The Season of Advent is in full swing and in less then two weeks this Nation will celebrate the finale of the Christmas Season with Christmas Eva and Christmas Day personal and family gatherings. This year I participated in the 37th Annual Lighting of the Star. It is the Pineville (Bell County) Community Celebration of the big shining STAR that is atop Pine Mountain. The STAR is a something that drivers and passengers have been looking up at as they drive and ride the Cumberland Gap Parkway through the Gem City of the Cumberland’s-Pineville during this season of the year.
The STAR is a symbol that represents the STAR of BETHLEHEM, and it provides as it shines the same wisdom and guidance that the Wise Men were following during their journey to find the place of the birth of the Savior of the World-Jesus. Today, wise individuals should be discovering themselves looking for the answer, and it is still found in the only name given among men whereby we must be saved, the name of Jesus (Acts 4:12).
I would be really nice to say that peace can be found at the manager bed, or that confidence can be discovered at the cross, but the manager bed, the cross and the tomb are all just points or details in the story of Jesus. The answer, the peace and the confidence for difficult times is found in a single name, not in a location or a thought. Hymn books are filled with songs about the name Jesus, but many individuals place their focus on certain situations, or moments in the life of Jesus rather then the power of the name. This Season is a perfect time to begin by looking at the STAR, seeing the call of the Father on the life of His son Jesus, and the obedience of Jesus to His Father’s call which included Jesus’ willingness to lay down His life on a cruel wooden cross, experiencing humiliation, pain and rejection so He could continue His journey through the grave and finally back home to His Father in Heaven.
As this Christmas Season has been arriving the journey many individuals have experienced has been a difficult one. We often think of the Wise Men as I have in this column, but they were being served as they traveled and their travels were from the highest of orders and instructions with assistance. Maybe we should think about the shepherds’ who were working that 3rd shift in the night, outside, where the weather conditions hand no effect, work required their attentiveness. Tough times make tough people, but it’s not a stubborn toughness I am talking about, where we don’t listen or care because of the hard time one has experienced in life. Rather, a toughness about where we have our eyes focused and what we our holding on to that pushes us forward and creates a drive filled with faith no matter the outcome.
If you receive no gifts this Christmas is it still Christmas? By the way, I’m not talking about you and your family or friends agreeing not to buy something for each other, but a real no gifts. If you have no ability to have a fancy meal this Christmas is it still Christmas? If you are seeking employment yet finding yourself at the mercy of the folks you know, is it still Christmas? It is easy to sings songs about joy, hope and peace in good times, but the real test is when you are experiencing your worse. What are the thoughts of your heart and the meditation of your mind? We all want to buy gifts, but will you still say it’s Christmas if you have no money to buy a single gift for anyone?
The STAR of Bethlehem is all about us and it is about the gift that was created just for me and for you. Accepting that gift is up to us individually too. The real peace, hope, joy, confidence, and faith one needs to live in all times can only be found in Jesus Christ. He is more then the reason for the Season, He is not just the Season either, but He is the only answer for the being alone, doing without, or cherishing the memories once shared and enjoyed. My prayer is that no matter the status you find yourself this Christmas you will see the STAR and know there is more to this then meets the eye.
Until then
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