On Christmas, Isaiah’s ancient promise feels startlingly fresh: “A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse.” Out of what looked dead, cut down, and hopeless, God brings forth new life. A tender shoot. A fragile bud. A Messiah who carries the Spirit in all its fullness—wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, holy awe.
This is the miracle we celebrate today: God’s answer to a broken world is not force or spectacle, but a Child. A Child who will judge with justice, defend the poor, and speak truth that dismantles evil. A Child whose very presence begins to reorder creation itself.
Isaiah paints a world almost too beautiful to imagine—wolves resting beside lambs, predators and prey sharing pasture, children playing where danger once lurked. It is a vision of peace so deep it reaches into the instincts of creation, healing what has been fractured since Eden.
And it begins in Bethlehem.
The Root of Jesse, lifted up as a sign for all nations, draws near to us in swaddling clothes. The King of heaven chooses a manger. The One who will restore all things arrives quietly, reclaiming humanity not by power but by presence.
Today, the angels cry out with joy because God has come Himself to save us.
Today, the promise blossoms.
Today, peace takes on flesh.
May this Christmas renew our hope in the God who brings life from stumps, light from darkness, and everlasting peace from the smallest of beginnings.
Merry Christmas!
Smitten With Goodness 