Doesn’t it feel good to be wanted?  Being wanted is totally different than being needed, even though they both can feel wonderful.  If I am needed, I have something you need.  If I am wanted, you simply want me with no expectations.  I’m wanted for who I am, not for what I can do for you.  I have experienced feeling loved and wanted a lot in this past year.

Tonight, I saw the Christmas special from the popular series, “The Chosen.”  What a way to start off the Christmas season!  Dallas Jenkins knocked it out of the park once again as he portrayed the birth of Jesus- a Savior who came into the world because we were wanted.  Jesus entered our world in the most unlikely way.  The message that He was sending to us through His humble entrance was more important than His comfort.  He wanted the world to see that He loved us so much, that He was identifying with us.  All of us!  Not just the “worthy in the world’s eyes” people.  He came to the most unlikely in society, born in the most unlikely way, in an unimaginable place.  A teenage girl, a scared young Joseph, and shepherds who were low on the rung of society.  I loved a line in the movie tonight.  Someone said, “It’s like it was all planned.”  Yes, Jesus entered the world  just as planned.  This plan had you in mind.

Jesus is God incarnate!  Hebrews tells us that He is the exact representation of the Father.  I John tells us that God is love.  He doesn’t just  express love, but He IS love.  The scriptures also tell us that His plan of redemption was planned before the foundation of the world.  You see, NOTHING took Him by surprise.  He created us because He wanted us, however, He knew His original plan for the world would go awry.  When the human race fell through Adam, God began demonstrating throughout the Old Testament pictures of His redemption plan.  Why?  Why not just wipe us out and start over with the human race?  Because He wanted you and He wanted me.  We were not replaceable.  A parent or a grandparent can identity, to a certain extent, this type of love.  Wouldn’t we do anything to get our child or grandchild back if they had disconnected from us and headed for pain, heartache and destruction?  Multiply that by one billion and we may catch a glimpse of God’s love for us.

Rejection hurts to the core.  No one wants to experience it.  God placed inside every one of us the desire to the loved, accepted and wanted, knowing that we are persons of worth.  When we were disconnected from the Father, we set out to get those needs met any way we could.  But those needs were never satisfied completely,  not until our eyes were opened to the depth of how much God loves us and wants us.  It’s not just “For God so loved the world.”  Our eyes must be opened to the personalization of the Christmas story.  For God so loved Rebekah…For God so loved you.  He WANTS you!  He loves you!  He went to great lengths to rescue you.  He continues to pursue us.

You may have heard it said, that we are all born with a God shaped vacuum, that only He can fill.  It’s true!  He’s pursuing you!  Do you see Him?  My prayer is that more and more eyes would be opened this Christmas season to how much you are wanted, loved, and in need of a Savior!  It’s only when we have a need, that we can appreciate a Savior.  Many buy into the lie that they do not need anyone.  Self sufficiency and pride is the result of a wounded heart that has been broken.  We were made for connection.  We were made for intimacy with our creator.  We were made for so much more than what this world can offer us.  Life brings pain, but Jesus brings healing.  Don’t reject the life line that is continuously being thrown to you.  If you are struggling this holiday season, ask God to open your eyes to how much He loves you and wants you.  Ask Him to give you the faith you need to believe that the greatest love story in the world is meant for you too.  Your life will never be the same.

May you see and experience the love of the Father for YOU this Christmas season.