Christmas is the GIFT, of the Sacrificial Anointed Christ Child, Jesus, given to the world by God the Father. Christmas is a reminder of the humbleness/unmerited favor/sacrifice of the Son of God, who left His richest/glory of Heaven to bring salvation to a dying world. He is called the Son of Man. Christmas is a demonstration of the ultimate love of the Father and of the Son for his creation. The Psalmist says, Lord, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor? You ought to SHOUT right here! (Psalms 8:4-8)
The holidays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are times when singing, peace, and tranquility flood the atmosphere of heaven and earth. Holidays seemingly are times, when out of the 365 days in a year, people become selfless. Folks are inviting and expressions of kindness are extended beyond family tides. Holidays are times parents and children are jubilantly excited in anticipation for the giving and the receiving of gifts. For many, the holidays, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are times of joyful fulfillment, fun, and belly laughter.
With that being said, the spirit of this post is not to be "bah humbug'" regarding the holidays, to dampen anyone's spirit, or to take away the beauty of the holidays. In actuality, as the world truly exists, not everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving and is looking forward to a wondrous Christmas.
For so many, the holidays are dreadful and are an overwhelming life interruption that further worsens an already distressful situation. People are dealing with anxiety, stress, depression, and boggling down with the everyday struggles of life. Some are lonely, grieving, experiencing mild to severe depression from sicknesses, the fatalities of loved ones due to the Pandemic, sons/daughters gone too soon from gun violence and all manner of evil acts; the fact that a loved one will no longer occupy a seat around the dining room table, a space on the sofa, to never again enter their doorway: Devastated and too grief-stricken to enjoy happiness. I know! I watched my daughter traumatized over the suicide of her son, my grandson, at the age of twenty-two.
There is another group of suffers who we ought to be mindful of. They wander aimlessly, lying on sidewalks, huddle under viaducts, sleeping on park and bus stop benches, balled up like an embryo in the corners of tall buildings, homeless: The forgotten: The uninvited: The Mentally Il: Those whom we dare not consider worthy to sit around our table, to occupy a space on our sofa or to enter our doorway. These individuals could be your mother, father, your child, sister, brother, aunt/uncle, spouse, cousin, a neighbor.
Persons who are entitled to enjoy the holidays and all its festivities as you and I but due to no fault of their own, are deprived of the privileges of endearment. While you might perceive and are experiencing the holidays as pure joy, it is not the mindset of all. When you and I gather around family/friends this holiday season, as we bow our heads over a plenteous hot meal, as we kneel in prayer, let's not forget the forgotten, the uninvited, the ones considered as unworthy. Support can come in many forms, do whatever the Spirit places upon your spirit, to encourage someone less fortunate.
The "Banquet Feast" - Is a parable is a spiritual lesson to teach about salvation to the Jews
(who knew not God/Jesus) and also extended to the Gentiles. There is a variation of lessons that stand out in this passage of scripture. The Master/King represented God, the King's son represented Jesus... The original invitation to the banquet feast was God's own people. However they took it for granted, wouldn't accept the gift of the feast. Mind you, this wasn't just any old time or an average meal. The Master sent his servant out into the streets to compel all who were considered unworthy and extended an invitation to the banquet meal. (Matthew 22:1-14; Luke 14:15-24)
Compelled to come were the lower-class, the underprivileged, the hungry, the prostitutes, the pimps, the alcoholic, the drug addicts, and the dealers, those laden with diseases, the mentally challenged, etc. Some morals of the story are, God is no respecter of persons. His love extends to all mankind. God loves us all no matter what our situation. Jesus supported the unloved and the unfavorable. Jesus went throughout towns, villages, teaching and healing the sick. (Matthew 9:35) We cannot miraculously heal. We can certainly meet the needs of people in so many ways.
"We don't see things as they are; we see them as we are." Writer Anais Nin
Listen to the lyrics of the song sung by my daughter. "Better Days" by the Artist, Le'Andria Johnson - We own no rights to this music.
Walking in the Shadow of a Schizophrenic / Power of Forgiveness"
"The greatest good is to help those who can't help themselves." WISOS /POF
Website: Why Couldn't I See? wisos-pof.com