Extracurricular: The Second Christmas Special: Poor Boy

"Oh, before that silent night/no Savior and no Jesus Christ/the world cried out so desperately/and the Baby Boy was the reply/yes, Heaven's reply was a Baby Boy."

                                    -For King & Country, "Baby Boy"

  When most Christians think about the birth of Christ, they think about the coming of God to be with us in the form of The Son. The Son of God and man sent to be with us, sent to be slain by us for the forgiveness of our sins. Don't get me wrong, we definitely should think about that. But what I think often gets unfortunately overlooked, is how God came to be with us.

   Even those outside of the faith know the story of Jesus' birth. Or at least the basics of it. Mary, a virgin, is visited by an angel and told that she is carrying the Son of God. Her partner, Joseph, is also visited by an angel and told the same thing. Later, when Mary is ready to give birth, they try to get into an inn, but there is no room available. So they go to a barn and Mary gives birth there, laying Jesus in a manger. Wise men follow a star to watch the birth.

    You notice something about that story? How God came to us? Notice how I'm saying "how" in italics. Meaning I'm emphasizing it. God could've come in any way He wanted - in a tremendous storm, as a forceful ruler, whatever. But, He came as a baby boy. Not even just a baby boy, but a poor one. Born to a virgin in a small town.

    My favorite Christmas song is "Oh Holy Night", but my second favorite is also very important to me. That would be "Little Drummer Boy". Two lines from that song stick out to me more than the rest, those two being "I am a poor boy, too" and "I have no gift to bring that's fit to give our King". The first hits me because this poor drummer boy is feeling a connection. It says so much about God's grace that a poor boy, who has nothing to offer but his music, has something in common with the King of all. He was a poor boy, too. That's how God chose to come. The second just reiterates what I already said. He wanted to honor Jesus, but, being a poor boy, he didn't really have much to offer. So he does what he can. He plays his drum. Which is great! He is worshipping, and that is his gift for his King.

Merry Christmas.