This year PathLight sent a letter from all the staff. I like the letter (I wrote it, so I should!) but the real fun is seeing all the signatures. They are a little fuzzy on this blog, but it’s amazing how many people work for PathLight. They are doing amazing things! Here is the letter and signature page:
Merry Christmas! What a treasure it is to celebrate the birth of our Savior. Immanuel, God is with us. Could there be anything more worthy of celebration? It is easy to forget this. We overlook that God is indeed with us. Our lives are busy with things we hope will add joy, yet we neglect the true joy. This is nothing new – you have heard it many times before. Yet it is a worthy reminder.
What would life be like if we did not have the pressures of a job, the long shopping lists, the many events to attend, the meals to prepare, the letters to write? What if the pace of our life were slower?
What if we took the time to joyfully celebrate the coming of Immanuel? What if we actually reflected on the amazing idea that God is with us?
There are wonderful people who live this way. They are often poor. Rather than the trappings of a busy life, they build their lives on relationships. For them, Immanuel is indeed a reason to celebrate and rejoice. This is the ultimate relationship, one that drives their obedience and faith.
The poor can be our blessing in these special seasons of reflection. They often honor God with a simple purity our hearts long for. We experience in them a joyful obedience challenging us to stop and embrace Immanuel.
There is a Christmas liturgy, built in part on an old hymn, which goes like this:
This night is born Jesus,
Son of the King of glory.
This night is born to us
the root of our joy.
This night gleamed sea and shore together.
This night was born Christ,
the King of greatness.
Though laid in a manger,
He came from a throne;
on earth through a stranger,
in heaven He was known.
How lowly, how gracious
His coming to earth!
His love my love kindles
to joy in his birth.
Indeed, love is kindling joy as we reflect on the birth of our Savior. Immanuel. We are thankful.
And so, with hope in an everlasting God of mystery, with faith in an obedient Christ who models an incomprehensible love, and with the joy of Immanuel, God is with us, in our hearts, we wish you a Merry Christmas.
Your PathLight Family,
