“And this light never fails to shine through darkness – Light that darkness could not overcome!”
John 1:5 (The Passion Bible)
Reflecting on messages about the birth of Jesus at my community this week, I recounted my own story of an Angelic visitation. As a child I was scared of the dark. We kids slept in small dorms at the Methodist boarding school where I spent my early years. In the corridor opposite my dorm was a small cupboard with an internal telephone connecting our house to the main house, known as ‘The telephone room’. Every night when I was being tucked up in bed I would say to the housemother doing the honors, “Don’t forget the telephone light!” This task usually worked fairly efficiently. But occasionally a new member of staff, unfamiliar with my particular peculiarities, would forget and switch it off. If that happened it was inevitable that if I woke up in total darkness, I would wake up the whole corridor with my terrified screaming. My dependency on the telephone light for comfort and reassurance only dissipating as I got older and became more resilient. Much to mine and everyone’s relief.
That was until one night, many years later, when I was spooked by Billy Graham’s book on angelic visitations. Preparing for bed I could sense my old fear of the dark returning and was tempted to keep my bedside lamp on, just for the one night though, because by the I couldn’t sleep with any light in the room. As I reasoned with myself, I felt God say “You are mine now. Turn out the lamp!” Saying a prayer along the lines of “Ok, prove it Lord” I turned out the lamp. As I did, instead of being plunged into usual darkness (there was no street lights at the back of my house) light flooded my room from the window. Anxiety was quickly replaced with awe as I pulled back the curtain trying to discover where this mysterious light was coming from. But there was no obvious source. I couldn’t even see the moon!
Recounting this story at a time when many are celebrating the various angelic visitations surrounding Jesus’ birth, I wondered what it must have been like for the shepherds who’d spent their whole life living alone and isolated in the hills around Bethlehem, and then suddenly seeing a pitch black sky filled with angelic light. Did they get the point? If they didn’t then, we do, or should do, now. God was making it clear to them who his Son was coming into the world for. The gift of peace. The gift of salvation. The gift of His love… was told to them first. They were invited to the party and there was never any question of their exclusion on the basis of their low status or reduced ability. It would be a stretch if I was to say I had such a revelation the night the strange light filled my bedroom. The fact that there seemed no physical explanation for it made it all the more personal, shining a light on my deepest fears, and promising life, not death!
REFLECT…
PRAY…
& Be Blessed this Christmas!
On the disability experience that often hits home at Christmas. Disability Rights UK and SCOPE highlight the grim reality for many people struggling with the added cost of being disabled.
That the communities we live in will have open hearts and homes as they celebrate Christmas. That they will find creative ways to ensure activities and venues are accessible and welcoming.
Kingdom Storytellers thanks you for being part of this great storytelling adventure in 2024.
Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, we wish you a Peaceful and Joyful time over the festive period!