Today's Advent Devotional
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December 25, 2011 - Christmas Day
Written by Rev. Wayne Horne, read by Matt Gissendanner
“I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10-11
It’s Christmas Day. We can sing with great enthusiasm, “Joy to the world, the Lord has come. Let earth receive her King.” The journey of Advent has brought us to another celebration of our Lord’s birth.
The next question may be, “Now what?” The parties are over, presents are open, except for a few leftovers, the feast is complete. We will return soon to “ordinary days” as we move through the cold days of winter.
People are different. Some are slow taking down the decorations once the mad rush and business is over. They want to stop and let the sights, smells, and memories linger for a while. Others want to “get on with life” as though the season has been an unwanted interruption. We rush to take down all the decorations, putting everything away so we can get back to “normal.” But how do we define “normal?”
My hope for all of us is that we will have a new normal. Has the message and sharing of Advent changed us? Can we linger for a time and consider what the celebration of this birth of Christ means as we “get on with life?” Dr. Brian Crenshaw once wrote an article in which he talked about the rush and crush of Christmas. Not only are we out of breath but we are weighed down which causes us to look forward to getting back to normal.
It is sad that we have allowed the commercialization and business of the season to rob us of its tremendous joy. Let us not give in to the tendency to move on quickly, rather let’s spend time considering the new life that comes in the gift of the Christ child.
Consider these words from Andrew Greely’s novel “Lord of the Dance” in a conversation between Ace and Danny.
“But that’s what’s it’s all about,” Ace said. “Christmas is the surprise of light coming back, Easter the surprise of spring returning. Our faith is the ability to be open to surprises.”
