Christmas Time's A Coming

So this is Christmas . . . people running into you . . . cars honking their horns . . . people buying other people things that they don't need . . . people eating more calories at a meal than they usually intake in a week . . . oh yeah, and some religious overtone - hard to remember that sometimes. It's kind of sad what we've made this holiday into. People all over our country (U.S.) are getting so bent out of shape because politically correct usage of "Holiday" has so overtaken "Christmas." Why are we so surprised? Do Christians treat Christmas any differently than those around us? Sure we set up our toy drives and food drives and clothes drives . . . but so does the local news channel in Columbus, and so does the United Way, and so does just about everyone else? What makes Christians so different from the world around them at Christmas times? That we're still vehement defenders of "CHRISTmas"? That we place nativity scenes in our houses and churches? That we sing "Little Town of Bethlehem" and "Silent Night" and get pissed when our kids can't sing them in choir? That we have Christmas Mass and Christmas Eve services? Isn't there something more? Something that we're missing?

Christmas celebrates the savior. A savior that too many people don't know. What a great and wonderful day that was when Christ was born, but I admit that I seldom revel in the wonder of that day. I am just like the next person, getting all caught up in the hoopla of After Thanksgiving Day sales, Christmas trees, lights and cards. But this holiday season should be a time of conviction and celebration for me. Like Jews at Passover - celebration and conviction. Jesus came via a lowly birth to lowly parents (sorry Joseph and Mary) and in a lowly time. Here I sit in a nicely suburban church, living in a nicely suburban house, in a nicely suburban neighborhood, bringing home a nicely middle class check. It's hard to be in that setting and live out what Jesus embodied. It's OK to be where I am - I'm sure of it, but it's tougher than I hear anyone saying. The hymnody of our church often bellows from Depression era theology, "I'm satisfied with just a cottage below . . ." but in reality I may be satisfied with a cottage, but that ain't what I got.

What is this long ramble saying? Christians get excited about your faith! Be convicted! Do something! Do something that makes us stand out from those around us! We're so worried about them taking the "Christ out of CHRISTmas" - who cares? Give them Christmas! Let's be sure that Christ is living, breathing, and active in the world through us. Christmas is our holiday and if we celebrate what we claim to celebrate, no one will get bent out of shape. Instead the Holy Spirit may have the opportunity to convict them of a great and wonderful story. A story that is too wonderful to simply share as a story. A story too glorious to be depicted powerfully enough in song. A story too magnificent to be celebrated in a day, a month, or even in a lifetime. We get so bent of shape over a day. Worry instead about this day. Is Christ alive and well in your own life today? Are others seeing him through you today? Tomorrow has enough worry . . . December 25 has enough of it's own worry . . . just focus on today and the wonderful things that God is sharing today. Haven't I heard that somewhere else before?

Have a wonderful day. And when Christmas comes . . . I hope that you have a wonderful day that day too.