Is this all we get?

The Christmas story is one of powerful hope that connects at a deep level with us. We are often more generous, more hopeful around Christmas. But what is this source of hope? Pastor Phil Kniss said that we have not taken Christ out of Christmas. Rather, we have taken the radical, world-changing nature of Christmas out of Jesus, and left ourselves with a hollow, plastic Jesus. News of Jesus' impending birth was terrifying to the people involved. How many times in the events leading up to Jesus' birth do we hear the angel Gabriel say, "Peace, do not be afraid!"? Just when the world seems at it's worst, God sends a sign. Isaiah 7:10-16 recounts the story of a prophet giving King Ahaz a sign of hope. A woman was going to have a baby and name him Immanuel, "God with us". That's it. God is with us in the mess and pain of life.