The Power of Touch, The Feeling of Christmas (Advent Part IV)

Sermon Title: The Power of Touch, The Feeling of Christmas

Good News Statement: God touches us and empowers us

Preached: Sunday, December 24, 2023 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSVUE): Luke 2:1-11 Today’s Advent Scripture reading comes from the Gospel of Luke, who tells us of the Shepherds—who were watching their flock by night when an angel of the Lord appeared before them. In this text, we focus on the feelings of Christmas and are reminded that the time has come to proclaim the “good news of great joy for all the people.” The reading comes from the Gospel of Luke, Chapter Two, and Verses One thru Eleven. May the hearing and understanding of the Word of God bring you hope and peace.

 

The Birth of Jesus

2 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. ² This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ All went to their own towns to be registered. ⁴ Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. ⁵ He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no place in the guest room.

The Shepherds and the Angels

⁸ Now in that same region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹ to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

 

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

 

Introduction:

Advent is a season of anticipation: a season of preparing our heart, mind, body, and soul as we await for the arrival of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word made flesh, who will be found lying in a manger in Bethlehem. But before we make it to Bethlehem, to witness what the angels tell the Shepherds as they were guarding their sheep at night, “This is a sign for you,” we must build up our anticipation by experiencing the season through our senses. We must experience the Advent Season through what we see, what we hear, what we taste, and what we feel. Have you ever wondered what the Christmas season would be like if you couldn’t see it, hear it, taste it, or feel it?

Together during the Advent Season, we are going to experience Christmas through our senses with the hope that through our senses we will receive a deeper meaning of what Advent, and Christmas, are all about. With the help of Matt Rawle, the lead Pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church in Louisiana, and the author of Experiencing Christmas: Christ in the Sights and Sounds of Advent, we will adventure, together, through the Season of Advent anticipating and expecting the arrival of Jesus Christ . Instead of just reading about the birth narrative of Jesus, we are going to live it out and be participants in the narrative of Jesus because we found the true meaning of Christmas this year.

Last week, we spent time considering the flavors of Christ that give taste to our faith and belief. The sights and sounds of the season are everywhere, but taste and its related sense, smell, are underrated. The Christmas story offers us a vivid picture of shepherds and angels, dreams and visions, but doesn’t really tell us anything about the sense of taste. According to Matt Rawle, “Our sense of taste is unique…Taste can offer a sense of wonder or comfort of home. Taste is a gift.”^[1]

When we taste the word of God, we are given a gift. We are to remember and be thankful. The Psalmist’s advice to “taste and see how good the Lord is” isn’t about salty, sweet, or savory, but it is about what satisfies and what causes us to stop, breath, and be thankful for what God has done for us and for what God is sending us, Jesus Christ. Tasting the Lord’s goodness is the recognition that we are hungry for his word—for his hope, peace, joy, and love—and that we need food to survive—the encouragement to keep Jesus’ message moving, to seek redemption, to experience him in real time, and embrace who Jesus is in our life. And the best part is, Jesus offers himself—flavorings and tastes and all—to us as a gift. We just have to be willing to accept it. Savor the goodness of the Lord this holiday season as it flavors your life today and every day. How are you going to allow Jesus to flavor your life?

Today, we conclude our sermon series about experiencing Christmas through our senses by asking ourselves, “What do I feel?” Christmastime is filled with feelings: both physical and emotional. We can feel the colorful and festive wrapping paper being ripped by our fingers; we can feel the either soft or prickly needles of the Christmas tree; we can feel the hot chocolate touching our cold lips and warming our souls; and we can feel the warm embrace of hugs offered by loved ones. We can also fill joy as we gather with those we love; we can feel peace when everything comes together the way we imagined it; and we can feel hope with “every Christmas card” we wrote. We can feel sadness as we notice an empty chair at the table this year; we can feel lost realizing that Christmas may not seem like it has in past years; we can feel as if a valley has pushed us away from the joy of the season; and we can feel like the manger scene, which is inviting all people to witness the new born King, is just barely in sight as we struggle to commit ourselves to receive God’s invitation to witness “a baby wrapped in bands of cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12) because we don’t feel perfect enough to do so.

Christmas is filled with an array of feelings and emotions that invite us to experience the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. “A Savior has just been born in David’s town, a Savior who is the Messiah” (Luke 2:8-12, MGS). But what exactly do you feel during the Christmas season? What do you touch and emotionally embody that reminds you that Christ is in your life? During the Christmas season, we feel how powerful touch is and how before there was joy there was fear and uncertainty. Matt Rawle notes, “We cannot live without touch. It would be impossible. We must be able to feel the world around us.” The time has come to allow yourself to feel Christmas so that your heart will become more open to the pure joy and salvation of Jesus Christ. What do you feel, is the question we ponder today.

Body:

In 2006, myself along with my siblings in the presence of my parents celebrated Christmas, for the last time, in our mobile home—the place that I called home for eleven years. I can remember like it was just yesterday: the six-foot Christmas tree was set up in front of the sliding doors that led out to the deck which was covered with snow, presents were scattered around the tree, my mom was in the kitchen making biscuits and gravy and getting things ready to head to my Aunt’s house for Christmas breakfast, my dad was sitting at the table with probably his third cup of coffee waiting for all of us kids to get up, and my siblings were still “nestled all snug in their beds, while visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads.” The anticipation for Christmas was no more because Christmas was finally here!

After returning home from my Aunt’s house, bellies full of breakfast casseroles, muffins, cinnamon rolls, fruit, and my mom’s biscuits and gravy, we all gathered around the Christmas tree to open those scattered-about presents. In just a few hours later, there was wrapping paper everywhere: there was wrapping paper in the Christmas tree, in the kitchen, down the hallway, and hanging from the ceiling fan! We were getting our gifts in order, when my father presented all of us with a small box. My brothers, my sister, and I opened those small boxes at the same time. Inside was a small key and a note that read, “This key is for new adventures, new dreams, and new beginnings. This key opens the front door to our new home.”

My siblings, being older, had perplexed and uncertain looks on their faces: they looked worried and possibly a little sad. I, on the other hand, was excited and filled with joy knowing that in our new home I would finally have my own bedroom. Besides feeling the wrapping paper between our fingers, there was a different set of feelings being expressed as we all touched and held our very own new house key. There is power in the idea of touching something; there is power in feeling emotional; and there is power realizing that Christmas, although joyful and exciting, as an array of emotions.

Movement One: The Power Touch – Physicality

In 1963, William J. Gaither composed the hymn “He Touched Me” which was inspired by Doug Oldham. According to Gaither, “Doug simply suggested to me, [that I] should write a song with the phrase ‘he touched me’ in it. There is something about the ‘touch of God’—to know that we can be touched by God at our place of need.” We cannot live without touch. We can be successful and live fulfilling lives without sight or sound or taste, but we cannot live without touch, especially without the touch of God in our life.

During Advent we prepare for the Incarnation. We prepare not only for God entering into time and creation, but for God assuming our humanity. God has eyes to see our suffering and celebrations. God has ears to hear our cheers and laments. For the first time, God eats and drinks to live. But the most profound of all the senses God assumes is the sense of touch through Jesus Christ: to know what it is like to be full and what it is like to be empty; and the pleasure of that first morning stretch, the pain of a skinned knee, and the healing of a mother’s embrace. This fully divine and fully human Jesus certainly had growing pains and experienced the confusion of puberty, the headaches of dehydration, and the joy of a friend’s embrace. So how does God putting on flesh help us understand the power of touch and feeling?

First, touch is resurrection. Jesus used the power of touch for resurrection. Luke 7 records: “Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow, and with her was a large crowd from the town. When the Lord saw her, he was moved with compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not cry.’ Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stopped. And he said, ‘Young man, I say to you, rise!’ The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized all of them, and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has risen among us!’ and ‘God has visited his people!’ This word about him spread throughout the whole of Judea and all the surrounding region” (Luke 7:11-17). Jesus’ touch is not only healing, but it offers a moment of resurrection. In our life, Jesus is constantly touching us reminding us that he is present in our life, and that from his presence he can resurrect us to have a new beginning, a new look on life, and a new profound faith in him. Jesus’ touch is a feeling of resurrection because it brings us back to life.

Second, touch has the power to save us. In the same chapter, Luke notes, “One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and when he went into the Pharisee’s house he reclined to dine. And a woman in the city who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair, kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him that she is a sinner.’ Jesus spoke up and said to him, ‘Simon, I have something to say to you.’ ‘Teacher,’ he replied, ‘speak.’ “A certain moneylender had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?’ Simon answered, ‘I suppose the one for whom he canceled the greater debt.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘You have judged rightly.’ Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven loves little.’ Then he said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this who even forgives sins?’ But he said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace’” (Luke 7:36-50).

Wouldn’t it be nice if Jesus took away our financial debt with just a simple touch! Although being relieved of debt is certainly a blessing, being saved and forgiven by the gentle touch of Jesus is what we long for in our life; it’s what we wait for in the manger. Mary Magdalene, the supposed female in this text and follower of Jesus Christ, was consumed by evil spirits that caused her to live in sin. Nobody, and I mean nobody, viewed her as an actual person worthy enough to be in the same room as Jesus let alone washing his feet. However, by presenting herself to Jesus as she was, touching his feet healed her or rather saved her. The touch of Jesus is lifesaving. The touch of Jesus is life-changing. The touch of Jesus is what makes us clean and whole and worthy and noticed. Allow Jesus to touch your hand so that you can be set free from whatever is weighing down: “take everything to God in prayer,” and let him save you by his touch, feel his salvation.

Third, touch is healing. Luke extends the idea of touch in the next chapter when Luke talks about the woman who had been bleeding for twelve years and was shunned by her community. Luke writes, “But Jesus said, ‘Someone touched me, for I noticed that power had gone out from me.’ When the woman realized that she could not remain hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed. He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace’” (Luke 8:46-48).

“Your faith has made you well.” Faith in what, exactly?” It’s faith in Jesus—faith that Jesus will not turn you away. Faith that Jesus will not shun you or neglect you nor ignore you. Faith that Jesus will offer divine compassion. Faith that God in the flesh is the source of your healing and restoration. Jesus did not recoil from her touch; and he is certainly not going to recoil when you reach out to touch him because he knows we all need to be healed—we all have sinned, we all have fallen into the greed and pride of life, and we all have stepped away from God at some point in our life. Jesus’ touch is healing because we need to be healed and Jesus knows that. God even knew that which is why He became flesh and dwelt among us. Feel the touch of Jesus healing you today.

Fourth, through Jesus we embrace a divine touch. At the beginning of Jesus’ story, when Mary and Joseph took him to be circumcised in the temple, Simeon takes Jesus into his arms, into a full embrace. Luke records, “Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the gentiles and for glory to your people Israel’” (Luke 2:28-32). Jesus was fully embraced at his birth by Mary, Joseph, and Simeon. Jesus was also fully embraced at his death when Joseph of Arimathea took him down from the cross. Jesus was embraced by others. The act of Jesus, our Savior and Son of God, being embraced is our powerful reminder that we, too, need to be embraced. We need touch in our life. We need to  say, “Jesus touched me.”

Christmastime is the time of year when a hug can be the best gift of the year, when a simple touch of the hand can remind us that everything is going to be okay, and when a simple tap of the shoulder brings peace that we are not alone. Through the touch of Jesus, we feel resurrected, saved, healed, and embraced. We don’t have to be perfect to receive the gift of touch from Christ; instead, we simply have to allow his touch to be present in our life and to be confidant enough to say, “Somebody touched me, and that somebody is Jesus.”

Movement Two: Scripture Text – Feeling as an Emotion

As I shared earlier, during Christmas we physically feel a lot of things: the needles of the Christmas tree, the ornaments hanging on the branches, the wrapping paper, bows, and ribbons, the mug of coffee or hot chocolate keeping our hands warm, the hugs of children and family and friends, and the comfort of our favorite spot on the couch or chair. But Christmas offers more than being able to physically feel things. Christmas comes with an array of emotions: joy, excitement, happiness, wonder, peace, sadness, discomfort, and maybe grief.

For example, throughout the birth story of Jesus, it is not happiness and joy that Mary, Joseph, and the Shepherds first express. When the angel appears to Mary, Luke tells us that Mary was perplexed and in response the angel says “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” When the angel appeared to Joseph in his first of three dreams, Matthew tells us that the angel told Joseph “do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife.” To this dream, Joseph wanted to divorce Mary quietly to protect her and probably because he felt anger and upset toward Mary for possibly betraying his trust. Then the angel appeared before the Shepherds, who were watching their flock by night, and said, “Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.” The Shepherds, much like Mary and Joseph, expressed a feeling of being scared and terrified. At first, the good news that a Messiah was coming to save his people, that God was going to be with the people—Emmanuel—was received with great fear instead of happiness.

Christmas is a joyful time, but for some it takes time to experience that joy. For some, sadness begins the season because they have to embrace the first holiday without a loved one there, because they know there is going to be an empty chair at the table, or even because they weren’t able to provide a Christmas that their family longed and hoped for. Christmas is filled with emotions that Jesus knows will help us understand how meaningful it is to know that he is in our life. We all feel something different when it comes to Christmas: some may feel joy during the entire season, some may feel overwhelmed and stressed, some may be grieving, and some may be going through a lot of emotions. What is most important is to acknowledge those emotions and allow Jesus and those in your life to be the source of comfort you are seeking. Don’t rush or excuse your emotions just because it is Christmas. God became flesh for you: the good, the bad, the ugly, the joy, the sadness, the successes and the failures. Allow yourself to feel Christmas for what it means to you.

Our scripture text allows us to embrace the emotions of Christmas. Luke writes, “In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.  And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no place in the guest room. Now in that same region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord’” (Luke 2:1-11).

We have already discussed that the Shepherds experienced a sense of fear when the angel appeared before them. However, our text allows us to wonder what the others were feeling. Why did Caesar Augustus decide to decree a census? Was he feeling like he was losing control of his empire? Was he scared because he wanted to know where this coming Messiah was to be born? Was he simply trying to start something new and receive great praise and adoration for his work? What about those who were forced to return to their home town to be registered? Were they frustrated that they had to stop work, pack things up, and travel back to their town? Did they want to go back to their home town? Maybe they left because of horrible situations or because they were told something similar as was told to Jesus, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” (John 1:46)? What about Joseph….did Joseph really want to make this trip back to Bethlehem with a pregnant wife? Would people still be talking about their situation when they returned to Bethlehem?  Did Joseph’s second thoughts of marrying Mary come back to mind when he had to make this trip? I wonder if anger, angst, frustration, and stress loomed in the air as these people travelled back to their home towns.

There is emotion and feeling in this text that is often overlooked because we know what comes after Joseph and Mary arrive in Bethlehem: there is no room in the Inn but there is room in a stable, the place where Jesus is born. Sometimes during the Christmas season we get too caught up on what we know is going to happen that we forget to pay attention to what is currently happening.

Several years ago, I took my nephew, who was probably four or five at the time, to see a Christmas parade and show him all the wonderfully decorated and themed Christmas trees. We looked at trees decorated with lots of lights, ornaments, and adorned with popcorn. We saw trees that were painted to look like candy canes. We even saw trees that were upside down. But the one tree that he stood in front of for a few minutes was a construction themed tree. On the branches hung construction cones, miniature road signs, barricades, flashing orange lights, and excavators, dozers, and dump trucks. As we stood there, I was thinking about all the other trees I wanted to show him, but the longer we stood there the more I realized that the future can wait. It was more important that I witness his eyes gazing all over the tree, the smile on his face growing with every tractor he saw, and his precious hands reaching out to touch every ornament and light before him. We all know what is to come during the Christmas season, but we also need to witness what is happening now before we find ourselves at the manger scene. We need to experience our emotions rather than excuse them.

Jesus will be born tomorrow in a stable. And he will be found swaddled in bands of cloth. But today, we are reminded to live in the moment, to feel the anticipation of Christmas, to feel the touch of Christ lingering on our heart, and to feel his presence shining within us. Today, we are reminded to notice those in our life and to be the source of hope, peace, joy, and love in their life. We don’t know what was actually going through the mind of Caesar or the people or Joseph or even Mary, but we do know that God was touching their life in some way just like He is touching your life right now because they welcomed Jesus into their life. God is touching your life through Jesus Christ as you experience Christmas by what you feel physically and emotionally.

Movement Three: “A Sense-Able God”

As God continues to touch our life, may we be reminded of how He touches our life through our senses. We began our Christmas experience with sight, and we asked ourselves, “Do we see what God saw through the eyes of Jesus?” Christmas is filled with spectacular sights: Christmas lights, Christmas decorations and trees, people shopping, store front windows festively adorned with garland. Now for the first time, because God has eyes to see, God sees what we long to see: the hungry being filled, the homeless finding shelter, the poor being blessed, the persecuted leaping for joy, the pews of the church being filled. During Christmas, God, through Jesus, sees His creation, and we are invited to do the same.

God not only saw, but heard. God spoke with Adam and Eve in the garden, God heard Abel’s blood crying out of the ground, God heard the desperation of Hagar in the wilderness, God heard the begging and pleading and the suffering when God’s people were enslaved in Egypt. Now that God has ears, through Jesus Christ, God is able to hear what we long to hear, the sounds of Christmas: the joy of the season, the expressive and secret laments on a silent night, the lullabies of Mary and Joseph, the wise men removing their gifts from their satchels, and the Shepherds approaching the stable. Through the ears of Jesus, we hear the call for loving our enemy, words of healing for those who are sick, and we hear a baby’s low cry. At Christmas, God heard His creation through the ears of Christ, which is something we long to experience every day.

Not only in the person of Jesus does God see with divine eyes and hear with holy ears, but God will for the first time know hunger and thirst. Jesus understood there is no greater connection with each other and the divine than when we gather around the table to remember Jesus. Every time you eat: every time you feed; and every time you prepare the table for family, friend, and enemy, be mindful that Jesus is there. Jesus never eats alone. Jesus, much like we should do, invites others to dine with him. God, through Jesus, is now able to taste and see the goodness of His creation.

Finally, we encounter the sense of feeling. God, through His incarnation to become flesh through Jesus Christ, feels what we feel. He feels pain. He feels joy. He feels sorrow and discomfort. He feels excitement and adoration. He feels unheard and ignored. He feels heard and seen. God, through Jesus, is with us—Emmanuel—as we experience the feelings of Christmas. God is with us as we open each gift with a smile on our face. God is with us as we see an empty chair. God is with us as we gather around the table. God is with us as we shed tears of joy and sadness. And God is with us because He will never forsake us. All of creation, with intent or accident, recognizes that when God put on flesh, everything changed. Jesus is born! Jesus is with us! Jesus is the hope, peace, joy, and love that helps us see, hear, taste, and feel the true meaning of Christmas!

Conclusion:

Realizing why my siblings were worried and sad as they held their new house key didn’t register with me until my dad said, “This is the last Christmas we will have in this home.” As much as we wanted to move into a bigger home, that mobile home was where our life began: “Oh, if the walls could talk.” On such a joyous day of the year, as a family, we felt sadness creep into the gathering space; we felt uncertain about this next journey; we felt a little worried. But as William and Gloria Gaither remind us, “Joy comes in the morning.”

Today and tomorrow, you may be going through an array of emotions, but please note that Jesus will be born on Christmas Day: that bundle of joy wrapped in bands of cloth, the one Isaiah declares as “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6-7), and the “good news of great joy for all the people” (Luke 2:10) will come in the morning. He has come to touch your heart and assure you healing, salvation, protection, and to offer you a moment of resurrection as you come to know him more.

On Christmas Day, celebrate the birth of Jesus, the word made flesh, the Incarnation, as you go and sing “Joy to the World, the Lord has come” from every mountaintop, as you take in the sights, hear the sounds, taste the food, and feel the true meaning of Christmas on the faces around on, with the people in your heart, and with Christ in your life. When Christmas comes to town, what do you see, what do you hear, what do you taste, and what do you feel in which reminds you that you can’t have Christmas without Christ? All creation, with intent or accident, recognizes that when God put on flesh, everything changed.

Let it be so…

 

Closing Prayer:

Let us pray: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the birth of your Son! Thank you for giving us joy in the morning! Thank you for opening our eyes, for helping us hear, for tasting your word, and for touching our heart. O Lord, be with us as we celebrate the arrival of Jesus Christ, and may we humble ourselves before the new born king. In your name we pray, Amen.

 

Benediction:

Don’t be afraid to let Jesus into your life this Christmas. Don’t be afraid to let Jesus touch your heart. And don’t be afraid to let yourself express what Christmas means to you. May the Lord bless you and keep you; May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; and May the Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26). In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit go, shouting good news of great joy to all the people that Jesus Christ is born. And all God’s people said, Amen. Amen. Amen. Merry Christmas and God bless us, everyone!

 

 

[1] Food doesn’t have to taste good, but it does, and therefore reminds us of grace. Speaking of grace, grace is a fee gift according to Paul in his letter to the Romans (Romans 3:24-26). God doesn’t have to give us grace but He does. God doesn’t have to forgive but He does. God doesn’t have to be merciful but He does. God didn’t have to empty the divine and walk with us, use our language, or eat our food, but He certainly did. The simple joy of tasting something delicious causes us involuntarily to stop, breathe, and be thankful.