Advent: Peace

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"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!' When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, 'Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.'"

Luke 2:13-15, ESV

While the rest of the country received beautiful, white snow this past Wednesday, Virginia got....freezing rain. Not even "frozen" rain, mind you. Just really cold rain.

Squirrel perpetually has the energy of a kindergartener hyped on Halloween candy, Red Bull, and 3 espressos, so intensive exercise must occur no matter the weather. The skid marks worn into my wood floors can attest to this.

Thus, dark and early, even in the driving rain, Squirrel and I were outside weaving our way through the neighborhood. Now that it's after Thanksgiving, I listen to Christmas music 24/7.

Truly. It's the best.

So, true to form, I was listening to Christmas music during our walk. "Winter Wonderland" started to play, and I couldn't help singing along with my own alternate version, "Walking in a Rainy Wonderland."

Hey, at that time in the morning, who's around to hear? Squirrel doesn't judge; he's too busy sniffing dog pee on mailboxes. It's his own version of an Evergreen Yankee candle.

I had been a little sad on Monday coming back to work after vacation and saying goodbye to my family who had left the day before. But there was something about the silliness of singing "Rainy Wonderland" in the downpour that just made me start to laugh. The song switched to a new Christmas song by Christian artist, Natalie Grant, and I couldn't help but then worship at the reminder of God in a manager.

That's the peace of God. It's not blue skies and perfect weather. It's joy in the freezing rain while your feet squish in their wet shoes. I've come to think that's a far superior kind of peace. Because it can last in any and all seasons and is dependent upon nothing but the presence of God.

Christmas can steal our peace. There's the running around to get presents, worrying about the cost, trying to fit everything in. It's ironic. For those of us who worship a God incarnate, we know that through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, we have peace with God. Peace with a God who could and should be our enemy due to our rebellion and rejection of His perfect ways. But no, we are now called sons and daughters of God. That is peace. It is a peace that lasts even in the freezing rain.

But not gonna lie, I was happy to get home and put on dry socks.