The Rest of the Story

There was a radio show that my parents and, eventually, I listened to called “The Rest of the Story.” It was hosted by Paul Harvey and was broadcast daily. He would tell short, true stories with a surprise twist at the end. And every time he got to that end, there could almost be heard a global gasp. Because you just didn’t see it coming but once you heard it, it all suddenly made sense.

It’s Christmas and I’m in the throws of our annual Ultimate Christmas Party. Not only joining the team to bring another season-launching experience to our church and community families, but to bring the story of Jesus’ birth to life, to remember one of the greatest stories ever told, ever lived.

But as I think about it, the story of Jesus’ birth alone is not enough. Imagine a person coming to church at Christmas for the first time, never having any information about Jesus. We tell the story of Mary getting pregnant by the holy spirit and people coming from the fields and from the east to see a baby, a “king.” But at this point, it’s only a birth. And not that much different from other women’s experience at the time with similar economic status. It’s the rest of the story, the ending in particular, that truly makes this birth a miracle - a first of many miracles.

Dugan, my son, reminds me of this every Christmas. He will often quote and then I make him sing the song by Reliant K, “I Celebrate the day.” 

And the first time that You opened Your eyes

Did You realize that You would be my Savior

And the first breath that left Your lips

Did You know that it would change this world forever

To look back and think that

This baby would one day save me

In the hope that what You did

That You were born so that I might really live

And I, I celebrate the day

That You were born to die

So I could one day pray for You to save my life

I’ve been thinking about putting a cross in my nativity scene. To remind me that the real reason I celebrate Jesus’ birth is because of what he was birthed to do. To bring God to us, to believe in us, change us, love us, forgive us. Die for us so that we could be reborn. Which, when I think about it, is another miraculous birth worth celebrating. 

The life that Jesus lived, his teachings and acts of love and kindness and forgiveness, his connection to his Father, his death on the cross for my sin, followed by his resurrection for my eternal life - that’s the reason I celebrate Christmas. It’s not just his birth; it’s what followed. It's the rest of the story that changed everything.