It’s that time of year again; anticipated since Halloween, inaugurated at Thanksgiving; and now it’s upon us: Christmas time! It’s a great time to celebrate, to entertain, to relax, sort of; to engage in the great American pastime: to shop! The season dovetails so nicely with our penchant to acquire; trying to make sense of life through the acquisition of…whatever: new stuff, new experiences…more, more, more. The celebration doesn’t really require that we believe in the Christian God, not the way we Americans celebrate it anyway. Some take comfort in the tradition of Christmas without necessarily believing in the basis for that tradition. The focus is more on the icon of Santa Clause, or the promotion of good old fashion courtesies: the need to treat each other fairly, taking the time to contribute to those in need, or at least recognizing our common and shared humanity. Only all is not as it should be is it? Everybody’s running about; making preparations; touching base with friends; touching base with family. And there’s the “rub.” We don’t operate in isolation—I try to but it doesn’t really work—instead we deal with each other at an accelerated pace. Out on the highway our aggressive driving gets ratcheted up a notch…or two. And that acquisitive nature I spoke of is fully engaged. And it doesn’t take much for us to get ugly with each other—think Black Friday! Football adds to the aggression; and I say that as a fan of the game. All that orchestrated aggression provides fuel for contention in this accelerated environment. And you can feel the mood of busyness informing everything.

Even church feels busy with special services and activities associated with the season. Is that bad? I don’t know and I don’t really care, which is to say that my concern isn’t to naysay Christmas. Celebrating Christmas isn’t a problem for me. It has been; I don’t do real well with celebratory holidays of any kind. That’s because socializing is not that appealing to me. For one thing people are a mystery to me. I’m a mystery to me! But it’s not that I dislike people in general. I run into some people I don’t like, who doesn’t? And some people’s company I really enjoy. But it’s still the case that people are a mystery to me. Who are we? What are we? In the last post I tried to unpack the Apostle Paul’s consideration of the Christian walk in 1 Corinthians 13. The focus was on the “riddle” of the mirror whereby we recognize ourselves, and to some extent, the Lord. I guess in some ways it comforts me to think that my assessment of others is not unique. We’re all a mystery! Our nature is impacted by sin and our estrangement from God. And for Christians that estrangement continues to some extent even as we find our way into a deeper understanding of the Lord and our relationship with Him. My concern is that we overlook the mysterious nature of human existence and use the effort of keeping company with others as a means of ignoring that fact; holding each other’s hand in the darkness in order to feel safe, without really addressing the dilemma of our existence. Even going to church can be a means of staving off confrontation with the true nature of ourselves. We sit in the pew, and listen to the sermon, but are we really in a position to hear and respond to what the Lord might have to say to us? Ritual can be a powerful influence in our lives, and I’m not talking about formal rituals that employ accepted protocols in their performance. Just going to church regularly can be a form of ritual that we use to comfort ourselves without really investigating our salvation and getting to know the Lord in a personal and dynamic way; which brings us back to how we understand and celebrate Christmas.

We know we’re in foreign territory when we hear about the birth of the Christ: “…a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14) In the Gospels we learn that all manner of supernatural activity was associated with the emergence of this man. People had dreams, saw angels, and encountered unusual phenomena, all in the process of recognizing the birth of  Jesus of Nazareth. The story is familiar to church goers. It’s a story that’s repeated throughout the world. And even those who don’t believe in God—or at least the Christian God—know about this person.

Yet for many Christians this knowledge is the extent to which they’re willing to admit the existence of the supernatural in any significant way. We think the supernatural has to do with magic, and ghosts, apparitions of long dead people—remember Jacob Marley—and Halloween. It’s not associated with regular, everyday life even at Christmas time. And, of course, everyday life at Christmas time has to do with gifts, and socializing, and having a good time—or not. For many, Christmas time is depressing because they’re alone, unwelcome, or disappointed; and their predicament is brought into broad relief by the holidays in which everybody else seems to be having a good time. For most it’s usually a time to reacquaint themselves with people; people they like or don’t like as the case may be, and to engage in activities that provide a certain, perhaps superficial, satisfaction. In order to enhance these circumstances focus is given to idealized presentations of the holiday: films in which people overcome problems during the holiday season and live happily ever after, films of fantasy and diversion, or good old fashion films in which evil is overcome by the use of force and human ingenuity—sometimes during the Christmas season.

Do I sound bitter or dismayed? I’m not really; in fact I’m actually quite encouraged these days. Not because I think everything in life is wonderful, or that all the problems we face will ultimately be overcome. Actually it seems as if turmoil is constantly nipping at our heels in America, and disasters of every kind are happening throughout the earth. But what I look forward to are “new heavens” and a “new earth,” (2 Peter 3:10-13) with the Christ of God on the throne presiding over human existence. That’s encouraging! In the meantime I engage the Lord’s agenda as best that I can, according to what He indicates; and seek His face every day in order to navigate an environment plagued by deception and informed by a spirit of darkness. (Ephesians 2:1-3) His Spirit bears witness with my spirit that I am a child of God and, as His child I will inherit something far superior to any life that can be derived from this world. (Romans 8:16-17) I’m not trying to be “happy” anymore, I’m seeking to stay connected: connected to the One who oversees it all; the One true God who calls us out of darkness into His glorious light, the One who can sustain us in whatever circumstances He might place us. (1 Peter 2:9)

If you’re not doing that, then you’re probably going with the flow: following the lead of the humanists who think they can find their own way by exercising their intellect, or you’re focusing on the acquisition of wealth. Or maybe you’re just trying to stay distracted, ignoring the big picture, staying busy: shopping, focusing on sports, playing video games. Or maybe you’re motivated to do something beneficial for others who are needy, and in the process to feel good about yourself. Whatever it is, your focus is misplaced. Some of those things are okay, some are better than others, but giving your primary attention to anything other than the Lord is a futile effort to stay afloat in the mishmash of human existence! I’ve been around and I can tell you that all—and I mean all—human activity that functions apart from the oversight of the one true God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, is futile. It’s not a question of merit; it’s a question of relationship. It’s not a question of what you do or what you have, it’s a question of who you know—and I mean “Who” you know and how you know Him! This is a challenge for everyone; Christians and non-Christians alike. If you don’t know the Lord, seek Him! If you do know Him then press into Him! My challenge to Christians is this: if you don’t know the Lord better this year than you did last year or the year before then move it!!! Don’t just plant yourself in the pew and try to ride it out, engaging your version of the “good life” in the meantime. He’s calling us all to press into Him, to use up our time following His lead and serving His purposes!

This will look different for everybody. That’s because it will be accomplished according to His gifting and leading. But it will be much more rewarding than trying to do life on your own terms with only a passing nod to His leadership. It’s God who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light! It’s the Lord who has beckoned us to have an intimate relationship with Him, a relationship that redefines our existence as His sons and daughters! And it’s the One and Only God, who gives us the real reason for the season: new life in Christ!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! Halleluiah!