When the chestnuts get burned on the open fire,

When Jack Frost leaves painful frostbite in his wake,

When the carolers are singing off key,

And we shake with the cold of depression, sickness, loneliness, or strained relationships,

When bellies are empty and hearts are too,

And the season does not seem bright or happy or fun any more,

When kids want more and adults can’t be satisfied either,

And we find it hard to sleep at night because of heartache, fears and worries that dance in our heads,

Even then.

Even then God is good.  Even then He is enough.

If He never gives me another gift, He has given Himself and that is more than I deserve.

He is enough, completely by Himself, fully satisfying my deepest longings.

Nothing I desire compares to the manifold richness of His offered presence.

He came to be near.  Emmanuel.  The “with us God.”

He put on a robe of flesh to identify.  He suffered, hungered, felt lonely and rejected, became so bone weary He slept through a raging storm.

He prayed for relief, then willingly submitted to the ultimate Will.

He bled and died to bring sweet relief, to open the door of access to the Father, to offer undeserved grace more than sufficient.

He rose to life with a promise that I can live, here and now with fullness, and in another world when immortality replaces the mortal.

He is enough.  No matter what.

Christmas Grace.