What Is God Trying To Tell Us?

 Have you ever heard God speaking to you? I don’t mean to literally “hear” His voice the way you are hearing my voice now. I mean, have you ever had a thought pop into your mind or had a feeling stir in your heart that you were convinced came from God? Have you ever received an inspiration or felt a desire so strong that you knew it came from someone other than yourself?

Some sense God speaking to them through nature. Seeing the grandeur of mountain ranges and the brilliance of sunsets communicates to them something of the grandeur and brilliance of our Creator. Enjoying a placid lake or watching waves roll onto the shore tells them something about the greatness of God. Their soul stirs within them and they feel a certain communion not only with nature but with nature’s God.

Others hear God speaking to them through their conscience. Seeing the misery of the poor and the isolation of the elderly, they sense a calling to alleviate their suffering. Witnessing injustice against minorities and the poor, they hear God challenging them to take a stand and give voice to those who have none. In the depths of their heart, they feel united to those who are rejected and also to the God who promised that He could be found among the poor.

Still others hear God speaking to them in silence. They long to get away from the hustle and bustle of modern life and simply spend time in quiet solitude. They are not necessarily seeking deep insights or trying to solve the mysteries of existence. Rather, they want to rest in God’s presence and relish the silence. In so doing, they enjoy communion with their authentic selves and with their Creator.

There are many ways that we can hear God speaking to us. They are as varied as our personalities. The message we hear may be different depending on our circumstances and God’s particular will for us. However, there is one Word which God speaks to each and everyone of us. In today’s second reading we learn what - or rather WHO - this word is: “In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets;in these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son.”

The Word God has spoken to us all is none other than His Son, Jesus Christ. On this Christmas Day, we celebrate His birth - the first utterance of this Word into human history. As Saint John tells us in the gospel we heard proclaimed, God’s Word became flesh so that we can see,  hear and touch  Him. This Word was not spoken only to the people of Israel but to people of every land and nation. Likewise, this Word was not meant to be heard only by those who lived in Jesus’ day but was meant to reverberate and echo down through the ages.

What is God trying to tell us by sending His Son into the world? What message do we hear when we quiet ourselves down and listen intently to the events taking place in Bethlehem that first Christmas Day?

First of all, we hear that God loves us and that He wants to be a part of our world. Queens and presidents often send envoys and ambassadors to take their place at state functions. However, when they themselves show up at events, we see for ourselves that they really care and are committed to helping us. In just the same way, God once sent prophets to speak His words. However, in sending Jesus Christ, He Himself comes to visit us in human form. He does so to assure us that He loves us and that He wants to save us. Rather than a passive observer looking down on the world from the comfort of Heaven, He wanted to share our existence to the point of being put to death. So great is His love for humanity that He is willing to make Himself one of us so that we can see and touch Him.

Secondly, this Christmas Day, God tells us that He can be found among the poor and lowly. The Creator of the Universe did not spend His first night on earth in a comfortable bed, in a grand palace with servants waiting on Him. Rather, He slept on straw in a stable surrounded by animals. His birth was not first announced to kings and rulers but to lowly shepherds. By doing so, He tells us that He did not come to amass power or riches for Himself but to proclaim good news to the poor. He did not come to ingratiate Himself with the wealthy and powerful but to lift up the lowly. He did not come to indulge Himself in all the privileges, comforts and pleasures of wealth. Rather He came to stand alongside the outcast and suffer with them.

With the arms of a child, our God reaches out to us with the simple message that He loves us. If we are to welcome His love into our hearts, it will be because we are poor and needy. God loves us not because we are perfect but precisely because we are broken and sinful. No matter how unworthy we may judge ourselves, our Heavenly Father loves us unconditionally. Like an infant, He will not reject those who reach out to take Him into their arms. On this Christmas Day, we can approach God with great confidence that, no matter what our past looks like, He will welcome us.

This is what Paul Bennett learned. When his struggle with alcoholism brought him to rock bottom at forty years old, his friends told him that only God could help him put his life back together. At the time he was an atheist but decided he had nothing to lose. As he puts it, his first prayer was: “God, I don’t know what I’m doing. I don’t even believe in you. This is a waste of time.” The next day, he prayed again and he began finding strength within himself that he knew could only have come from God.

We do not have to approach God with eloquent words or lofty sentiments. He can see through that. Rather, He wants us to come to Him as we are with all our fears and doubts. That is what the simplicity and silence of this Christmas Day teaches us, if we can quiet our minds and humble ourselves enough to learn from a baby lying in straw.