December 23

Christmas Around the World

Luanda: a portrait of Bethlehem

“And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid
Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.”
Luke 2:7 (NASB)

It must be Christmas time in Luanda (lou-AHN-dah).
The road is flooded as the rains come, and a river of dirt washes
under our gate. Young people are blocking off the street asking for contributions.
The police are stopping cars and asking for money. The lines for petrol are over one hour long. The temperature is 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and the humidity is about the same. And the all-night parties in the street really do go on all night long.

Not exactly your Christmas-card picture of the season, but similar
to what it must have been like in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. The daily
life of women carrying water, men lying in the fields, children playing
in the streets of dirt and animals wandering untended would have been
the same for Jesus as it is for our Angolan neighbors. In the same way
that many people in Bethlehem were unaware of the miracle in the stable,
so many in the streets here are unaware of the miracle of Christmas.
That, however, is changing. The churches are active in promoting the
message of Christmas. National radio is reading the Bible on the air
and playing meaningful Christmas songs. A few years ago church attendance
was actively discouraged, and Christmas was celebrated as
“Family Day.”

There are still challenges to face. AIDS continues to grow more
menacing. While 25% of children die before the age of 5, people are still
living under the fear of a bad harvest.
Yet this is the best Christmas season in a long time.

—Scot, Central, Eastern and Southern Africa

Hallelujah, what a Savior! Thank You, Father, that You sent Jesus to save the
world! Thank You that Angolans are hearing about Jesus. Take Your message
into the interior of this country that has been ravaged by war for so long.
Amen.

Next day