MINUTE READ
Advent, Week 3: Ordinary and Miraculous
The miracle of birth and the miracle of our Savior are both miracles that are revealed to ordinary people, every day. Don’t miss the chance to delight in the ordinary miracles God has placed in your life this Advent season to help you see him with new eyes. 
Sophia Vale
December 13, 2021

On the third Sunday of Advent, we light the Shepherds candle, which symbolizes joy. 

In Luke’s gospel, the shepherds are credited as being the first people to be told of the Messiah’s birth and the first to go and visit the child. However, in Matthew a similar story is told of the wise men. Whether or not the shepherds were the first to receive this good news and visit the child, their presence in the story is significant nonetheless. Why? Because they are ordinary people.

The miracle of birth and the miracle of our Savior are both miracles that are revealed to ordinary people, every day.

Three months ago, I had the privilege of experiencing the miracle of birth. Because of it, this Advent season holds new meaning for me. I understand what it’s like to wait for a child, pray for a child and labor for a child. 

On a small scale, my experience of laboring for my daughter can be compared to the way Israel waited for, prayed for and labored in anticipation of the Messiah for so many years. Both situations conclude with an intense, overwhelming sense of relief because once the child arrives, the striving is over. For me, labor ended when my daughter was born. For Israel, her spiritual labor ended when Christ was born. 

I also experienced the joy of meeting my child for the very first time and sharing her with others. Without saying anything, without achieving anything, without bringing anything into this world, without doing anything beyond merely existing, newborn babies bring joy. If that’s true for the most ordinary of babies, can you imagine what it would’ve been like to encounter this newborn baby who was going to save the world? How incredible that God gave that gift to Mary, Joseph and the shepherds—no folk more humble or ordinary. 

This Advent season is special for me not only because I have my baby girl in my arms, but also because I have new eyes to see and appreciate the miracle of Jesus—the deliverance of the people of Israel by the Son of God—God made flesh, the perfect blend of divine and mortal, miraculous and ordinary. 

I love that we serve a God who delights in the ordinary. Don’t miss the chance to delight in the ordinary miracles God has placed in your life this Advent season to help you see him with new eyes. 

Sophia Vale
Sophia Vale is a wife, mother and the communications director at First Free Rockford. She loves cooking, being active and spending time with her friends and family. She lives in Rockford with her husband and two daughters.

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get the latest stories from First Free Rockford in your inbox.

Sorry, No posts.
Send this to a friend