The God of the Universe was born into the poverty of a peasant and spent his first night in the cows feed trough. The God of the Universe left the glory of heaven and moved into our neighbourhood. Who could have imagined he would do such a thing? Why? Because He loves to be with the ones he loves. Dr. Maxwell Maltz tells a remarkable story of a love like this. A man had been burned and disfigured in a fire while attempting to save his parents from a burning house, but he couldn’t get to them. They perished. He mistakenly interpreted his pain as God’s punishment. The man would not let anyone see him, not even his wife. She went to Dr Maltz a plastic surgeon for help. The doctor comforted her, “I can restore his face” he said. Sure the doctor meant well, but still unconvinced she explained that her husband had refused any and all help up to that point, and she was confident he would again refuse. “Then why are you here,why the visit?” asked Dr. Maltz. “I want you to disfigure my face so I can be like him! If I can share in his pain, then maybe he will let me back into his life.” Dr. Maltz was shocked and denied her appeal. Stirred by her love- motivated request, he had to go speak with her husband. Knocking on the man’s bedroom door, he said, “I’m a plastic surgeon, and I want you to know that I can restore your face. ”No response or acknowledgement followed. “Please come out,” called Dr. Maltz. Again silence. Leaning against the door, Dr. Maltz appealed to the husband, telling him of his wife’s visit to his office and her inquiry. “She wants me to disfigure her face,” he said, “to make her face like yours in the hope that you will let her back into your life. That’s how much she loves you.” Again there is a brief moment of silence, and then ever so slowly, the doorknob began to turn. The way the woman felt for her husband is the way God feels about us. But he did more than make the offer. He took on our face, our disfigurement. He became like us. Just look at the places places he was willing to go : feed troughs, carpentry shops, wildernesses, and cemeteries. The places he went to reach us show how far he will go to touch us. He loves to be with the ones He loves.
