Unto Us is Given

To us a child is born, to us a son is given. Isaiah 9:6 NIV

I wanted to be a married mother of children. I planned early to be a piano teacher, so that I could be a work-at-home mom. I saved my journals, photos, and favorite toys as a heritage for my children. I worked with my mother on our family genealogy.

The hundreds of children I taught for fifteen years, both one-on-one, and in classes, are my kids, minus the sleepless nights and diaper duty. It’s true that I’m very proud of the lasting effect I’ve had on their lives and of their progress as adults and musicians. I still get invited to their weddings and grand occasions. They send Christmas letters and pictures of their babies. Through a Christian agency, I sponsor young girls in Indonesia and Uganda. But face it, at the end of the day, students and sponsored children are not my children.

But just as Jesus came to be my Savior and my Brother, and introduce me to our Father, He is Emmanuel, God-With-Us. He gives me membership by birth and by adoption into the family of God. His incarnation means that He is also my Son, my Child, and my heritage. I can share in the promise He gave us in Scripture, that “to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 NIV

At my church, the pastors are inclusive of childless women, and call us “Mothers in Israel.” They recognize the influence and ministry we have in counseling, teaching, and befriending children who think their own parents are members of any species but human!

As Christian friends point out, in the New Earth, I may be a mother at last. The Lord comforts me with the promises that I will have sons and daughters (Isaiah 49:21-22), and that I have a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).

And you'll say to yourself,

'Where on earth did these children come from?

I lost everything, had nothing, was exiled and penniless.

So who reared these children?

How did these children get here?'"



The Master, God, says: "Look! I signal to the nations,

I raise my flag to summon the people.

Here they'll come: women carrying your little boys in their arms,

men carrying your little girls on their shoulders.

And every time I sing, in Handel’s "Messiah," the chorus “For Unto Us a Child is Born,” I get teary, but with joy. I do have a Son, and He can’t wait to come back to fetch me.

God-With-Us. Always!

The Word became a human being and lived here with us. John 1:14 CEV

Christmas is the celebration of God-With-Us. In ancient religious systems, the gods were localized to certain places or their spirits were confined to a territory or container such as a wooden idol or a stone shrine. When people traveled or emigrated, they worshiped specific gods in specific places, or they took their idols with them (Genesis 31). The gods were capricious, vindictive, killed each other in power struggles, cheated on their spouses, and accepted human sacrifices—even infants.

So when, on the exodus from Egypt, the God of Hosts traveled with the Israelites, that was remarkable! A first! Here was a God who was personal; involved; protective; nourishing; healing; compassionate; Who fought battles and resolved conflict; who designed and implemented holidays, festivals and rest days for the former slaves; and who cared so much for their comfort that He shaded them from desert sun by day and warmed and lit the night for them. Unlike the gods who wreaked vengeance upon any whim, this God demonstrated that He was a forgiving God. He promised a present and future of blessings if they remained in His tender care.

Generations later, when the children had rebelled and forgotten, God repeated His plan for reconciliation. To His people in war and exile of their own making, and subject to the “gods” of their exile, He spoke: “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel [God-With-Us].” Isaiah 7:14 NKJV

Wherever God’s people were or are, He is God-With-Us. “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:20 KJV) We can’t leave Him behind. He won’t abandon us when our closest companions do. And He’s not done with us in this short life span and at the end of this old world. He promises everlasting life to His children, and His presence continues forever!

Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. Revelation 21:3 NIV