By Linda Wood Rondeau
Every Christmas Helen tries to hide
at home and wish the season away or the painful past still pierces the heart
each time the mistletoe is hung. Her friends
make Herculean efforts to draw her out of this seasonal agoraphobia. She
acquiesces out of loyalty, but secretly aches for the occasion to end.
Helen’s fiancé was killed during the
Christmas holiday just days before their wedding. Christmas, to her, only
serves to remind her of the happiness so cruelly yanked away. Though Helen gives much to her community and
is one who would never be characterized as embittered. Yet every year at
Christmas, the unwanted memories are revisited.
There are many like Helen, shunning
the season, fearful they will be inflicted with recollection. Though we try to
be compassionate, few truly understand the depth of sorrow the season emotes for
those who grieve.
Yet, our Savior was the first to be
acquainted with grief. “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows,
and familiar with suffering” (Isaiah 53:3a). Because Christ suffered, we too
are healed. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our
iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his
wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).
I believe God knew that first Christmas what
the future held for his own son. Angels trumpeted the long awaited arrival of
the Messiah, and shepherds knelt before a holy infant as a virgin mother
cradled her first-born. While the world rejoiced, perhaps the Father mourned. For the birth of his only Son would culminate
in sacrifice.
When the Father viewed the rustic
cradle, did He see the Cross? When Mary wrapped Jesus in the swaddling clothes,
did God see the crown of thorns? When shepherds worshipped, did He see His one
and only Son ridiculed, scorned, stripped of dignity, beaten and scourged? When
Mary twirled the babe’s fingers within her own, did the Father see the nails
that would pierce them?
That first Christmas night, only the
Father knew the events that someday would unfold. The world celebrated the promise of salvation
not knowing the price that would yet be paid, yet planned from the beginning of
time. Only God knew of Heaven’s loss. And I wonder if His grief is
renewed each yuletide as men continue to scorn the gift He gave.
For
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).
Winner of the 2012 Selah Award for best first novel The Other Side of Darkness, LINDA
WOOD RONDEAU, writes blended contemporary fiction that speaks to the heart and
offers hope to those with damaged lives. After a long career in human services,
Linda now resides in Jacksonville, Florida.
Her most recent release, A Christmas Prayer, (aka A Father’s
Prayer) was a finalist for both the 2014 Selah and Carol Awards.
Other books include: , It Really IS a Wonderful Life, Joy Comes to Dinsmore Street, Days of
Vines and Roses and her
non-fiction book, I Prayed for Patience God Gave Me Children, also part
of a compilation (Uplifting Devotionals).A sequel Joy Comes to Dinsmore Street, (Snow on Eagle Mountain) is expected to be
released soon.
Readers may visit her web site at www.lindarondeau.com, her blog, This Daily Grind, or email her at lindarondeau@gmail.com or find her on Facebook,
Twitter, PInterest, Google Plus
and Goodreads.
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