For Christmas, some years ago, a dear friend gave  me a reprint of a book from the mid-1890s. It is a recipe book of sorts, and it tells how to make everything from common household cleaners to medication to explosives. 

The recipes and information are fascinating, although I don’t think I’ll try most of them. Many of the processes are highly dangerous.

One of the things I learned how to make was called Prince Rupert’s Drops or Prince Rupert’s Tears. According to one source, “The drops are named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine, who brought them to England in 1660, although they were reportedly being produced in the Netherlands earlier in the 17th century and had probably been known to glassmakers for much longer.”

PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS. The tears are made by letting drops of molten glass fall into a tub of cold water. The glass hits the water and cools, creating beautiful tear-shaped drops. They are hard, clear, and have a small glass tail on them.

Amazingly, when you hold a drop and break off its tail, it explodes into fine powder, and the explosion can be felt in your hand. I suspect that a vacuum must be formed when the glass hits the water, and when air is let in, the drop can’t handle the pressure change.

At first, the recipe was simply one of those interesting but useless pieces of trivia that can catch my attention occasionally. The more I thought about it, the more I realized what an apt metaphor for life it was.

Our hearts can be as beautiful as Prince Rupert’s Tears and just as fragile.

We go through life with hearts that are hard and empty. An event will occur that shatters our hearts, and we’re left holding nothing but dust. The impact of the brokenness rocks our world. At that moment, many of us realize that we need a relationship with Jesus.

Fortunately, we serve the God who mends the brokenhearted. When we encounter them, we can share the reason for our hope and joy.

…in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect 1  Peter 3:15

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Romans 15:3

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence, there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

Until next time, if your heart is breaking, turn to the one who can heal it. If you know someone with a broken heart, tell them about Jesus.

Hallelu Yah / Praise God 

Kevin

Gleanings From The Word

Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life. 

Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)

Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. Your value in God’s eyes is so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that his plan for heaven will not be complete without you.

__________________________________________ 

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© 2024 Gleanings From the Word, K.F. “Kevin” Corbin. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.

I was recently talking about Christmas with an acquaintance.  He told me Christmas isn’t his thing; it’s just another excuse for a day off. They occasionally get together for a family function on Christmas, but his dysfunctional family makes it less than fun.

Some of his in-laws have a “religious background” but don’t really practice, and he “is not into all that anyway.” 

He and his wife don’t exchange gifts because they have everything they need. He told me that he “hates” shopping this time of year anyway because of the crowds and the hype.

He isn’t alone in feeling that way. Many people don’t enjoy Christmas. I don’t judge them, but my heart does break.

I agree that Christmas isn’t about the family get-togethers, the shopping, the decorations, the Christmas music and movies, or the gifts. Now, any or all of those things can add to the Christmas experience., but Christmas is a celebration of God’s story. 

There is plenty wrong with how we portray the Christmas story; for example, Jesus was most likely born in the spring, the angels didn’t sing, we don’t know how many magi there were, and more. Yet, the incarnation of our Lord is front and center, and that’s reason to celebrate.

The Christmas story is filled with miracles and fulfilled prophecies. That should catch our attention and point us to the wonder of it all.

Jesus is the Center. Immanuel, God with us is the reason for the season. He is cause for eternal celebration.

My favorite Christmas texts are not found in the gospel accounts of Jesus’ birth.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 2:1-2

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:5-8

Those verses don’t mention Christmas, the virgin birth, angels, shepherds, miracles or prophecies, magi, King Herod, a star, a census, Bethlehem, or many other components of the Christmas narrative we expect.

Yet, they describe what Christ sacrificed to come  and redeem us. That redemption started, in a way, with His birth. he came for us.

The Lord gave up all things to step into time. He condescended to be born in the womb of one of His creations so that he could suffer and die for us.

That, my dear friends, is the reason for Christmas. Strip away all the other trappings, even the ones we enjoy, and the reason for the season stands bright.

A baby, born to die for you and me. A lord who humbled Himself to redeem us. God’s great gift of love and mercy. It’s when heaven came down to earth.

May you keep that forefront in your mind this season.

Hallelu Yah / Praise God 

Kevin

Gleanings From The Word

Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life. 

Soli Deo Gloria (For the glory of God alone)

Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. Your value in God’s eyes is so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. You are so precious to God that his plan for heaven will not be complete without you.

__________________________________________ 

Did you know that we have an email version? It has the same great content but in a different format.

Subscribe today: https://mailchi.mp/f27bbeb09c22/gleanings-1 

For an archive of many back issues, visit our website at https://gleaningsfromtheword.com.

© 2024 Gleanings From the Word, K.F. “Kevin” Corbin. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.