Christmas...A Source of Comfort

We do not want you to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope 

(1 Thessalonians 4:13)

The phone call was unexpected. The news gut-wrenching.  The unborn baby lay dead in his mother’s womb and she was faced with the ordeal of delivering the corpse of her first-born child.

Our hearts broke as we thought of the agony she and her husband and their families must be experiencing.  Eight months earlier we had rejoiced with them over this long-awaited pregnancy, and followed its development with enthusiasm and eager anticipation as the due date drew near.  Now joy dissolved into disbelief and sorrow.

It was only a few days after Christmas and death seemed out of place in a season when families were celebrating, sharing memories, and making new ones. Knowing that future Christmases for this family would hold painful reminders of their loss seemed to magnify the sense of tragedy. 

Why Christmas, of all times?  The thought came naturally, and over the next few days was voiced by others who heard of the situation.  But later, as I was praying for our friends, it was preempted by another question:  Why not Christmas? The time when we are commemorating Christ’s arrival on Earth to destroy the power of sin (spiritual death) that separates us from the God Who created and loves us.

Life precedes death, and without Christmas there could be no Easter which marks Jesus’ bodily restoration to life, thereby abolishing, once for all, the power of sin’s penalty. Without His birth, life, sacrificial death and resurrection, there would be no hope of being reunited with loved ones like this precious little one whose life ended so abruptly.

Christmas, then like Easter, is a time when we should be most conscious of the wonderful promises found in God’s letter to us:

God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, 

that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life

 (John 3:16)

Jesus said…’I am the resurrection and the life.  

He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies’ 

(John 11:25)

God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  

He who has the Son has life 

(1 John 5:11-12)

These promises, though not often recognized as such, are the very essence of Christmas.  Their message is what it is all about.  Jesus summarized it fully when He said:

‘I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full'

 (John 10:10)

Grief at the loss of a loved one is tempered when we truly believe and fully incorporate into our hearts and minds, God’s promises concerning life after death.  Although the pain of loss may never in this lifetime fully subside, there is reason to celebrate.

As time went by, we were pleased to see our friends exhibit this mindset toward the death of their baby.  Although they continued to experience disappointment, and future Christmases no doubt held painful memories, they were comforted knowing their precious child was safe in the arms of Jesus, and that at the end of their lives on Earth, they would be with him forever.
 
Lord, comfort our hearts when painful losses overwhelm us by reminding us of the many promises in Your Word.

Asleep in the arms of Jesus, content in His gentle care,
away from the heartaches and burdens that life in our world bring to bear.
The child for whom you are longing, whose life you were planning to share,
is safe with the Savior in Heaven, waiting to meet you up there.

Glenda Collins Inman

(In  memory of Nathan Alan Hosfield, January 3, 1998).