A Baby Changes Everything...

In this year's drama, I wrote for one character to say that he didn't believe that this season was about family or even a Baby. Sounds sacrilegious, doesn't it? It did to me as I wrote it then, and it does today. You see, Christmas has always been an amazing and magical time for my family. It means time together, eating and laughing and loving on each other. It is a time of music, lights and great movies.

But take all that away and what do you have? Remove your loved ones from your picture. Take away the lights and music. Take away all the yummy foods and snacks. It's just a day on the calendar. It's a day that a Baby was born. None of those events are very special are they? They happen all the time.

No, it is what that Baby grew to be. It is about who He became. And what He did for all of mankind. Every breath, every step He made was just to bring Him closer to death. It was ALL about that Cross. Just like Ricky Bobby, that Baby is easy for us to celebrate. What's threatening about a Baby? Not much. But make that Baby a Man. Make Him the Son of God. That's very threatening. To do that we have to accept that there is even a God. And that He cares for us. And that He wants to change our lives. And change is VERY threatening! Even good change.

So, if you're happy or sad; surrounded by loved ones or lonely; full or hungry, celebrate. You have a reason to celebrate. And that reason is that God came to earth. He came for you. He came to change your life. He came to live. To die. To rise again. Just for you.

Merry Christmas!

A New Kind of Normal

As I connect with friends and family, all talk turns to the same subject: Christmas. The lights are up and on. The trees are decorated. Every church has its program scheduled and advertised. Shops are crowded and parking lots are filled. It's the same old same old, isn't it? But what if you're facing a different kind of Christmas this year? What if you're wondering what to do about that empty seat at the dining table? Are you asking who's going to make that special recipe? Is there someone so sick that they can't fill their normal obligations? Because of a medical diagnosis, are you having to completely revise your menu? What if your world was turned upside down this year and you're having to find a 'new kind of normal'? And that includes Christmas?

Don't you wonder how in the world you're supposed to celebrate when you see absolutely no reason to? Growing up I had amazing parents who made Christmas one of the most magical times of the year. Well that changed as I became an adult. Those changes didn't mean anything negative. They were just a new kind of normal. The magic returned when my niece and nephews were born. It may have been different, but it was just as beautiful to be a part of making that magic instead of receiving it.

But I know there are some of you reading this who are wondering. How do I celebrate this year? How can there be any magic when he/she is gone? What's the reason for the decorations if that little one won't be there to enjoy them? Aren't those romantic movies and commercials murder when the romance has disappeared? Who has time for a holiday when life can be counted by the minutes? Do you just pretend? Do we put on that mask and give everyone else the impression that we are alright?

Sometimes what was before will never be that way again. Maybe life is forever changed. We can be living in 'a new kind of normal'. How do we navigate that through a holiday like Christmas? There can be no other answer than carefully. Allow your hand to rest in His. While we try to celebrate His coming in our new way, know that He doesn't expect the old way. He just wants you to acknowledge Him. He just wants your heart this and every other day of the year. Maybe He's carrying you this Christmas, just as Mary carried Him. Let Him. Cry out to Him. And remember that when there are no other answers, when those verses feel empty... There is Jesus. And He's holding you.

Nails

For several years I worked in Christian retail. I realized it was time to leave when I began to dread Christmas. A couple of years before I found other means, a new product came out. It was the beginning of the Christmas season and a new batch of ornaments had just arrived. This new product was like nothing I had ever seen before. It was an ornament. And it was a nail. A huge nail. It was heavy and truth be told, nothing like the beautiful and quirky ornaments around it. Now, I don't know what kind of nails held our Savior on that Cross, but the point is that this new ornament is a moden representation of those nails. The instructions that with it stated that it is too heavy to hang on the outer branches of the Christmas tree. It isn't meant to be decorative. It is meant to be hung before anything else, even the lights. It is the foundation of the decorating of the tree.

Isn't that true of our walk with Christ? Aren't those nails and Cross the foundation of our lives? They are not meant to decorate our lives or make us look good. They are there to remind us that without those nails, our lives would be usless. Without those nails, there would be no reason to celebrate this month. If not for that Cross, we would live without hope.

I just hung that nail on my Christmas tree. Every year I hang it in the same area. And I stop and think every year. And I remember. I remember that without that Baby. Without the miracle of His birth, I would not know Him. But if He had never shed His blood. If He had decided that the Cross would be too hard to endure. If He had just gone fishing with the disciples instead, then all this would be in vain. But He didn't. He died. He rose back to life. Just for me. Just for you.

Remember that as you decorate your own tree. As you put up the lights. As you listen to the Christmas music radio station. All of these things point to the Cross. And those nails.

Merry Christmas!