2 Corinthians 1:3-7 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.”

            Christmas seems like a terrible time for tragedy to strike. We want to be caught up in the joy and the merriment of the season, not wringing our hands with worry over the health of someone dear to us. We want the ability to spend freely and the satisfaction of giving liberally, not the anxiety of fighting to make ends meet or keeping our job. We want to celebrate the good things in life, not grieve the death of those we love. We want undistracted bliss, not unavoidable suffering.

            But Christmas also provides the perfect solution for life’s tragedies. It assures us God cares. It assures us he will take care. “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

God’s promise to forgive our sins leads to eternal life, and this gives us the comfort that all illness, every injury, and even death itself are only momentary troubles. They will not and can never separate us from our Lord or from his love. God has been faithful to his promise to send the Savior. Christmas marks the keeping of that promise. Won’t he be faithful to his promise to take care of our every other need as well?

            And so, even in the face of tragedy, the birth of God’s Son still gives us tidings of comfort and joy. God still gives us rest, because, as the apostle Paul reminds us, through Christ our comfort overflows. No matter the tragedy we may be enduring at the moment, at Christmas we can still sing God’s praises, because this Child gives us comfort.