do their telling of the Christmas story. What I found most interesting is that watching these little tykes engage one of the beautiful stories ever told genuinely fed my faith and made me focus spiritually on the reality of Jesus Christ having come into the world. Also, seeing our children participate in their faith gives us an assurance that our faith and traditions are being passed on to the next generation. The only downside is that when we see performances such as these we tend to focus on the storytellers and not the story. The familiarity of the story and the countless times we have heard it lends itself to experiencing the pride of a parent instead of the penitence of a hopeful sinner.

When they were done I began to relate to the parents and students present how watching these kids present this story made me immediately think of the birth of my own children. As a parent, you always remember the birth of your child. You remember the excitement tinged with anxiety and anticipation. The first moment you see your child's face freezes for an eternity as you look down and realize that your whole world, your definitions of life and love, have been shaken to their foundations. You may have never seen God but you are convinced that in this child's eyes God is present.

What I wanted them to see more than anything was that every birth is important to God, and going a step further, that every moment of creation of life is important to God. Christ could have chosen any way to come to us. But he chose the authentic human experience of the incarnation, of true innocence, humility, and vulnerability. As we journey to the day when we celebrate Jesus Christ coming into the darkness of our world we recognize just how bright his light truly is. It shatters the darkness.

Christ calls us to be the light of the world. I've told my students throughout this advent season that they are to intensify the light within them. They are to be lights to others, especially those who are in the darkness of despair and are without hope. This can be especially difficult when we are faced with tragedy. Personally I have struggled as I minister to those who have lost family and friends in this holiday season. But I know that darkness does not diminish the power of the light Christ is for us. If we focus on that light it will bring us closer to a God who longs to love us, to heal us, and to sustain us. The challenge for all of us remains to draw closer to that light, to embrace it, and to reflect that light to others.