A Christmas reminder · 3:19am Dec 25th, 2021
As the blessed day approaches, thoughts of what Christmas means to us, consciously and subconsciously, come up. One may feel as if Christmas specials touch on it (and I believe some do, such as the Charlie Brown one), and thoughts inevitably turn to what will be under the tree on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
I would like to be careful here, so as not to spoil any godly joy people have in this holiday. I certainly enjoy it, as no doubt many readers of this blog and my stories. What I say here is not to condemn Christmas, or necessarily the gifts we receive, nor the feasts, nor the general sense of joy and goodwill toward man that permeates the air.
My concern arises from the fear that we will forget what Christmas means. The first six letters of the holiday's name should give us more than enough reason to not doubt it. Christmas is about the birth of Christ, the gift of God Himself to the world, that the sins of those who accept Him may be cleansed and we may now an eternity with God, freed from hell and its second death.
I fear that, in all the rush, the worry, and the specials and films we watch, we forget the real Christmas and the true nature of it that has been revealed. Several more recent TV specials (such as the Miser Brothers' Christmas) seem to believe that without Santa Claus visiting, Christmas wouldn't happen at all. I remember as a child being warned, Christmas time or otherwise, that if I was a bad boy, then I wouldn't get any presents from Santa, or I would get less than I would have otherwise. This fear of losing material reward worked, at least partially.
And that one word, material, sums up the problem. While some measure of joy from the Christmas holiday may fade as we age (I hope I am wrong), I worry about the commercialization and materialization of Christmas. We focus upon the gifts we may receive, the dinner, the specials, perhaps more than on the Reason for the season. I won't deny I have been guilty of these in the past, as a boy and later on in life. Whether or not Santa Claus is real, he is not the reason we should be celebrating and anticipating Christmas; Christ Jesus is.
I again don't want to spoil the joy of Christmas. I would like for us to become at least more thoughtful, and hopefully faithful, at Christmastime (and ANYtime, come to that). By all means, enjoy the holiday to a godly extent (as in, please don't get drunk or do bad stuff). I would ask the reader to at least take in that material wealth and possessions should not be our focus; rather it should be on loving God most of all, remembering that He sent His Son to Earth to teach and eventually die while we were yet sinners. That alone should be reason enough to rejoice.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. May the Lord Jesus Christ save you all, and Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas, and thank you!
On a Day like this, I think about all the things I'm thankful for. One thing I'm most thankful for is I wasn't born a lowly, disgusting, horrible...CAT!!
...kidding, kidding. I love my cats and I appreciate your kind words. Once again, thank you!