Listen to the words of Isaiah; this is the Word of Christ!
If the Birth of our Savior saves one more; God’s plan of Redemption is Perfect
There is no way any of us will know who it is that is saved, but to be sure that the signs of peace in an unbelieving heart can change the world around us. We are told that if you toss a stone into the air the movement of everything it touches will be changed forever. So it is with the grace that we cannot see will have an outstanding effect on that one person who otherwise would have lost their soul without it.
Something that you or I might have said, set an example, or just been around that one person who became touched by an unknown gesture from us that did in fact set in motion a grace by the Holy Spirit upon someone he was directing our blessing; just like our own reception from someone else had an effect on our current blessings.
It isn’t easy to be called to more than our own blessings at Christmas after our adherence to prayers for hope and satisfaction of sharing the grace we’ve been given through nothing we have done. But, since Chrisrmas is a time when we emulated what the Birth of Jesus means by giving himself as God’s gift of mercy to us, so should we give ourselves as a gift to those around us who may be lonely, distressed, or feeling unforgiven. That is the underlying gesture of what should be under someone’s tree as a gift of hope and assurance of the angel’s words to Mary; “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” (Lk 1: 28). The Lord is also with you, me, and especially that one person who has no one but you this Christmas.
Ralph B. Hathaway