The light is coming

This past Christmas Eve, we heard a beautiful Christmas message from a pastor we dearly love. It was a detailed look at that first Christmas and the miracle of Jesus-Emmanuel-coming to earth in the form of a little baby. But what captivated me most was his description of the light that came to the world. As the story goes, the wise men followed a star to find Jesus. So our pastor looked closer at that star and explained the process of its light reaching earth. You see, the light from that star would have had to start burning 77 years before the birth of Jesus in order for the light to reach the earth and be visible to the wise men, signaling his birth. So before Jesus was born, the light was already there. The light was on its way.

I could not stop thinking of Spain as he spoke. The light has already come to Spain, but the people there are still living in the darkness. I don’t know if it will reach them in 77 years or 777. But I do know this. We, as believers, live with that light within us. And we can share the light with others. That’s not just an opportunity, it is a responsibility.

He reminded us too that the light was sent 77 years before Jesus. And Jesus was sent thousands of years ago. Long before you or I existed. Long before you or I knew that we needed light. The realization that we need the light doesn’t precede the light being sent. The light-sender has already sent it to us.