Thinking About Christmas

The Christmas season rushed in and skidded past quickly this year. At least it did for me. And I’m feeling a bit nostalgic.

I grew up in a large family and remember Christmas as a warm, happy, family time. I loved decorating the Christmas tree, baking cookies, and finding or creating special gifts for the special people in my life. Distant relatives mailed us packages, we had parties at school and went Christmas caroling. And school vacation! Don’t get me wrong–I liked school, but I enjoyed vacations. Sledding, building snowmen, ice skating. Snowball fights–not so much.

The first time I attended a live nativity, I was six. It left an impression on me. In my mind’s eye, I still see the animals in the make-shift stable in front of the church and the people who made the event come alive for me. I remember the narrator’s voice as he shared the story of Jesus’s birth from the Bible. I later became a member of that church. Although I never participated in a live nativity, I took part in the church/Sunday school programs and the junior and senior choirs.

I memorized Luke 2: 1-20 because every year the public school Christmas program included a presentation of the birth of Christ along with a play and lots of music provided by the elementary and high school choirs and the high school band.

With the passing of our parents and the spreading out of our families through the years, many of our Christmas traditions have faded away. We still get together with family and friends to celebrate Christmas, but change is an inevitable part of life.

One thing hasn’t changed, however: Christmas is the celebration of Christ’s birth. Although it’s doubtful that Jesus was born on December 25, it’s significant that we set aside a specific day to remember that the Second Person of the Trinity took on human form. Because He never sinned, never disobeyed God, He became the conduit by which you and I receive God’s forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

John 1:29 “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

2 Corinthians 9:15 “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

Galatians 4: 4,5 “But when the fulness of time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.’ “

John 1:12 “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”

You’ve probably heard it said, “The Babe in the manger became the Man on the cross.”

As you celebrate Christmas this year, I hope you remember that it’s Jesus’s birthday. The best gift you can give Him is your heart. And tell others the good news.

There may be a reason you’re struggling to celebrate this year. Perhaps you’ve lost a loved one, or you’re ill, or you’ve lost your job. Life isn’t always easy or fair. Don’t give up on God. He created you, and He understands your heart and your needs.

Beth E Westcott