12.18.17 // Expecting the Messiah: Fall On Your Knees

Matthew 2:11

“And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.”

The majestic star led the wise men to the King of the Jews as the prophecy had foretold. They knew the prophecy, studied the skies, saw the star, packed their bags, and followed. Upon reaching the house where Jesus was, the wise men knew that they were in the presence of a king, and so their response was worship. They didn’t just gracefully kneel down; rather Matthew describes that they “fell down and worshiped Him.” Their worship was immediate. Their posture was humble. Their praises were genuine. Their gifts were sacrificial. Their joy was complete.

This past weekend, my preschool class held their annual Christmas program. We have been practicing for three weeks, and none of the teachers could guess how the performance would turn out. There are 28 3-4 year olds between our three classes, and each day of practice was…interesting to say the least! Many of the four-year-old children were trying hard to learn the motions and words, while most of the three-year-old children were staring off into space, dancing to their own tune, or jumping down the stairs on the stage. They were tired of practicing by week three, and so were we! On the night of the performance as the children began arriving, everyone was proud to show off their new Christmas outfits – boys and girls alike! The girls were twirling and comparing sparkling shoes, while the boys were proud to show off their ties and sweater vests. They were adorable. We lined up, and they proudly walked onto the stage, rather gracefully to the teachers’ surprise! The music started, the lights were set, and the children began to sing. As a group, the children did a wonderful job. The performance could not have gone any better! The parents, teachers, and students were proud! (Riley Grace, who is usually the loudest singer (she sings and dances allllll day long at school), was as stiff as a board and quiet as a mouse! She didn’t move a muscle! She told me that she would sing next time… lol)

My favorite part of the program was when “O Holy Night” began. My heart was stirred to worship and my eyes welled up with tears at the sound of the children singing “fall on your knees” as they bent down to touch their knees. Of course, their hearts and minds don’t comprehend the meaning of those words YET, but they were singing them and bowing as sincerely as they could. How that must have blessed the Lord’s heart! I hope it did! It blessed mine. I pray earnestly that those children will know the full meaning of “O Holy Night” one day soon, and truly bow down to worship their Savior!

This Christmas season, I pray that we will have the same response as the wise men upon encountering Jesus Christ. I pray that our worship will be immediate, our posture will be humble, our praises will be genuine, our gifts will be sacrificial, and our joy will be complete. I pray that our faith will be childlike as we fall to our knees in worship. Christmas is 7 days away, and we all surely feel the stress that our busy schedules have caused. It’s crunch time. Parties are here, presents should be bought and wrapped, and food should be prepared. But don’t become so busy that you forget to have the correct response when encountering Christ. And don’t be so busy that you miss Him altogether. That would be a tragedy in the midst of this beautiful season where we celebrate Christ coming into the world to save us! Take some time to pause and worship. Even though you are busy, you have time to pause and worship. Worship is what is most important this season! Remember Christ coming and the sacrifice He made for YOU. What love! What sacrifice! Let us seek and worship the King of Kings as the WISE wise men did!

Merry Christmas!

Always, Jacquelyn