Psalm 2:21

My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me? Far from my deliverance
are the words of my groaning." (Psalm 22:1)

Advent, the season in which we begin to celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ, is filled with the appearance of such public merriment.

Retailers have long known that there is a direct correlation between the amount of Christmas
decorations and the amount of sales. Public celebration, although it is increasingly denatured
into "holiday celebration," is everywhere.

What we as Christians should remember is that there is a depth of Christ's coming. It shatters many of our old expectations. And in those times we can sense that we have been abandoned. What then surprises us is the unexpected degree to which
all things in our lives are made new.

Christmas is about serious joy.

Devotion by Richard Ray, General Editor, The Kerygma Program