Tuesday, January 2, 2024  

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Today’s Hymn
Once in royal David’s city
stood a lowly cattle shed,
where a mother laid her baby
in a manger for his bed:
Mary was that mother mild;
Jesus Christ, her little child.

He came down to earth from heaven
who is God and Lord of all,
and his shelter was a stable,
and his cradle was a stall;
with the poor and meek and lowly,
lived on earth our Savior holy.

Cecil Frances Alexander’s “Once in Royal David’s City”
(tune: Irby)
from Glory to God: The Presbyterian Hymnal

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Reflection

Is “humble” too generous a word to describe the “lowly cattle shed” where the mild Mary laid the newly born son of God and Lord of all? Mary, the mother of Jesus was not a wealthy aristocrat, swaddling Jesus in rich and comfortable surroundings.

God sent God’s son into the world, not directly to a throne where all the world would bend a knee and recognize him as King, but to humble Bethlehem; to a stable and a stall, “with the poor and meek and lowly.” There was no hype and huge media splash. There wasn’t 24/7 news coverage on multiple cable channels and social media. There wasn’t a “tweet” to millions of followers with the big announcement. God didn’t hold a press conference in a gleaming tower in a huge city.

In a world that seems to idolize power, wealth, and strength, Cecil Frances Alexander’s hymn reminds us that God came into the world as our Savior, in a humble, meek, and mild way. God became one of us and turned the world upside down.

At the dawn of a new year, can we be grateful and remember the true meaning of Christmas? “Once in royal David’s city …”

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Prayer
Holy God of true power and grace, hear our prayers. Help us celebrate the true meaning of Christmas and surround us with your love. Walk with us as we go into a new year. Be at the center of everything we do. Be our strength and forgive us when we fall into the trap of idolizing influence and affluence. Fill us with a spirit of trust in your capacity to hold us, keep us, transform us, and guide us. Amen.

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Written by Anthony Hipp, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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