Scripture

Our verse for today comes from Matthew 1:23, “‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which means, ‘God with us.'”

Background

My mom is coming to stay with us for the month of December. It is a great blessing to have her with us, for her help and assistance around the house, not to mention the sweet fellowship and devotion she gives to my wife, my kids, and me, is priceless. But she has gotten to an age where it is not manageable for her to drive almost five hours to get here. So my mother-in-law volunteered to drive down and bring her back. Well, with all the respect and love I can muster, I must say that she is not exactly primed for driving a car five hours each way. So the solution was reached that my sister-in-law would accompany her mom as they went to bring back my mom. Everyone simply felt much better about the adventure if there was someone else along for the ride. And that companionship, that fellowship, and that extra set of eyes and ears, can turn a long drive into a wonderful trip. We can’t exactly explain how it works. We say it takes away the boredom, makes the time go by quicker, and gives us someone to talk to. We try to express the experience in some tangible way, but it doesn’t quite capture the level of joy we shared with our companion.

Application

And I wonder if we fully grasp the significance of our heavenly companion who was born in Bethlehem. Of all the names and meanings God could have had Isaiah use to foretell Christ’s birth, He called Him “Immanuel” – God with us. Now, I’m sure that I don’t appreciate in the slightest all that is expressed in the notion of God being with us. We certainly want Him there when we hit a tough stretch, but do we fathom what it means to have Him with us for our every step? Is it significant to you, as significant as it was to Isaiah, that God is with you this very second? I don’t think that I cherish it as I ought. I know I don’t understand it as I would like. But I do know it and believe it. He didn’t say He would keep me from the lions’ den or the fiery furnace, but He said He would always be with me. That must be the most important part.

Charge

As we seek Him today, enjoy the time you have with God, which happens to be every second of the day. Since He is with you, go ahead and be with Him as well.

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words