To so many people, Christmas is all about the children, or all about the big gatherings with family and friends. I realized tonight that to me, it's about the quiet.

As my family is all tucked in for the night and I listen to the wintery winds blow, I'm reminded of the simplicity and beauty of Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. How that birth brought joy and hope in ways that most of us can't even truly comprehend. Don't you think that sometimes we begin to take the gift of Him for granted? Most of us probably didn't long for a Messiah the way that the Jewish people did in Jesus' day.

More than likely, most of us have heard the story time and time again, but all the while life throws us twists and turns and somehow we lose the sacred hope that Jesus gave to all of us. We forget that truly He is Immanuel, God With Us!

"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"--which means, "God with us." Matthew 1:23

In Him, we find the strength to keep going when we feel like we just can't.
In Him, we find more than enough love to love the unlovely.
In Him, we find the key to forgiving people who don't even ask for forgiveness.
In Him, we find hope for when things look impossible.
In Him, we find beauty for ashes and grace undeserved.
In Him, we find the way to Heaven when we humbly realize that we can never "measure up".
In Him, we find healing and blessings that we could never even expect.
In Him, we find that quiet still voice that speaks words of life -
I love you. You are mine. Just rest.