Dec 24th: Christmas Celebration, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski.
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Christmas Celebration with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski. Series: Standalone Services A Spacious Christianity, First Presbyterian Church of Bend, Oregon. Scripture: Luke 2.
We invite you to join us in celebrating the wonder of Christmas. Whether in-person or online, come experience the profound message of Emmanuel – God with us. In the midst of life’s joys and sorrows, may you find hope, comfort and the presence of the divine. We look forward to sharing this sacred time with you.
God With Us: A Christmas Reflection
Merry Christmas, friends!
As we gather this season, I want to share a story and a message that have stayed with me—a story about the power of presence and the incredible gift we celebrate at Christmas: Emmanuel, God with us.
A magazine once asked readers to share stories of children expressing love. One submission stood out. A little boy noticed his elderly neighbor, who had recently lost his wife, sitting alone in his backyard, crying. The boy walked over, climbed into the man’s lap, and simply sat there. When he came home, his mother asked him what they talked about. “Nothing,” he said. “I just didn’t want him to feel alone, so I helped him cry.”
What wisdom from a child! Life’s burdens—grief, fears, uncertainties—are lighter when we know we’re not alone. And that’s the gift of Christmas: God’s presence with us, always.
The Mystery of God With Us
The angel’s words to Joseph ring through the ages: “Mary will conceive and give birth to a son, and his name shall be Emmanuel, which means God with us.” God chose to enter the world not as a king in splendor but as a vulnerable child, laid in a manger. This is the profound mystery of Christmas—not a puzzle to be solved, but a truth too vast to fully comprehend.
God meets us in the messy, murky, and heartache-filled moments of life. God is not a distant theory or a philosophy to debate. God is with us. In the classroom where children seek shelter, in hospital waiting rooms, in moments of grief, in the mundane routines of life. God is present, not watching from afar but walking alongside us.
Love That Endures
One of the greatest truths I’ve come to believe is that love can’t always fix everything. Love doesn’t erase depression, heal cancer, or stop grief in its tracks. But love endures. Love stays. And because love endures, it gives us the strength to face what cannot be fixed.
This enduring love is God’s promise to us, made tangible in the birth of Jesus. It’s the love that holds us when we feel like we’re falling apart, that whispers hope in our darkest nights, that reminds us we’re never alone.
Giving the Gift of Presence
In a world filled with noise and distractions, what if we chose to offer the gift of presence this Christmas? To sit with someone who is hurting, not with answers but with a listening heart. To ask, “How are you? No, really, how are you?” To share our own tender, vulnerable hearts.
Years ago, I visited a woman from my church who was dying of cancer. Fresh out of seminary, I was nervous and unsure, so I filled the silence with words, talking endlessly about anything but what mattered. She gently stopped me, looked me in the eye, and said, “Steven, shut up.”
She was right. What she needed wasn’t my words but my presence. Later, as her transition to more life drew near, I returned and simply sat with her. We shared the gift of presence and love. It didn’t fix her illness, but it reminded us both that we were held by a love greater than anything we could face.
God With Us, Always
This Christmas, may we remember that God’s love doesn’t demand perfection or performance. God meets us as we are, in our vulnerability and humanness. There is nothing we can do—no action, no failure—that will separate us from the love of God revealed in Jesus.
So, as you unwrap gifts and celebrate the season, consider giving one more: the gift of your presence. Be with someone who is lonely, grieving, or struggling. Sit with them, listen, and share your heart. In doing so, you may find yourself experiencing the mystery and healing of “God with us” in new and profound ways.
For unto us a child is born. God is with us—today, tomorrow, and always.
Merry Christmas.
Steven
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