"Christmas is the promise that the God who came in history and comes daily in mystery will one day come in glory.
God is saying in Jesus that in the end everything will be all right.
Nothing can harm you permanently, no suffering is irrevocable, no loss is lasting, no defeat is more than transitory, no disappointment is conclusive.
Jesus did not deny the reality of suffering, discouragement, disappointment, frustration, and death;
he simply stated that the Kingdom of God would conquer all these horrors,
that the Father's love is so prodigal that no evil could possibly resist it."
He will wipe every tear from their eyes.
There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain,
for the old order of things has passed away.
Revelation 21:4
-from "Reflections for Ragamuffins" by Brennan Manning; 1998.