The turkey has been eaten; the stuffing and the gravy are all gone; the pumpkin and pecan pies no longer sit on the refrigerator shelf; and the family has all returned home with visions of sugar plums dancing in their head. Christmas season is officially here and I couldn’t be merrier.
Over the Thanksgiving dinner table the inevitable conversation came up, “What do you want for Christmas? Can I get a list?”
I’ve been thinking about what do I want for Christmas? Really thinking.
What if this year I could ask for anything and get it. What would be on my list: a sports car, an oceanside mansion in Malibu, or maybe the entire Disney World Resort.
Of course I would never ask for such extravagant gifts (that would be too materialistic of me) but isn’t that the epitome of America.
Christmas has become the largest commercial holiday in the world. Every year we spend billions not just on gifts but the wrapping paper for the gifts. Doesn’t that seem to be such a strange way to celebrate the birth of Christ?
What if Jesus was given the same opportunity to ask for anything and get it? What would be on his list; feeding the hungry children in Africa; ending the genocide in Darfur; finding good homes for the orphans of Asia.
Of course I could be slightly off on exactly what He’d ask for, but I think we’d all agree instead of it being materialistic, it would be completely selfless that’s the epitome of Christ!
So in all the thinking I’ve come to realize that there are really two Christmases, first there is the commercial christmas that stores want you to buy into and spend billions on one another, and then there is Christ’s Christmas which often gets relegated to a story and a cantata. That’s a shame considering that Jesus is the reason for this season.
So I challenge you before you and I get all caught up in the commercial Christmas let’s not forget Christ’s Christmas – He is the reason for this season!
This season let’s make Christmas a season of giving!
This season let’s make Christmas a season of peace!
This season let’s make Christmas a season of salvation!
This Christmas there are a lot of things you can ask for, but before you get caught up in the commercial Christmas remember Christ’s Christmas. Look for a way to give Christ something that would be on his list and make this season a season for giving, peace, and salvation.
