Twas the Night Before Christmas

"Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Isaiah 7:14 NKJV

"So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.'" Matthew 1:22-23 NLJV

If you're like me, you find it important to ready your heart to celebrate both Christmas Eve and Christmas. This was something I was doing as I ran my annual birthday track run yesterday morning. Let me tell you, running 26.2 miles around a middle school track mostly solo (friends came by for a few miles throughout the event) allowed for a lot of time to pray, praise, prepare and reflect back on past years. At one point I smiled as my mind wandered to one of my earliest Christmas Eve memories... the reading of the Night Before Christmas by my beloved grandmother who passed away decades ago but gave me a copy of the book when I was just a little girl, inscribed with the words, "Take care of this book Mimi so that you can read it to your kids one day. Love, Gammy." And you can be sure it's something that I did as my kids were growing up, followed by the reminder that Jesus Christ was the real Reason for the season. 

His birth was prophesied by Isaiah more than 700 years before our Savior was born, prompting Matthew to write, "So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us." With that in mind, this is now the story I share and I hope you will too. It's not only a reminder of the real Reason we celebrate Christmas but the perfect way to prepare our hearts and those of our children... 

 ‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the earth,

Every creature was stirring, awaiting a birth.

The time for Messiah was certainly near,

The prophets foretold it; the Bible was clear.

From the book of beginnings, the very first sin,

God’s word made it clear how His grace entered in.

Born of a virgin, He’d come as a man.

The Creator among us, the time was at hand.

The stars were arranged to show marvelous things,

Setting Wise Men to journey and find the true King.

Shepherds in Bethlehem gazed on the sky,

Longing to see him, their Lord the Most High.

How could they know that the very next night

An angel of God would speak words of delight?

How the Savior was born, it was news of great joy.

In a cloth and a manger they’d find the dear boy.

And a heavenly host would soon join to sing

Of the glory of God and of wonderful things.

He entered creation, set position aside

To show us how deeply his love did abide.

Sin sent us away from our almighty Lord.

He became one of us that we might be restored.

He’s the Prince of our Peace; He’s the one who makes whole.

He is Wisdom Incarnate, a Shepherd of Souls.

He’s the Author of Life; He’s the Ruler of All.

He can offer salvation, on His name we call.

The shepherds and Wise Men would bow to adore

Holy God among men, our greatest reward.

All glory and honor is due to this King.

Let all join in worship; let every tongue sing.

Jesus is Lord, all creation proclaims.

He’s the first and last, He is always the same.

History turned on the first Christmas day,

When God became man in a humble display.

As we think of the manger in which He was laid,

Let our hearts welcome Him to the world He made!

So let us prepare our hearts to worship and celebrate my friend, by pondering the birth of Jesus in our hearts like Mary did.

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us the greatest gift that could ever be given… salvation through the birth, death, and resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ. Lord, please give us opportunities to share the real reason we celebrate this blessed holiday… the birth of our Savior. It’s in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen. 

Happy Running!