Christmas Day is only three days away. We gather on this the fourth and final Sunday of Advent tingling with anticipation. Something wonderful is about to happen, and we are going to be a part of it. To rediscover the joy of Christmas we must realize that joy is a gift to us from the God who loves us. We cannot earn joy, we cannot follow step by step instructions and arrive at joy. Joy is a gift and is celebrated as a gift.

Often times in our lives we experience joy at unexpected times and in unexpected places. Our God is a God of great surprises. God's ways are different from our ways. We live in an age where research and opinion polls are conducted weekly. We know what other people think about the many issues that we face. When we have a decision to make we would like to think that we'v…