The Reason for the Season

Not to beat a dead horse....but I have been chewing on the whole "Blue Christmas Service" that I attended. I think it struck a chord with me because I have heard sermons all my life that instruct people to make sure they focus on the real reason for the season. I get that. I understand that. I agree with that.

However, I have also heard sermons that berated (in a pretty gentle way) anyone who allows issues in their life to overshadow the "real reason for the season". Is that really possible to deny the "stuff" that life brings our way for an entire season? Is it healthy to try so hard to "focus" on Christ during Christmas when life is pulling us apart emotionally?

I found myself feeling guilty the first year that Brian died when I didn't feel like celebrating "the reason for the season". I felt badly that at a church worship service I allowed my emotions to overtake me. I felt like I had failed at Christmas because I couldn't join in like I thought I was supposed to.

So maybe my expectations of myself were a little off....and maybe, just maybe, the church's expectations of people are a little off too......

But, what really matters...is the question "what does God expect of us at Christmas"? Does He expect us to deny the pain...to pretend that we are ok when we really aren't? Does He want us to berate believers who aren't "in the spirit"? What does God want?

I think God wants us as we are....where we are....for who we are. Jesus' birth happened in less than ideal circumstances. God didn't orchestrate a picture perfect entry into this world for His own Son. Think about it. Christmas has always been permeated by the sinful, fallen nature of the world we live in. Not even Bethlehem could produce a perfect night....without challenges and frustration....hello, can you imagine giving birth in a barn? Not an ideal circumstance.

Yet, God is able to take the "Bethlehem" of our life and make something beautiful out of it. God isn't bothered by the "stuff" that is in our barn...be it grief or greed or materialism or sadness or misplaced priorities or disappointments or failures.....He just wants us to let Him in....He doesn't have to be the star of the show.....He just wants us to let him in.....regardless of the smell and stench of our humanity.

The reason for the season may not be just about "celebration"....maybe it is supposed to be about "redemption" and "reconciliation" and "mercy" and "forgiveness"....maybe it's more about God meeting us in our Bethlehem and providing hope that His work in and through us is never really complete.

There may be another second edition later....just some random thoughts that still need some fleshing out.