When John wanted to describe the birth of Jesus he wrote, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The word dwelt literally means “to put up a tent.” At Christmas, God came to earth and put up His tent, right next to you and me. George Gallup, the great pollster, had a passion for tracking the spiritual life of Americans. He once asked, “What is your greatest spiritual problem?” The number one answer was “A sense of the remoteness of God, a feeling that God is somehow outside the reach of my experience.” He was talking about the absence of the presence of God. Well, Christmas helps us to remember that God became one of us and dwells among us. He is available and approachable. God has come to be with us because God has put His tent right next to you and me. “I will fear no evil for thou art with me.” In our joys and jeopardies, we are never alone. There is nothing you can experience that God and Jesus didn’t experience and do not understand. He experienced temptation, rejection, disappointment, anger, suffering, family turmoil, pressure, stress, loneliness, love, joy, happiness. You can take all of your life to Him. He understands because He has been there. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
– Dr. Tim Thompson