John 14:2-3 - In my Father's
house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there
to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come
back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (NIV)
We all want to be home with our families for
Christmas. In 1979, I wished I were home in Taiwan, but it was too distant and
costly. I was in my second year as a visa student at the University of Toronto,
in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and while all of the other students in my residence
at East House in Knox College had gone home, I was left alone. I did receive an
invitation to a friend's house for Christmas dinner, but I chose to be alone
that year, for I was a bit overwhelmed with grief over the loss of my mother
earlier that year to celebrate with others. As Christmas Eve arrived, I began
looking for a fine restaurant for my solo celebration dinner. But what do you
know? Nowhere was open except McDonald's in nearby uptown Toronto!
Strangely enough, the hamburger didn't taste as good
as it normally did, and the Christmas carols over McDonald's speakers didn't
sound as joyous as they were meant to be. I had never realized until that moment
what loneliness was about and what that feeling did to a person. The more I
stayed, the lonelier I became. Then soon, tears were streaming down my cheeks as
I yearned for home. "That's it," I told myself. "This is no way to spend my
Christmas Eve. I want to go out and look for anybody I can find to celebrate
with." So I wrapped up the unfinished Big Mac, threw it in the garbage can,
walked out of the door, and landed on Yonge Street.
I looked at my watch, and it was around 6:00 p.m. What
really surprised me was how this busiest street in town suddenly had become so
empty and quiet. There was neither a single soul walking nor a single taxi
running, and not even a bum wandering around. Only when I strolled further to
Dundas Street did I find one, a homeless man, who was half-drunk, sitting and
sleeping on the sidewalk. So I woke him up and told him, "Merry Christmas, man!
Wake up and let's celebrate Christmas at my place." "Who are you? Santa Claus of
some sort?" He asked. "Ho, ho, ho!" I said. "It doesn't matter who I am. Just
come with me -- my treat." He mustered himself up and walked with me. I took him
to Chinatown, and luckily, there were some stores still open. I bought a lot of
food and drink, enough for the two of us to celebrate Christmas. That night, two
lonely people spent Christmas together, and it turned out to be one of the most
joyous Christmas Eves I've ever had.
What is it that causes us to yearn for home during
Christmas? Tradition? Maybe. For sure, many of our best memories are built
around being home at Christmas, and it does give us a sense of belonging and
happiness with our family. But there is something more than this. It has to do
with a deeper sense of "home" that we feel at Christmastime. Christmas is built
around the story of a man and woman who had a Child away from home. The Child
was even more away from "home" than His parents, because He had left His
heavenly home to be born in a mere stable in Bethlehem. Later, for safety, they
became refugees in Egypt.
God purposely sent Jesus to earth to experience a
homeless and refugee life. Why? Because He wanted all of the homeless people and
refugees in the world to know that He, too, had been there and done that. He
came all the way from heaven to make such a statement in order to bring hope to
the poor people in the world. Such is the good news of Christmas that people who
have no home can have a home in His kingdom.
In today's Scripture, He told us, "In my Father's
house are many rooms ... I go to prepare a place for you ... that where I am you
may also be." (John 14:2-3 RSV) We are not going to stay here forever, and He
has prepared a home for us in heaven after we die. All we need to do is to take
Him as our Lord and Saviour. God intends for the people of the world to yearn
for their eternal home, and "home for Christmas" to me is but a rehearsal here
on earth of such a belief.
Prayer: Dear God, You are so great and humble that You
sent Your Son, Jesus our Lord, to be born in a lowly manger rather than in an
elegant palace. Then You announced such news of great joy by the angels to the
poor shepherds first, in hope that the poor, the homeless, and the refugees
would be able to yearn for home in Your kingdom through their faith in Christ.
Hallelujah! We praise You and thank You for the great hope You bring to us in
the birth of Christ. Amen.
Andrew Apack Song
andrewapack@gmail.com
Elora, Ontario, Canada
Thanks to http://daily.presbycan.ca
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