new church life : november / december 2016
Divine Providence does not regard that which is brief and transient and comes to an end with a person ’ s life in the world ; rather it regards that which remains forever and so does not come to an end . ( Arcana Coelestia 10775 )
It was within the Lord ’ s providence that George Bailey had saved his young brother Harry from drowning , that Harry lived to shoot down a kamikaze pilot about to blow up a ship full of sailors , that George was able to prevent a drunken pharmacist from accidentally putting poison in pills meant for a sick young boy , that all George had done for his town was not in vain . It was when Clarence let him see all that would have happened if he had not lived that George realized there was meaning in his life – and a power greater even than Clarence watching over him .
This , too , is part of the Christmas gift . Yes , the Lord ’ s providence is in every part of our lives , ever lifting us up and bending the bad things that happen to us toward good . This is how the Lord loves and looks out for us . It is how His love works in our lives – every day .
“ It ’ s a Wonderful Life ” because the Lord has been born into it – and never stops coming to us .
( BMH ) what ’ s your message ?
The guest editorial on page 521 by the Rev . Solomon Keal , “ Born to be an Angel ,” notes that we are all born to be angels – and that “ angel ” means “ messenger .”
So we are all born to be messengers for the Lord . This is especially meaningful in the Christmas season when we hear the eternal message from the Angel – the Messenger – of the Lord :
For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior , who is Christ the Lord . And this shall be a sign unto you ; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes , lying in a manger . And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host , praising God and saying : Glory to God in the highest , and on earth peace , good will toward men .
It is also a message to take into the New Year when we resolve to be better people in loving and serving others .
So what is our message – as angels in waiting ? What good news are we spreading to herald the coming of the Lord into our lives ? What messages are we hearing – and open to – from the messenger angels around us ?
The Christmas message is not just a gift we receive passively . It challenges us to look for the opportunities it presents to us , and the obligations .
Every Christmas – indeed every day – we are given untold gifts from the Lord that give us life and a future . We know that we become angels not when we enter heaven but by living as angels – as messengers – in the world , which
596