Cast of Characters - Us

So many characters involved in the story of Advent, the story of the Incarnation. There are the prophets who told of it long before the events ever took place. There are the Jews, God's chosen people, both the ones who embraced the new thing God was doing and those who continued to wait in darkness for God to do what they expected him to do. There is John, sent to prepare the way. There are Simeon and Anna, waiting in the temple, drawing close to God. And no doubt others, unmentioned, witnesses to God's unfolding plan.

And then there is us. Each one of us; all the tide of humanity that has ebbed and flowed across this planet for the past several thousand years. Because of us, God became flesh. Our pains, our sorrows, our tears, our longing for something more; because of all this God stepped out of heaven to walk among us as one of us.

He came because he loves us.

He came because he longs for us.

He came because without him we are lost.

I had a much more wordy post fermenting in my mind; a post about where I was last year at this point and where I am now. A post filled with sweet images of Christmas pageants and little children. But as I began writing I realized that none of that was what I wanted to say. In the end, it all comes down to that last line:

He came because without him we are lost.

Silence. The cast is assembled. The curtain waits to rise. Incarnation. God with us. Come; be part of the story as it unfolds.