Something to Celebrate

In my previous post, I talked about my quest to find a nativity scene… (Go ahead and read it. I’ll wait…)

…but I want to be clear that I don’t think that having a nativity scene makes one yard more holy than the rest. I marvel at the beauty of the lights as I drive around, and “ooh and ahhh” over the glowing and twinkling, just like everyone else. But it is the absence of the Birthday Boy in the midst of the birthday celebration that tugs on my heart. We are to be walking and talking proclamations, mobile billboards that announce the good news of Christ. Christmas should bring out the best in us and keep us closer to being the redeemed and faithful disciples of Jesus Christ that we are meant to be.

But, … have you been at the malls yet? Have you driven in the traffic? Have you noticed how people act and respond to each other in the busyness of the season? The kindness of drivers letting you in line and the smiles of salesclerks and shoppers seems to be missing. As several incidents began happening to me, I started to take note of how often these things are happening these days.

There’s the cranky shoppers waiting in endless checkout lanes. They avoid all eye contact and stand ready to pounce forward, making it clear that all slow purchases and newcomers to the line are unwelcome. There’s the drivers who park their cars at the expense of everyone else, and create situations that take up 2 spaces at a time or make it impossible for the car in the next space to open up the doors. There’s the tired store clerks whose long schedules and loud customers have pushed them into an apathetic mode of sales. These scenes seem to cover the landscape at times and change it from vivid colors to dull gray, and from to errands of joy to chores of drudgery.

It reminds me of a story my dad tells about his cousins. His uncle, aunt and their 8 children were on a long trip down a desolate highway. The kids knew that their dad would not stop until they reached their final destination, which was quite some distance away. There was no air conditioner in the car and the open windows allowed the hot wind to blow dust and heat onto all the occupants. Everyone was grumpy and tired to the extent that few were talking. There was even an absence of “he’s touching me” and “are we there yet?” After many, many miles, the oldest girl piped up, “Daddy, I need to go wee-wee.” Now that was an unusual request from a teenager who never used those words. The common “hold it till we get there” attitude was being challenged. “Daddy”, she urged, “Pull over. I need to go wee-wee.” The younger children may have put their request in those terms, but even so, the dad decided that nature’s call was going to have to take precedence over proper language and the call of the road.

The car pulled over and ten cranky people spilled out onto the shoulder of the road. The daughter moved to the side and began spinning around and around. At the top of her voice she joyfully yelled, “Wheeeeeee, wheeeeee!” and then stopped, faced the surprised family with a smile and said, “Okay we can go. I feel much better.” After a second of realization, the whole family burst into laughter. For the rest of the trip the crankiness was gone and was replaced by giggles and happy conversations. Sometimes we need to see that change is called for and then step up to be a catalyst for transformation.

In John 17:18, Jesus prays, “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.” acknowledging that His mission on this earth has been passed to his disciples. That message is a message of good news. It is a message of hope, love, peace and joy. It is a celebratory “wheeeee wheeeeeee” that allows us to see past the darkness of the world and focus on reflecting The Light of the world, Jesus Christ, into communities that can not see the hope that is available to them. I challenge you to go out into the world, sharing Christ’s love. Find ways to be that catalyst, especially during this season of good news and great joy. Wheee!

Happy Mark's Birthday!

Ahhh, Christmas time, when all the neighborhoods are decked out in pretty lights. Everything sparkles and shines, all in celebration of … well, it’s hard to tell.

For several years I have not put up Christmas lights outside my home. This is due in part to the time crunch that happens every December in the church and in part to not finding the yard art that I really wanted. This year I decided to search till I found something close to what I wanted. My quest began several days ago as I went to several stores, not finding a thing. As I arrived at the fourth store, a giant chain store, I was greeted by their Christmas section of yard art: a flying Santa, a tropical Santa, the Grinch, Snoopy, Sponge Bob, and a snowman village, to name a few. I stood back, changing my focus from pinpointing the perfect find to looking at the wide-shot of the whole department there. From edge to edge it was full of almost every decoration you could imagine, … almost.

In one little section, I could find wise men and a Santa “advent calendar”, but where was the Holy family? The next store had a similar section, but DID have a nativity, which was relegated to the back row and consisted of a few nativity snow-globes for you to shake up. The last store was same story, that is until I made it to the back row there, where (ta-dah!) I found it! In the far corner (the ACTUAL far corner) of the store, there was a box of Mary, Joseph and Jesus- not the size or style I wanted, not the beautifully made set I hoped for, but it only took me a second to wrestle the box onto my cart.

My heart grieves at this picture of how our society views the celebration of the birth of Christ and keeps Him far away in the back corner. Looking around each store at the abundance of lights and holiday decorations, I watched the holiday crowd who was seemingly oblivious to the reason for the season. I am usually a glass-half-full person, but in those moments I was struck by the sadness of the message that was lost.

Our houses glow with the strings of lights, but do we daily reflect the message of The Light of the world? We display and spotlight fun characters we think suitable for presentation, but do we remember The One who was displayed upon the cross in all his agony for the entire world to see? We quickly move from destination to destination, focused on completing our holiday tasks, but do we set aside time to sit silently in the presence of The One for whom the holiday is named? When I saw the video (above) I was amused by the premise, but as I saw Mark’s face change to dismay, and saw him being pushed away I was given a picture of God’s disappointment at the many times we push Him away.

But, like the good and perfect Father that He is, I know that this picture is meant to convict our hearts so we will be changed. I know I am not supposed to linger in an arena of sadness, but to persevere with proclaiming God’s good news and to be His witness in the world. JOY TO THE WORLD! In Mark 16:15, the risen Christ tells his disciples to "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” This year when you say, "Merry Christmas" let your words and actions point to Christ and reflect the joy of your salvation. I hope that you will allow the Holy Spirit to convict you and make you a bold and joyful witness for Christ this Christmas and all through the year.

Christmas Carols

Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:12-20 (NIV)

From the earliest days of Christianity, Christians have been charged with telling the story of God’s Good News through our words and our actions. Sometimes we even sing the story. We sing praise to God for giving us His Son. We sing about God and how he sent Jesus to the world. It’s about giving God the praise and glory for the love He gave and continues to give us. The great composer J.S. Bach said, "The aim and final end of all music should be none other than the glory of God and the refreshment of the soul." How wonderful that in praising God, He refreshes and restores us.

Through time, the songs and styles of music have changed, but the message is the same. Jesus came into the world so that we would have eternal life. Sometimes these traditions of singing developed into songs that incorporated more secular ideas and used mythical images, merely providing entertainment. But eventually the tide would turn back to the reason for the songs which is praising God and telling the story of Christ. Reading through the lyrics of most Christmas hymns reveals a rich story that comes from scripture (Angels We Have Heard On High, O Little Town of Bethlehem, Joy to the World, and O Come All Ye Faithful ).

Singing these songs throughout this season makes us witnesses and proclaimers of who God is and the extravagance of His gift to us in Jesus Christ. Take time to look at these songs with your children and listen to their understanding of the lyrics. Think about the rich meanings in them when you sing them. When you are out shopping in the next few weeks and hear these songs in the stores, use them as a reminder of who you are in Christ, calling you to love others as God loves you. When someone cuts in front of you in the long check-out line sing to yourself, “God rest ye merry gentleman, let nothing you dismay…” and hang onto your “tidings of comfort and joy.” At night, when you are stuck in the noisy holiday traffic, sing “Silent night, holy night. All is calm, all is bright…” and remember that the Prince of Peace offers you His heavenly peace, even in the storms of life. When you find yourself entangled in conflict with yourself or with others, sing Hark the Herald Angels Sing, and remember that because of His “mercy mild” “God and sinners reconciled.” Reclaim God’s peace in your life.

Sing and make your heart glad. Allow God to restore your joy. Sing praise to God and allow the Holy Spirit to make you a bold witness for Jesus Christ. In the next few weeks, if you see me pushing a cart through a store singing silently along with the store’s Christmas music, just smile and nod knowingly and join me on verse two.