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Grace and Compassionate
eva Official Writer
1321Luke 2:14
“Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."
Bible Reading for a year: [bible]Psalm16[/bible]; [bible]Revel22[/bible];[bible]00Job8-10[/bible]
A letter from a British soldier during the World War I reveals a story that will be the most phenomenal Christmas story in all along the history. When it was Christmas Eve in 1914, the British and German troops faced each other in a fierce battle. But at night it suddenly seemed a strange sight when out of the trenches where the Germans were hiding, there visible lights were twinkling very beautiful. Apparently the Germans had placed Christmas trees in front of their trenches, lit by candles and lanterns along the trench.
Shortly afterwards came the Germans humming a song, "Stille nach, Heilige nacht." The song was not yet familiar to some of the British army at the time and those who recognized the song immediately had translated the meaning of the song which was the song of Silent Night. The song became a song that feels much more meaningful in the middle of the battle field which was dark and cold.
When the song had been finished singing, the British army cheered loudly for the German army. Then one of the British soldiers began singing The First Noel which was greeted by other British soldiers. The German army then applauded for the British army. That night the British and German soldiers sang the Christmas carols in their own languages. The British and German soldiers played harmonization of wonderful Christmas songs in that nowhere land, on a cold night, in the midst of war that was heating up. But what happened then was much more amazing.
They agreed to undergo a truce until the next midnight. A few minutes later, in that nowhere land, more than a hundred soldiers and officers on each side shook hands while a few hours earlier, they were trying to kill each other. Even those who could not communicate by each other might exchange their gifts by each other. The soldiers who had been hostile to each other were then assembled at the bonfire and sang back the Christmas songs by altogether which were closed with the song Auld Lang Syne, and promised to meet again in the next day.
A Christmas miracle that should be a material reflection. What caused the two opposing armies, fought to the death for their country, laid down their weapons and embraced each other as friends? Everything was just by the grace and the compassionate. The same grace and the compassionate present in the human’s heart for the first time through the birth and death of Jesus for two thousand years ago.
The grace talked about the freedom and favor that we should not accept, but God has given to us as a gift. While the compassionate talked about the long-suffering love, the goodness and God’s mercy, though in fact we deserve to be punished. Of course, the heavenly Father is the best example of the grace’s giver and the mercy.
May each of us can follow the example of our heavenly Father, and as the British and the German troops in the war-torn cold countryside in Belgium, spreading grace and compassionate to each one so that we can live with full of peace.
When grace and compassionate go hand in hand and knock people's hearts, the hatred will fade away and the flowing forgiveness spawn peace.
