And what if?

"It was only one life that happened so very long ago. And yet, it changed everything for everyone, for evermore."

Every Christmas I ask the same question. What if? What if Christmas had never happened? If there had been no manger scene? If there had been no birth? What would our world look like?

If there had been no birth, there would have been no death on Good Friday. This was the reason that God became flesh and then dwelled among us. To be born as a human, to live as a human, and then to die as a human. To die a horrible death, a totally undeserved death. A death to give us all hope, to give us all life. Without the birth we celebrate every year at this time, the world would indeed be a very dark place.

His birth changed everything, for everyone, for evermore. Whether we know it or not, or accept it or not, the birth of this baby in a lonely manger, surrounded by animals, changed the world forever. His birth even changed our calendar.

No other person in the history of mankind has had this kind of impact. No other human yet to be born will have this kind of impact. The world was introduced to a new type of love - Agape Love - that love which today still mystifies many. How could this man, this Son of God, love us so totally, so unconditionally? A fierce and unyielding love which is capable of forgiving all of us, even after we have committed the most vile of sins.

So this Christmas, like many before, I am thankful. I am thankful that God came to Earth in the form of a man, and then loved us out of our death. He became the light of the world, gave us hope, and showed us His almighty love. For this time of year, we remember the word Emanuel - God is with us! And even though this one life happened 2,000 years ago, God continues to be with us, and for us. And this is what Christmas is truly, all about.