Morning Devotion for the Season of Christmastide
December 30, 2025
Reading: 1 Kings 17:17-24
After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. She then said to Elijah, ‘What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!’ But he said to her, ‘Give me your son.’ He took him from her bosom, carried him up into the upper chamber where he was lodging, and laid him on his own bed. He cried out to the Lord, ‘O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?’ Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried out to the Lord, ‘O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.’The Lord listened to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said, ‘See, your son is alive.’ So the woman said to Elijah, ‘Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.’
Meditation-Rebecca Northington
Elijah was the prophetic voice in Kings urging Israelites to come back to God and to reject Baal and other idolatries. In many ways he can be seen as a forerunner to the Messiah as he performed miracles in the name of God, and urged his people to choose faith over fear and greed. Some believe John the Baptist was Elijah come again and Elijah is found alongside Moses during the Transfiguration of Jesus. He is no small player in the Old Testament or the New.
This reading is paired with John 4:46-54 in the Lectionary today. In this story Jesus heals a royal official's son who lays ill in Capernaum; this is the second miracle he performs after turning water into wine. I believe there are a couple of key elements to both these miracle stories. One, the power of God’s love for us, and two, the importance of faith. But the third point, and I believe the most important point to these stories, is the relationality between God and the faithful. These miracles happen because we engage with God. In both these cases miracles are requested by those with faith, whether they knew it yet or not.
This may seem like an irrelevant point, but I think when we really consider the role of the Old Testament and the New, it is an exploration of our human relationship with God; sometimes broken, and sometimes mended. When it is mended and we are in sync with God, typically, we thrive. Even Christ prayed and pleaded to God for mercy, just as Elijah does here. It is in conversation with God that our burdens are lifted, our eyesight and hearing restored.
On Christmas we celebrate in joy the birth of this incredibly vulnerable baby Jesus. We celebrate the hope that this baby represents; the peace that he offers. We celebrate as we break bread and remember his crucifixion; his final mortal moments on the cross in betrayal. Christmas and Easter are undeniably linked and they represent the ongoing push and pull we have as humans with God. We hope and we believe, we forget and we betray. The woman in Kings believes in God at the moment her son is saved. I wonder if she believes still as her last breath leaves her own body?
A classic anecdote that captures what I am trying to communicate is the scene of a plane experiencing terrible turbulence. How many seated have their hands clasped reciting the Lord's Prayer? Those same passengers who not a moment before the plane began to shake did not often consider this God they now hysterically pray to? I don’t say this with judgement or contempt; just that it happens today as it did 5,000 years ago. We call to God in our moment of need. Does that mean the faith was always there? Dormant?
As a mother I think about this dynamic. My gut tells me we should practice more gratitude when it comes to God; for our breath to start with. But as a mother I want my children to call to me in their hour of need even if they do not invite me into their lives in all the “regular” moments. My point is that we could all bring God into our lives more regularly, not just once or twice a year as we focus on Christmas or Easter. I think it could be weekly, daily, even moment to moment.
A recent Hidden Brain episode with renowned psychologist Dachner Keltner considers the power of awe. I highly recommend this episode or really any interview with Keltner related to the subject. Experiencing something wonderful, magical, shocking, or beautiful has the power to transform us. This reading and the experience of the widow is something akin to that kind of awe. Christ’s birth each Christmas Eve often fills me with awe, as do the final moments in the passion of Christ’s crucifixion. Acknowledging, accepting and living in relationship with God should fill us all with awe. Allowing this awe to transform us, so that we can manifest that peace that Christ offers post resurrection; this could result in transforming our world also.
Prayer
Eternal God, heavenly Father,
you have graciously accepted us as living members
of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ,
and you have fed us with spiritual food
in the Sacrament of his Body and Blood.
Send us now into the world in peace,
and grant us strength and courage
to love and serve you
with gladness and singleness of heart;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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