Emmanuel
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Matt 1:23
Several years ago my younger child and I had an outing together. Abilene has a monthly event called Art Walk. The stores and art galleries downtown open n the evening and there is often live music. And free stuff. We saw a jaguar car, had hot chocolate, made an art project and listened to the live music. We had a great time. He didn’t care that we spent a grand total of two dollars. When we got home I got out my book and sat on the couch. He crawled up on the couch with me, and ten put his head on my lap on top of my book. He looked up at me with his gorgeous blue eyes and said, “I need some attention.” I told him he had just had an hour and a half of my undivided attention. He answered, “Well, I need a lot.” You better believe he got it.
Sometimes being together is all you need. God has done a lot of restoration in my marriage in the last few months. A friend was watching us together the other day, and said, “You two sure are happy together even after 20 years. “It is good to love someone and be able to share good times and hard times. We have each lost a dear friend in the last 2 months and sometimes just being there is all you can do to help. My children have a good friend who has been in the hospital after a serious car accident. They had their first experience with Dallas Fort Worth traffic when they went to the hospital to see him. They said he was not able to respond but they could tell he knew they were there. As great as it is to be together with family and friends, there is something even more important.
When the angel came to Joseph, he was told that she would have a son and was to call his name Emmanuel, which means god with us. (Matt 1:23) He reminded Joseph that this was told by the prophets hundreds of years before. We are coming out of the Christmas season and this sounds routine, but think about it. The king of kings is here with you and me. He invites us to come boldly into His presence and find mercy and grace in our time of need. (Heb 4:16) Anytime we need, we can go to him, like Heath came to me and say, “I need some attention.” He is never too busy to love and hear me and finds ways to show me if I can be open to them. For instance, this morning I was out walking the dog and came on a huge group of Monarch butterflies. That in itself is cool enough, but it is December! What a gift and an evidence of His presence and power. Sometimes, like he did with Elijah after the incident at Mount Carmel, he shows his presence in a still, small voice rather than in the power of the fire or the earthquake. (1 Kings 19:12) However you sense God’s presence, allow him to wrap you in it and know that it is His joy and desire to be with us here. Remember, too, that when the time comes for him to restore all things, we will be with Him for eternity and need no more reminders. (Rev 21:3-4)
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