December Babies

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations. (Matthew 1:1, 16-17 ESV). It seems that lately there is another baby boom happening in our country. I have seen more announcement this month than I can remember in previous years. Perhaps that’s because we are expecting spring twins in our family. December babies is a bit surprising though, especially when you consider that Americans are statistically less likely to give birth in the winter months by a pretty huge margin. I did a little research and it turns out scientists are pretty fascinated by the effect the season of your birth has on your health and general well-being, and they've come up with a whole lot of research on what it means to be born when it's freezing cold outside. For example, here are just a few of their conclusions:  Winter babies are bigger than at other months.  Winter babies are generally smarter than babies born at other times of the year.  Winter babies are more likely to be premature.  Winter babies are better behaved.  Winter babies are more prone to general poor health. I know that information falls into the category of barely useful trivia; but, it is interesting in view of the fact that we celebrate Jesus’ birth in December, even though most theologians believe he was born around the time frame of March-April. At any rate, I return to our reading for today. It is a birth announcement. Matthew lists all of Jesus’ relatives in his genealogy and then declares, “Today in the city of David has been born for you a savior who is Christ the Lord.” “Savior is the key word. God’s Word is clear that we need a Savior because all of us sin, and in the process, find ourselves separated from God. If we die separated, that means hell, and that’s bad news. But Christmas is about good news, because Christ came to pay the penalty for our sins so that we could be forgiven and made right with God. For those who believe, He saves us from sin and that’s pretty important. There are so many things to be concerned about this time of the year. There are family members to be planned for and gifts to be purchased. There are so many decorations to be set out and decisions to be made about dozens of invitations to parties, social gatherings, and church activities. So, s you rush around getting ready for Christmas, remember why He came and believe it. That’s the key to having a Merry Christmas.