The Twenty Third Day of Advent, 2016

Monday, December 19, 2016

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.  Luke 2:9

I guess it’s no wonder that they were terribly frightened! An angelic appearance was enough to get their attention, but the angel was accompanied by the Shekinah Glory of God! The glory of the Lord, that awesome great light of the presence of Almighty God, lighted the whole hillside! Perhaps terribly frightened is Luke’s understatement of the season!

Never having seen an angel that I know of, I can only imagine their fear! But I have had moments when I knew beyond any shadow of doubt that I was standing on holy ground, that Almighty God was indeed present. Oh, I know that He never leaves me, but I mean one of those epiphany moments. He’s not only with me, but He is standing there! I’d be scared to death if I did not know that I don’t need to be afraid of God, since He’s taught me that I may approach Him with confidence (Hebrews 4:16). If I did not believe Jesus when He told me that He no longer calls me servant, but now He calls me friend (John 15:15), such an appearance would literally terrify me!

Angels are great, and I hope someday to see one. But the really awesome experience is to know that the Glory of the Lord shines around about to tell me that my Friend, the greatest Friend the world will ever know, is about to be born!

Father, thank you for coming yourself to tell us about your Son, not just our Savior, but our Friend! Amen

And Then It Was Christmas: A Journey Toward Christmas
prepared for Homosassa United Methodist Church, 2006,
by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator.