The drama on the first Christmas.

The first Christmas was happy. It was glorious indeed. But it was so emotionally intense to grasp at. It was hard for Mary to comprehend the annunciation of the Angel that she was about to conceive a child not from a man but through the power of the Holy Spirit. Who will accept a reason like that? In Filipino, harsh term could be “disgrasyada.” For Joseph, it was hurtful to accept Mary in that difficult situation. Feelings of Joseph and Mary were so much complicated during the first Christmas. It might not be told in the nativity story, but one could feel what Joseph or Mary felt then. Can you accept that kind of feeling? That heaviness of heart? That uncertainty which lies on them ahead? That drama on the first Christmas? 

Many things are hard but right. Many things are hurtful but necessary. Many things are bitter but essential. This could be the essence of Christmas. A God who chose hardship, hurt, and bitterness because He knew these are right, necessary, and essential.