Old Friends

Something happened this week that brought delight to my soul. Three old friends made contact with me in as many days. Two of them were from a church I pastored in the early 1980's, and the third was a pastor friend I hadn’t seen or heard from in more than twenty-five years. Through Facebook, emails, and phone calls, we caught up on the happenings of those silent years, and I was reminded that life went on for each of us even if we had completely forgotten about each other’s existence. I am sure those years carried a lot of joys and sorrows for each of us, but it was good to know that God had continued His kindness to each, and that each of us had a journey to share.

We sometimes forget that the first Christmas was the breaking of the silence by an old friend – in this case, I should capitalize “Friend.” The Old Testament era ends with God’s people struggling to form a faith community again, clinging to the promise that some day God would send the Christ. As the years passed, I wonder if some forgot – forgot the promise, forgot the hope, maybe even forgot the Father. Those years were shaped by all the things that shape our lives – the ups and downs of economy, the birth of babies and the death of elders, the expected and the unexpected, the hoped for and the feared. And then one day God broke the silence – angels spoke to an old man and a young maiden, a dream assured a worried husband, and before all was said and done the heavens exploded with shouts of glory and the assurance that God, having once broken the silence, would never be silent again. As John puts it in John 1:14, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”

Christmas reminds us of that Friend who wants to journey with us through life. He split the heavens and came in person into our midst, and now He comes to reside in the heart of every person who will receive Him. Spend some time catching Him up on the joys and sorrows of this past year. Yes, I know, He already knows them all, but it will do you good and you will find your spirit lifted and your soul delighted as you journey with this old Friend who promises never to leave you or forsake you. What a friend we have in Jesus -- One who will never lose touch with us!