The baby and the soldiers

 

I am sure that like me you join in many of the Christmas traditions.  The buying of a Christmas tree followed by its decoration with all things tacky.  The sending and receiving of Christmas cards.  The advent candle and the advent calenders (chocolate of course).  Then on Christmas day itself, opening the presents from Santa, going to church, sitting down to Roast Turkey and all the trimmings, pulling Christmas crackers and wearing silly hats whilst telling terrible jokes!  Playing games, listening to the queens speech, going out for a walk, left over turkey for tea, watching Morcambe and Wise and then doing it all again on boxing day! 

I wonder if like me your family also has its own quirky Christmas traditions?  Steve, my father in law, and me play a game where we have to sing the first song that comes into our heads as we open each present!  My Dad has a Christmas tradition of reminding us how lucky we all are by telling his favourite story of how he only ever got a bit of charcoal, nuts and an orange for Christmas and even that had to be shared between him and his two brothers!

We have a recent tradition that’s come about in our family.  After we have set up the tree we then set up a very special nativity scene.  As we set it up I am able to tell my three young daughters that this was made and bought during my stay in Bethlehem.  That in fact the shop was in manger square just outside the church of the nativity where many think is close to where Jesus was born.  As we set it up I am able to share how Jesus would not have been born in Bethlehem today because of the monstrous wall keeping the Palestinians imprisoned and the Israelis separate.  My children of course ask the obvious question, ‘why do they need a wall’?  I share with them the things that are wrong with the world, the injustices, the war, the hunger and the homeless and that during Advent particularly we are waiting for Jesus to come back and make all things new.  A new kingdom where there will be no more tears, no pain, no homeless, no hunger, where lion and lamb will lie down together and death will be swallowed up all together.  We pray that God’s kingdom will come as it is in heaven. 

I am also able to share with them that advent is a time of hope.  And I share stories of what God has done in the past as well as through His people today.  I tell them the story of when I had the privilege to walk around the wall with one of our blind church members.  How I described the Banksy murals, the words of hope written and the pictures painted by visitors wanting to offer the Palestinians hope.  We then reached the ‘Wall Museum’.  There are a series of stories written by Palestinian woman who experienced suffering and oppression, steadfastness and resilience, with moments of hope which the wall tries to kill.  As I read these to my friend we both wept, but then we came to one particular story and the floodgates truly opened.  It is the story of the baby and the soldiers.

“Israeli soldiers were beating up a man in a crowded street.  From all sides people rushed to the scene.  Suddenly a woman with a baby came forward to the man and shouted: ‘Why is it always you who makes problems and goes to demonstrations!  I am fed up!  Take this baby of yours!  I don’t want to see you ever again’.  She laid the baby in the hands of the man, and ran away.  The soldiers left the scene in confusion.  When quiet came , the man returned the baby to the woman. They had never seen each other before.”

As we wept together, I pondered whether I would have put my baby in the hands of a stranger to make the men with guns, kicking and punching him go away.  As I pondered I realised how this Palestinian woman was an imitator of our God.  In the same way as this woman put her beloved baby in the hands of another to save him, our glorious God, took his beloved Son and took Him from the riches of eternity and placed him in the hands of Mary and Joseph, shepherds and Magi, you and I.  And of course He did it for the same reason as the woman, to save each of them and all of us from death. 

This Christmas as you enjoy all your family traditions please remember the incredible gift of Jesus.  That God took his beloved and placed him in our arms to save us and protect us and to walk with us.  So that we can know that, whether this Christmas is joyful or a struggle, a time of celebrating or mourning that our God is with us, bringing healing and hope and leading us on to undying life.  Whatever your situation… whatever the pain… whatever the struggles… whoever you will miss… whatever the injustice… whatever lays heavy… may you know God handing into your arms his beloved baby son this Christmas to walk with you and to protect you.  The baby that is called Wonderful Councillor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace.  And because of this gift… may the peace and joy of Christ be yours this Christmas and forever more. Amen.