Today was Christmas.
I said Happy Birthday to Jesus this morning, when I was in prayer. Happy, Happy Birthday. But, I’ll get back to that in a minute.
There are some other famous people born on December 25th.
One of my favorites, Isaac Newton, was born in 1642. There was a smart guy. A physicist, mathematician and astronomer. He sorted out the whole Gravity thing — why we fall off cliffs when we are pushed, instead of floating upward. He came up with the Laws of Motion too. Smarty.
There is also Clara Barton. Our good American nurse and founder of the American Red Cross. Born in 1821.
Since we’ve hit science and medicine. How about a little entertainment? In 1899, Humphrey Bogart was born. If you haven’t heard of Bogey, you are probably young. He was American actor who starred in a lot of great movies. But he always gets quoted for Casablanca – “Here’s looking at you, kid.”
Politics. There is Anwar Sadat, the 3rd President of Egypt. He was born in 1918. Not only was he Prez of the Pyramids, he was also a Nobel Laureate.
Sissy Spacek, in 1949. I will never forget her in the role of Carrie. No matter what else she plays, I see blood-covered Carrie.
Ricky Henderson, the baseball great, fast guy. I think he still holds the MLB record for stolen bases. That guy could fly. He was born in 1958. That makes him 60. I wonder if he is still fast.
And young, young Justin Trudeau, the current and 23rd Prime Minister of Canada. 1971. He’s really not that young, but the birth year is in the 70s, so it seems like it to me.
Another notable in the news, born on this. Christmas day. Joaquín Guzmán. Oh sure, better known as “El Chapo” — the Mexican drug lord and escape artist. Born in 1957.
There are scads and scads more. People born on Christmas. Even Jesus. What’s the luck?
But as you can see, from Bogart, to Trudeau, there is a wide range of people here. And on the day they were born, they probably didn’t know they would discover the magic of gravity, or start the Red Cross. Nope.
They were all just little play babies. Slobbering. Pooping in their diapees. Wailing for that next drop of milk. Jesus too. Just like the rest of us. I mean, Mary & Joseph probably had to see him through the terrible twos, and such.
But then one day, they all found their thing. That one big thing, that gets them listed on “Famous Birthday Lists.” That particular morning, they rolled over, put their feet on the floor, and that very big day began. The discovery. The realization. The hope, and the greatness, began somewhere, on one single day. (Well, except for El Chapo.)
That Jesus though. He sure did it all with grace, and love, and peace. Kindness. Goodness. Surely, a lesson for us all. And today, or the next, or in 273 days from now, our big day might come around, when our ultimate essence pours forth. May we find our way, whatever it is, with the glory and goodness of that shining light and divinity.
“Be willing to be a beginner every single morning.”
― Meister Eckhart
“The beginning is always today.”
― Mary Shelley
“It’s easier to resist at the beginning than at the end.” — Leonardo da Vinci