Comfort & Joy
When facing a season of loss, Christmas offers comfort and joy. Along with an Advent reading invitation and an essay connecting the dark days of winter with the hope of spring.
Our Thanksgiving was more mellow than merry, with a quick meal around the kitchen table before visiting dearly loved family members who may not be with us next year.
Loss seems all around us this season.
Ah, you too?
Maybe it’s the loss of a loved one. Or the loss of hope. Yet, Christmas offers a hope that no loss can lessen. Which is why, as the days darken and night lingers, I find myself singing an old carol:
God rest you merry, gentlemen,
Let nothing you dismay,
Remember Christ our Savior
Was born on Christmas Day
To save us all from Satan’s pow’r
When we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.
What comfort!
What joy!
To know that Christ, the very presence of God, entered our darkness to rescue us from all that is broken and to bring us an everlasting hope that no sorrow or loss can ever take away.
“The Kingdom of Heaven is like what happens when someone finds a treasure hidden in a field,” I read to my children this week, from the American Bible Society’s Read and Learn Bible: Stories from the Old and New Testament.
“Imagine you were digging in a field and found a beautiful crown, or a necklace with rubies and diamonds,” I said. “What would you do?”
“Wear it!” one child said.
“I know what I’d do,” I said. “Tell everyone I knew!”
The Gospel I grew up with was often ruled by fear: Do this-es and don’t do that-s.
Look at the news and you’ll know that sin is real.
There are certain things we should do: Love God, love others.
And certain things we should not: Anything that is contrary to God’s goodness.
To this truth, the Child in the Manger brings a Gospel of Hope.
A Gospel of Comfort.
A Gospel of Joy.
Or as the prophet Isaiah wrote of the coming Savior:
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me . . .
To bring good news to the afflicted;
To bind up the brokenhearted . . .
To comfort all who mourn” (Isaiah 61:1-2).
Someday every sorrow will cease.
All that is lost will be found.
“Let nothing you dismay!” the treasure finder shouts, running through the streets. “Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day!”
Comfort and joy are coming.
Hope is coming.
Still struggling to see it?
Dig a little deeper.
In a world of loss, true treasure waits to be found.
What I’m reading:
The bookshelf beside my bed is piled with books, but for Christmas I’m reading the Gospel of John, which so poetically introduces Jesus:
In the beginning the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He existed in the beginning with God.
God created everything through him,
and nothing was created except through him.
The Word gave life to everything that was created,
and his life brought light to everyone.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness can never extinguish it.
Join me this Advent in holding onto hope by reading one chapter a day from the book of John, which has 21 chapters. For readability, I love the New Living Translation (NLT). But find one you like. You can even read it online!
The words, “The Word gave life to everything that was created,” hold special meaning this month, as my husband, Dana, and I await the imminent arrival of our first grandchild!
Even in a season of loss, we prayerfully anticipate this great joy!
New and Upcoming:
This month, I’m also celebrating the publication of my essay, “Abigail’s Gift,” in Too Amazing for Coincidence: God’s Promise of Hope, a Guideposts’ anthology of true stories celebrating God’s Mysterious Ways.
My story, which recounts another loss, connects the dark days of winter with the hope of spring. For a 15-percent discount, use the code “AUTHOR15” when buying directly from Guideposts, and please share with your friends.
Meanwhile, I’m busy writing and revising my middle grade fiction. Hope to have more good news to share soon.
Until then, wishing you and your family comfort and joy this Christmas & a New Year filled with hope!
Peace, Joy, and Love,
Meadow
Award-winning author Meadow Rue Merrill writes stories that nurture the imagination, foster faith, and inspire a lifelong love of reading. Subscribe to Meadow’s Field Journal to join her writing journey and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.